The Pound

I finally came to understand the ideas behind bikes at the co-op. It is a lot like the pound, or animal shelter. It exist in a way that compares to a bike shop like the shelter relates to a pet store. The bike there have various issues. Some are diamonds in the rough, and some are too far gone to be saved. Although not overrun, kids bikes are like puppies and kittens, everyone loves them. Older bikes, adult bikes, they don't move as quickly. Even fixed up, some may not be the same as when they were younger. The idea isn't to fix them up the same as new, but to make them as good as they can reasonably be. And while I have been somewhat spoiled growing up and having access to good bike shop bikes, (pedigrees in the analogy) there are many who don't care if the pedals are not quite right, or the brake cable housing doesn't match, if the levers are not a real pair, etc. They don't care if the bike has Shimano or Sram, if the bike came from Walmart or a Bike Shop. They care that they can hop on it and ride from point a to point b.

One bike I worked on at the Co-op was converted to a single speed, removing the gear shifters and the cables, while using the RD to hold the chain on a certain gear and add tension. The person getting the bike will be thrilled with it like that. I actually think they will like it. I found some longer BMX grips that matched the bike really well in the back parts area, and the bike rode well enough. (I don't think anyone got a pic of me riding it, I think it was a 20", maybe a 24". Small either way.)

It is true that I prefer new bikes over used. My current stable contains two bikes I bought new (one I assembled myself) and two older bikes. One I did some work on and a LBS did a lot of work on, and that was from 1974. The other is the Mongoose frame that I built up, and it is one of my favourite bikes in memory. And while I plan on trading in the vintage and the current road bike (2011) for something a bit more in line with how I prefer to ride, my Mongoose isn't going anywhere. I know every part on that bike, and I can fix just about anything that could go wrong on it. (I can't do anything about the frame if that goes though.)