Since the mercury's rising and warm weather will soon be upon Toronto, we've been thinking of buying me a bike. (Mike already has one.)
It's a little odd, this buying of a bicycle. I'm just looking for a cheap commuting bike, one I can chain to public bike racks and bang around without worry. I'm not looking to cycling across any countries, just across Toronto, and this time my budget's very tight, so that limits a lot of bikes. Plus, we know all about bikes. Easy, right?
Not really. Trouble is, we used to ride good bikes. Really high-end. And this is like going back to economy after having your private jet. And instead of simply *looking* at a bike and going by a gut feeling ('do I like the colors on this?'), we'd get bogged down with all sorts of options and factors to consider. (Have we ever blogged about the research that showed that having more options is not always better? Mike probably did, I think...) The frame, the weight of the bike, the welds, the type of tyres, the wheelset, the gearing, the seat, the shape of the handlebar, the rise of the handlebar, the color of the tape on the handlebar...
It's a little odd, this buying of a bicycle. I'm just looking for a cheap commuting bike, one I can chain to public bike racks and bang around without worry. I'm not looking to cycling across any countries, just across Toronto, and this time my budget's very tight, so that limits a lot of bikes. Plus, we know all about bikes. Easy, right?
Not really. Trouble is, we used to ride good bikes. Really high-end. And this is like going back to economy after having your private jet. And instead of simply *looking* at a bike and going by a gut feeling ('do I like the colors on this?'), we'd get bogged down with all sorts of options and factors to consider. (Have we ever blogged about the research that showed that having more options is not always better? Mike probably did, I think...) The frame, the weight of the bike, the welds, the type of tyres, the wheelset, the gearing, the seat, the shape of the handlebar, the rise of the handlebar, the color of the tape on the handlebar...
...that's me old bike. Sweet.Anyway, long story short, we've been to three bike shops and no bike yet.
2 comments:
Sigh...you're so spoilt. Like you said...point A to point B right? Otherwise, just save more money and buy a better bike. Rationalize that it's cheaper than owning a car and you get exercise at the same time. Should be pretty safe over there right?
Haha, yeah. Exactly. That's why I'm putting a strict cap on the amount of money I'd spend on it.
At first I thought, last year in St Louis, if I can't find one I like, I won't buy, which turned out to be a good decision. But after a while, I think, well, it's not so bad, a cheap bike that is. Trouble with expensive toys is that you worry all the time about them.
Fairly safe. There's a lot more people commuting by bicycles here than Singapore (and St Louis). Traffic here is not as crazy as in south-east Asia.
Post a Comment