Safety Swap

March 3, 2013

Hello bicycle enthusiasts.  It was nice to see you all at the bike swap today.  I enjoyed it and I'm pretty sure you did too.  I only heard one guy complaining about anything related to the swap.  And he was sitting at the bar across the street and bitching about the $3 cover (for the swap not the bar).  Although this person was obviously not riff-raff, since he was inside a bar instead of on the corner with his drink in a paper bag, he may not have been quite enthusiastic enough about bikes to be the target audience of the swap.  Plus the Bancroft Street Market ain't that big and it was jam-packed full of us bike addicts.

Since we USians measure our worth by our purchases, here's what I got.

I spoke with Mr. Ferguson of Ferguson Bike Shop on Leavenworth.  He refurbed/overhauled this sweet-ass ride which I will try to win from him in a gambling game of some sort as soon as possible, since he said it's not for sale.

The Krate is a '68.  Here's an awesome ad for the machine.  Coincidentally available from a different vendor.

Although this mode of transport is just as bad ass now as it was in 1968, if I owned it I would probably give it to someone whose kids really annoy me.  And let's face it, that's everyone's.  That is because of the suicide shifter.  It is clearly a disaster waiting to happen.  Worse than the one-handed shift is the fact that the ball-end on the shifting lever apparently covers a very sharp, pointed end.  So if you lose your ball-end you might end your balls' comfortable, intact existence.

Ouch.

I saw a Surly Long Haul Trucker that also has some serious haulin' shit capacity.

There were also many Bridgestones around.  An RB-2, an MB-4 and one of those X0 spunkmeisters.  Plus a wool jersey with a '94 BS catalogue/ad/magazine booklet.  But none quite as rusty and weathered as the Old Bastard.  HA!

I learned that the Wear Yellow Ride is on May 18.  I also got an e-mail about the Bike for Sight Ride which is on April 27.

I enjoyed the swap quite a bit.  Nice to shoot the shit with fellow bicycle fanciers.

Here was a kind of cool 3-speed internal hub bike (a Via of some sort) that Bike Masters was trying to sell for a mere $200.

Seemed like a good deal, but I am saving my money to learn how to gamble so I can score the Krate.  Here's a PSA for your perineum, sack, anus, et. al. safety, as appropriate.