Since building up my Atlantis 5 years ago I've been using it a great deal, and my other bikes almost never see the light of day. The Atlantis is just such a joy to ride that I really don't want to ride anything else! When it was about a year old I took it on its first tour, in Brazil. I agonized over bringing it, as I've got a long history with the capricious Brazilian customs officers from 3 decades of working there; I've had very expensive work equipment confiscated by them in the past, never to be seen again. But I really wanted to get that bike out touring and making memories right away, so I rolled the dice and brought it. Right away I leaned it against a palm tree for a photo op and it rolled and slid down the tree, grinding its first and still biggest paint scratch into the top tube; so that broke the "preciousness" in one go. Now it's got a bunch of beausage, still has traces of stains from the red Brazilian clay that just won't come off, but I don't fret over it at all. I commuted on it regularly before retiring last year, and aside from exercising and exploring it's also my errand bike and grocery getter. It's simply my bike, that I use for everything I need a bike for. I am still a bit squeamish about leaving it locked up for long. I paddleboard and kayak, and for 20 years I drove my watercraft to a launch spot which is literally 100 feet over the town line into the adjacent town. When they signed it "Resident parking only", I wasn't about to be denied access to "MY" paddle spot - so I made my old Stumpjumper into my beach bike as it's so beat up I don't think anyone would want it, and I don't worry about leaving it locked to the guardrail for a couple of hours while I'm out on the water. Otherwise it's the Riv for every bicycle need - that's what I got it for, and it excels!
On Saturday, November 5, 2022 at 6:15:18 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote: > Did you read Grant’s Blahg? He covers a lot of ground, but most notable to > me was the Please Don’t Be Precious About Your Rivendell section. In sum, > Grant is saying it saddens him to think of people riding beater bikes > instead of their Rivendells to do daily, monotonous tasks - because those > tasks make up a lot of real life. If one “saves” their Rivendell, it will > not realize its potential, sit mostly unused and then pass to one’s heirs > who will sell it in “near mint” condition on EBay, and how sad. What was > the bike for? > > I have found myself both guilty and innocent on the matter. My #1 favorite > bike is my raspberry Platypus. I ride it all the time, because I bought it > to ride it, but I also dread any harm coming to it, and I do guard it from > that. I got a second Platypus that I dedicated to shopping and traveling > with and promised not to be precious about it. But now and then I still am > tempted to backslide. When traveling to the Philly Bike Expo I dithered > about which bike to bring. I didn’t want my raspberry Platy damaged while > locked up at racks and I feared it being stolen. Roberta said, “I don’t > think you have a choice, Leah. That’s the bike people will expect you to > bring.” And she was right, and I did. > > Then, there is Pam. Pam is at the other far end of the spectrum. Her bike > is a model of beausage. Innumerable paint chips and little spots of rust > cover her tiny Betty frame. Her Backabike bags are full of holes and the > elastic closures are worn out. She locks it up and never worries about it. > She did not obsessively stare out the restaurant window to see if it was > still locked to the rack while we were at dinner (like yours truly). But > she loves her bike, has real affection for it. She looked at me, eyes > shining, and said exactly that. Ana, PurpleRiv, is another good example to > us. She adores her bike, but has not spared it from hard work. Her bike has > hauled obscene loads and taken her everywhere. I remember there was that > one fateful camping trip for she 1. Posed it for a photo, only to have it > topple and slide down the face of a boulder next to it. I believe she said > she sat there and wept for 2 hours over her Joe Bell paint. And who among > us would not do the same? 2. Same trip, another photo op, and the bike fell > off a cliff. > > So, who truly loves their Rivendell? The one who lavishes it with care and > protection? Or the one who pulls it out of the garage and into all of life > - the mundane and the adventurous? > > On one end of the spectrum we have those who will only take a Rivendell > out for special occasions so as not to spoil it, and on the other…well, we > have Pam and Ana, who will give it a good thrashing. (Oh, don’t take it > personally, friends, I’m being funny about both types of owners.) > > I find myself wanting to be precious but fighting it and succeeding *most* > of the time. I’m lucky that the raspberry paint hides beausage and dirt, so > it looks pretty new. But a dent in the top tube or a large chip in the > paint would really hurt my feelings. Heaven help me. > > Where are you on the spectrum? What words of wisdom might you have? What > strategies do you employ? Do you want to change? Or are you > unapologetically staying put on the matter? It might be fun to hear > perspectives. > Leah > > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/257ff34e-9713-4cb2-be3e-4ea58a3b3c04n%40googlegroups.com.
