Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!

01-16-2007, 05:09 PM

Well that was satisfying! My neighbors had been lamenting their lack of
good bikes whenever I saw them at the local dog park, as they'd often
see me zooming about doing errands on one of my small fleet of utility
bikes. So I lent Caroline "Helga", an alley find retrofitted with 700c
wheels and 28mm tires I built up from the detritus in the garage.
([Only registered and activated users can see links. ]) She rode the crap out of that funky coaster
brake thing the past couple of unseasonably warm weeks. That lady
needed a bike of her own!

I found out in passing that she had an early 90s rotty Mt. Shasta rigid
mtb in the garage. A college campus transport in very rough shape.
Tires with the tubes coming out the sidewalls, and a chain that was 2mm
past the 12 link usual. Shimano Altus componentry in oxidized, but
solid condition. Rust spots on frame, bars, and covering the chain. The
wheels were nice and almost true, so I asked her if she wanted to blow
a hundred bucks to see if I could do something with it.

Returned it today looking fantastic, with WTB slicks, Freddy fenders, a
silent and perfect drivetrain with a fresh chain, grippy new brake
pads, shortened bars with new Tru-Grips, rust ground off and touched
up with 'lectric tape covering the hideous decals in an urbanite
fashion. It didn't look showroom, but it looked like a serious vehicle
instead of an old rotty mtb. She just about had a heart attack! Talk
about a killer hug! She kept shreiking on about how cool the fenders
looked. :-P Oh, and then she saw the shiny new skewers I'd given her
from the bucket. Never have I seen a person get so happy about new
shiny skewers.

All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
miles.

This wouldn't be news in a city where utility cycling is normal, like
Chicago or Madison WI, but in Nashville, it's pretty cool to get
another rider on the road that's not spandexed up.

:-D

01-16-2007, 05:26 PM

On 16 Jan 2007 18:09:57 -0800, "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> may
have said:

>This wouldn't be news in a city where utility cycling is normal, like
>Chicago or Madison WI, but in Nashville, it's pretty cool to get
>another rider on the road that's not spandexed up.

Welcome to the ranks of the Urban Transport Guerilla Underground.
Subvert the fuel-based-transportation paradigm!

--
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Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

01-17-2007, 05:45 AM

"landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegro ups.com...

> All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
> leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
> store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
> miles.

This is great news -- keep up the good work!

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]
See the books I've set free at: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

01-17-2007, 01:24 PM

In article <1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
"landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

> All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
> leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
> store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
> miles.

You realize, of course, you are the bike's
personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on --

unless you're willing to lend tools ;-)

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

01-17-2007, 04:19 PM

Tom Keats wrote:
> In article <1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
> "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>
> > All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
> > leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
> > store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
> > miles.
>
> You realize, of course, you are the bike's
> personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on --
>
> unless you're willing to lend tools ;-)
>

Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens
out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis,
and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D

01-17-2007, 06:57 PM

In article <1169083145.286172.129480@11g2000cwr.googlegroups. com>,
"landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>
> Tom Keats wrote:
>> In article <1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
>> "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>>
>> > All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
>> > leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
>> > store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
>> > miles.
>>
>> You realize, of course, you are the bike's
>> personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on --
>>
>> unless you're willing to lend tools ;-)
>>
>
> Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens
> out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis,
> and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D

Yeah, neighbourliness is great.

Even though sometimes it results in being given
more zucchinis than ya know what to do with.

Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay
to let too many people know you've got a floor pump.

It's okay if they bring their bike over for you
to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna
borrow your pump and take it away with them for
awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress
of delineating &putting your foot down about what
you'll lend, and not lend.

Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's
a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest
pin ever lathe-turned.

It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong
freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

01-17-2007, 07:21 PM

Tom Keats wrote:
> In article <1169083145.286172.129480@11g2000cwr.googlegroups. com>,
> "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
> >
> > Tom Keats wrote:
> >> In article <1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
> >> "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
> >>
> >> > All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
> >> > leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
> >> > store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
> >> > miles.
> >>
> >> You realize, of course, you are the bike's
> >> personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on --
> >>
> >> unless you're willing to lend tools ;-)
> >>
> >
> > Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens
> > out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis,
> > and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D
>
> Yeah, neighbourliness is great.
>
> Even though sometimes it results in being given
> more zucchinis than ya know what to do with.
>
> Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay
> to let too many people know you've got a floor pump.
>
> It's okay if they bring their bike over for you
> to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna
> borrow your pump and take it away with them for
> awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress
> of delineating &putting your foot down about what
> you'll lend, and not lend.
>

My pump does not leave the premises. I went for near twenty years
without getting a proper floor pump of my own, and it's going nowhere.
I do not miss the beforetime when I thought all a man needed was an hpx
and a thumb.

