Why Not?

It's red, It's not yet bought.

After lamenting my lack of motivation to ride, there has been a bit of cycling renaissance. Two glorious weeks of autumnal sunshine, and the rediscovery of messing about with knobblies in the dark* has put me back on the bike and a gormless grin on my face. It’s also re-introduced me to the joys of shopping after six weeks of buying absolutely nothing. Yes, you heard it here first folks – all that nonsense about sub prime debt and bankers having the fiscal sensibilities of a plant pot are mere media ruses. I’m solely responsible and for the good of the UK economy, so I’m trading the country out of the credit crunch with an accelerating spend on pointless upgrades.

First my tyres are more than a passing rubbery resemblance to my own departing thatch. With my lack of riding, I can only imagine this is some kind of design fault where the tyres moult during long periods of idleness. But rather than replace them with something cheap, I have plunged headlong into the deep and scary pool of tubeless. I already have the rims, I have some new tyres on the way, and I have no idea how the hell you mate the two without an inner tube.

Do the tyres come with some kind of magic pixie dust? Hope so – because I can then cast a spangly spell to distract the rest of the family, while a funny looking road-bike is added to the tiny collection of my current fleet. Yes it’s like the Roadrat, no I don’t like dropped barred bikes, yes it’s a silly waste of money, no I’ve not actually bought it yet. But during a euphoric moment of insanity on last night’s ride, I agreed to participate in the Hell of the North Cotswolds next year. And not in the sensible 50k event either.

Therefore I need an incentive, something to get me out when it’s too horrid to go mud plugging, something fast enough to let me hang onto the coat tails of my far fitter friends. Something, and let’s be absolutely honest with each other here, new and red.

That’s alright isn’t it? Thought so 🙂

* There was a bit of that going on in a car park we passed last night. I think I may have discovered Malvern’s premier dogging spot.

15 thoughts on “Why Not?”

Marc

Erm, you appear to have loads of spam in the RSS feed for this post!!!

October 3, 2008 at 4:07 pm
DanLees

Oooo that bike looks like fun…

Surprising how embarassed a dogger looks when confronted by 4 sets of HIDS/20W halogens.

October 3, 2008 at 4:14 pm
rich

The spam is in all the posts as well.

It’s one of the dangers of running an ancient version of WordPress.

October 3, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Alex

Right, I’ll just have to go with the upgrade. We could be off line for a while 😉

October 3, 2008 at 5:48 pm
James D

I would take the p*ss, but I ordered a bike of the darkside persuasion today so best not!

October 3, 2008 at 5:54 pm
DaveB

You might as well ride that bike through the garage straight onto ebay….poor thing. I’m talking to the Queen at the moment about creating the Royal Society for the Protection of Bicycles that may receive Brief Attention from Alex Leigh.

October 3, 2008 at 8:12 pm
Alex

Dave, that’s hurtful and yet v.v funny 🙂

October 3, 2008 at 8:14 pm
nickc

Drop bars, skinny tyres, Alex’s well known spacial awareness “issues”, the dark, rubbish brakes…What could possibly go wrong?

October 3, 2008 at 8:25 pm
brad

lame.. tut tut.
To think
I once considered you a friend.

October 4, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Alex

As ever, your support and encouragement are a tower of strength 😉

October 6, 2008 at 8:34 am
Ian

WTF!!!! Can I just take you back a few weeks Al, when, during our last bimble, you paused in your scorn of the fact my bike only has one speed only when you found out I wanted a road bike.. and the shocked pause was only broken when you poured scorn on that as well..

😉

mate, if you’re so desperate to buy bikes, at least buy me one.. that way one of your purchases is likely to be ridden for more than a couple of weeks before being ebayed 😉

nice bike though chap.. I’m only jealous!

October 6, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Alex

IT IS NOT A ROAD BIKE. It’s “confused”. Right now, I know exactly how it feels 😉

October 6, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Mr Jingles

But will it make you a riding GOD?

🙂

October 7, 2008 at 10:36 am
Alex

In my head Jay, in my head 😉

October 8, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Lord Jingles

LOL!!!

October 8, 2008 at 9:21 pm