2022-01-31 – I got a new bike yesterday.

I don’t have it home yet. We bought it at Johnny Sprockets, where we’ve gotten several bikes in recent years. We got bikes for Nat and Cal. And my last bike came from there. They give good service and have to set up the new bike. This includes transferring some equipment from the old bike. The old bike will soon be for sale.

There is nothing wrong with the old bike. It was a great bike. I put more than 16,000 miles on that bike in just under five years. As bikes go, it beat out my 1980 Raleigh, which was my previous best bike. I’m not getting rid of it because it’s a bad bike. I’m getting rid of it to have a bike that is more friendly to my body—specifically my wrist.

I made a typo when I started this post (since corrected). I spelled “Bike” as “Bioke.” I hit both the I and the O keys at once. But I kinda like having the word for life in the word. Bike riding has been a life-long joy. There were many years that I didn’t give time to it, but I always came back to cycling. And the last five years have been the best.

Really, it’s been six years. I started the current saga with a previous bike. At the time, I was going through some heavy tests for a dread disease. Fortunately, I don’t have the dread disease. But all the medical attention impressed upon me the need to take care of myself as I get older. So I started riding in earnest. It’s been great. (And it’s been great in managing other maladies that have come along.)

Last year, I fell (while on a 60-mile ride to Indiana). I rode the last few months of the year with a sore arm and wrist. It turns out that, while the sore arm was due to the fall and has (slowly) gotten better, the sore wrist was probably due to an injury from years ago and isn’t going away.

And riding my old bike puts too much pressure on my wrist. I figured that, if I want to keep riding (I do), I needed to get a different type of bike that has me riding in a more upright position. So, that’s what I got. It’s a Specialized Crossroad (replacing a Specialized Allez). In addition to different handlebars and frame geometry, the brakes and gearshift are in a better place. I got a step-through frame (the new name for girls bikes) to make it easier for this old guy to get on and off.

I hate to give up my best-ever bike. And I’m not crazy about the reasons for doing that. But it’s not the bike that’s responsible for all the wonderful miles. It’s me. And I’ll be sitting on the saddle of the new bike for years to come, making the new bike my new best bike.

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