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beater bike don't go too fast

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-seven years and one million words

Toronto, 2017.11.25

I patched up everything I could on my beater bike, a 25 year old mountain bike with extended handlebars and seat post.

But the front dérailleur turned out to be missing a part, and it had long since seized up. So, it was back to the bike shop, where I'm becoming a regular. They had to order the part, sadly.

It rides so nicely, I tend to forget. I think it must have been purchased with expensive components somewhere in the mix (the wheels?). With shorter crank arms and 26" wheels, it'll be a lot more pedaling. But those smaller wheels and mountain bike gears and chainrings, it's much easier to start than my cyclecross. And it's much lighter, maybe only 2/3 the weight. It'll be fun to ride for the months when there's salt on the roads.

Three good things that happened today:

  1. Really getting into a book on how your thoughts and experiences shape your brain.
  2. The weather was a balmy 9C or so while I was working on the bike.
  3. I'm pleased with my skills with bike repairs. I really noticed the difference over when I last performed surgery on the bike (maybe 4-5 years ago).

rand()m quote

Capitalist production, therefore, only develops the techniques and the degree of combination of the social process of production by simultaneously undermining the original sources of all wealth – the soil and the worker.

—Karl Marx