I lent my Yakima rack to the next door neighbor. He went and got
himself drowned in the Gulf of Mexico the next weekend. Never got my
rack back. That'll learn me. Damn you, Nate!

> Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's
> a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest
> pin ever lathe-turned.

I've got two, just in case!

I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do
it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow
it for a week, have fun.

>
> It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong
> freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself.
>

I could use one of those actually...

01-17-2007, 07:38 PM

In article <1169094101.486197.129160@l53g2000cwa.googlegroups .com>,
"landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

>> It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong
>> freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself.
>>
>
> I could use one of those actually...

I've got a couple of 'em, but they're kinda nubby.
You'll do better with a fresh, square-cornered one.
Or two.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

01-18-2007, 11:08 AM

landotter wrote:

> I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do
> it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow
> it for a week, have fun.

Nobody around here (Boston) seems to do any landscaping any more -- I
feel like an endangered species. It seems like not too long ago people
used to fix their own stuff. Now, if a bike breaks, people toss it.
Everything has become disposable. One of the great ironies is, with the
Internet, we're in some kind of DIY "golden age". Know-how is easy to
Google, so are odd parts, and Ebay is like a global flea market.

It's nice that you're seen as a hero to your neighbor, and it's nice of
you to be so generous with your time and expertise. On the flip side, I
built a really nice bike up for my wife - city bike, 26" wheels, slicks,
fenders, rack with rear pannier, bar bag, v-brakes, trigger shifters,
etc. Perfectly matched to what she wanted - a reliable, no fuss machine
for commuting and weekend rides. She always has people telling her how
she needs to "upgrade" if she wants to be faster when she goes on club
rides. Ditto on my son's bike (we built together), old Raleigh, but with
new bar-ends (8s), new wheels, clipless pedals, etc. On a club ride one
condescending jerk remarked that he was surprised my son was faster than
he, given that he had all the "wrong stuff".

On a balmy evening last August, my dog walking neighbor (professor)
stopped to chat as I was replacing an exhaust system. He made a
sympathetic remark about what a shame it was to be under a car on such a
nice day. I flipped my goggles up, took a long pull on my Tecate, and
told him this was the perfect thing to be doing, and I meant it! It made
me wonder if he had ever fixed anything. Fixing stuff makes me happy,
and if I can make someone else happy too, like you did, that's a bonus.

01-18-2007, 11:11 AM

landotter wrote:
> Tom Keats wrote:
> > In article <1169083145.286172.129480@11g2000cwr.googlegroups. com>,
> > "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
> > >
> > > Tom Keats wrote:
> > >> In article <1168999797.090731.77200@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
> > >> "landotter" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
> > >>
> > >> > All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll
> > >> > leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware
> > >> > store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple
> > >> > miles.
> > >>
> > >> You realize, of course, you are the bike's
> > >> personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on --
> > >>
> > >> unless you're willing to lend tools ;-)
> > >>
> > >
> > > Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens
> > > out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis,
> > > and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D
> >
> > Yeah, neighbourliness is great.
> >
> > Even though sometimes it results in being given
> > more zucchinis than ya know what to do with.
> >
> > Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay
> > to let too many people know you've got a floor pump.
> >
> > It's okay if they bring their bike over for you
> > to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna
> > borrow your pump and take it away with them for
> > awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress
> > of delineating &putting your foot down about what
> > you'll lend, and not lend.
> >
>
> My pump does not leave the premises. I went for near twenty years
> without getting a proper floor pump of my own, and it's going nowhere.
> I do not miss the beforetime when I thought all a man needed was an hpx
> and a thumb.
>
> I lent my Yakima rack to the next door neighbor. He went and got
> himself drowned in the Gulf of Mexico the next weekend. Never got my
> rack back. That'll learn me. Damn you, Nate!
>
> > Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's
> > a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest
> > pin ever lathe-turned.
>
> I've got two, just in case!
>
> I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do
> it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow
> it for a week, have fun.
>
> >
> > It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong
> > freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself.
> >
>
> I could use one of those actually...

Park Tool FR-2, nicer than the Suntour original.