Ready to roll
I really enjoy working on bikes. It doesn’t matter much if it is my bike or Hottie’s or a friends. While some cyclist’s fantasy camp is riding with RadioShack, mine is to be one of their team mechanics.
I have pondered this oddity. Growing up I loved to take things apart and understand how they worked. That interest was a challenge because we had very few tools. My father had a hammer, a huge adjustable (crescent) wrench, a plumbers wrench and two screw drivers. This drove me to buy tools with my allowance at a very young age (when my parents didn’t steal my money for liquor or down payments). Having the limited resources of a young teen I bought cheap tools which almost did the job. This is why I so appreciate quality tools, and thankfully Hottie understands that. It may sound funny but I was starting to get misty when she gave me a Park Truing stand one Father’s day. Those same limited resources also meant that during my youth the bikes and other hardware in my life were seldom first rate.
Like anyone that has earned the wrinkles on their face, I have mistakes and regrets. There are many things I would do different if I could. But with the time-space continuum being what it is, I can’t. One of the things I like about bikes is that, unlike people and past mistakes, I can usually fix them. Do I work on bikes to try and make amends for a lifetime of frustration? That is way too deep for this Blog.
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