autoBIKEography

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1976 sky blue Schwinn Sting Ray

Mongoose BMX

In 1975 I learned to ride on my sister's Midget Sting Ray. The next year I got my own bike, just like this Sky Blue model in the photo above. I put thousands of miles on this bike mostly within one mile of my house. My mom took it to the shop when I cracked the rear hub and they only gave her $20 trade in value for it when she got me the Mongoose, a bike that could take some abuse.

Schwinn Le Tour

This was my grandfathers's bike and I got it when he passed away. It was way too big for me but I rode it anyway for a while until it was stolen out of the garage.

Schwinn Coaster Brake Cruiser (no picture)

I got this bike for $35 from the local bike repair guy who always had 10 or 15 bikes for sale in his back yard. I rode this to driver's ed class everyday one summer. Then I got my license and put it away. It collected dust until my mom gave it away. I wish I still had it.

Shogun Mountain Bike

I got the Shogun brand new in Hoquiam in 1989 and shipped it off to Grinnell. I slapped it together out of the box and rode it through college with everything "finger tight". It got trashed and sold shortly after graduation. That's not my Shogun pictured above, but it was Blue and Cheesy and full of low end components.

GT Continuum (no picture)

I bought this brand new from a snobby little bike shop on East Pike that no longer exists. It was a heavy geeky hybrid comfort city bike. I gave this to a friend of a friend after a few years.

Cannondale Mt Bike (no picture)

I got this used from Kevin at Play it Again Sports in 1995 with my tax return check. It was way way too small for me. I stripped it down into my first gerry rigged single speed bar bike. Then donated it to Bike Works.

Specialized Rock Hopper

I bought a brand new full retail Rock Hopper from a shop on South Whidbey Island in 1996. Then I went straight home hacked the bars down, put slicks on and tried to lock out the front suspension. So why the hell did I buy a mountain bike? This was my first messenger bike. I sold it to Stu in 1998. He rode it for a while then passed it on.

Bianchi Trofeo road bike

I bought a brand new Red Trofeo for some reason at R&E in 1996. I had my credit card in hand, itching to spend money and the sales guy took advantage of me. Never rode it much then sold it to a messenger, who sold it to a messenger, who sold it to 33 who cracked the frame. I gave him my original receipt and he warranteed himself a beautiful new celeste frame four years newer than the broken one. He bought me a pitcher of beer in return.

Redline Cross Bike

I bought this complete bike used in 1997 from a classified ad and rode the shit out of it as my work bike with one ring up front and 8 in the back. And check out the hacked bars and jury rigged levers. I stacked it up on the back of Cadillac rolling down Denny one morning and had to replace the fork. The frame finally cracked in 1999 after years of abuse.

Yellow steel road bike

I got this beautiful lugged silver brazed Reynolds steel custom made road bike from the original owner who had too many bikes. It was all Shimano 600 seven speed rock solid. I rode it for work on sunny days then rode it for work all the time. It participated in CMWCs in DC, Philadelphia, Seattle and Edmonton. After thousands and thousands of miles it asked to be retired so I hung it on the wall. Then I gave it to Stu, who put a few more months of fixed gear riding into it. Pictured here at the old Wa Legal, 89 S. Washington.

1981 Soma Road Bike

I got this complete bike on 10-9 day in 1999 from Adam Smith at Bike Works. It had a 5-speed freewheel on Campy hubs and it still has the original .833 fork-steer-tube-stem-headset combo. It has been through many variations around a 126mm OLD theme It's currently a single speed go slow basket bike.

KHS track bike

I bought this on ebay, cleaned it up, rode it to Safeway a couple times, then sold it on ebay. But I wish I still had the Phil hubs.

Casati Track Bike (no picture)

I got this frame and fork at the bike swap in 1999 and built it up as a coaster brake cruiser with 26" yellow deep Vs. Sold it on ebay.

Fuji

50 x 18 coaster brake cruiser. Riding high on 27 inch steel rims and huge tires. This is a fun bar bike. I got the frame & fork for $10 at Bike Works when Dan Boxer worked there. I just sold this bike to Travis in the summer of 2011 to make room for more utility bikes.

Bridgestone RB-2

I scored this bike from the original owner with only 500 miles on it and the OEM brake pads and cable housing still pristine. I did RAGBRAI 2005 with the moustache bars and Brooks saddle. Then I rode it to work with a flat bar and a beat up Flite saddle for years. Recently it went back to being a retrogrouch weekend warrior with moustache bars, MKS GR-9 pedals and big fat gumwall tires and I sold it to Brian. 

Surly Steamroller (no photo)

Boston Baked Bean. Got this bike complete and nearly new condition. I rode it for a year at work, then sold the frame & fork to Atom when I bought the IRO. He painted it yellow and sold it to Gigo.

IRO Rob Roy

single speed cross bike with enough clearance for huge tires and fenders. Geometry so relaxed it's about to fall asleep. Toe overlap is out of the question. This smooth rig hauled me across Iowa for RAGBRAI 2006 with moustache bars. Then it went back to being my workhorse rain bike and it looked more like this and I sold it in the spring of 2011 to make room for more utility bikes

Andre Bertin

A score from Recycled Cycles. Andre was French It made a good single speed work bike for a little while then I sold it to Wilson.

Univega

triple butted chromoly lugged Japanese steel. cotton candy cadillac. pink I bought this frame and fork from the crazy bike shop guy on 12th Ave and built it up, rode it to work 4 or 5 times then I sold it to Craig.

Tommasini

Classic lugged Italian steel. I bought this frame from Jewell built it up with Shimano 600. Rode it around the neighborhood a few times. Then sold it on Craigslist when I got the RB-1 from Todd. 

Bianchi

lilac lugged steel. Another flat bar full fender work bike. Adopted from Sebastian's stable of bikes with very few miles on. Still crisp. Laterally stiff and vertically compliant. I tried to sell this bike on Craigslist in the spring of 2016 and got no response. So I stripped the parts off that I wanted and donated the rest to Bike Works where it was refurbished and sold.  

Bridgestone RB-1

Built up with Shimano 600 parts. I rode this bike across Iowa for RAGBRAI in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011. It lives in Jimbo's attic in Grinnell and it gets dusty and a little moldy in the 51 weeks of down time. But storing it there saves me $200+ in shipping costs each summer. It has already paid for itself more than twice.

I sold this bike to Matt in 2013, he rode it RAGBRAI 2012 and came back for more. 

 


2011 Raleigh Port Townsend

Sally Claus brought this bike to me one morning on the eve of 2011, delivered to Mad Fiber straight from China.  It's now my every other day workhorse fat tired cantilevered commuter.

 



2012 CETMA cargo bike

family truckster, keg hauler, grocery getter, kid mover, this bike makes me smile. Now that I live at the top of a huge hill I'm investigating an electric assist so I can continue to really ride this thing and bring home the good goods. I can get to the grocery store in 35 seconds bombing down the hill but I can't get home.

 

1987 SHOGUN alpine GT

Stove pipe Cro-Moly steel. I got this frame at Bike Works for $22.50 in 2013 and built it up with bits from my basement.

With full fenders and fatter tires it takes me to work all winter.

 

1994 Specialized Allez sport  

I got this at BikeWorks in the spring of 2015 for my next-next RAGBRAI with plans of shipping it to Iowa to store in Jimbo's attic for 51 weeks out of the year to just dust it off for RAGBRAIs then put it back in storage. I shipped it to Iowa in July of 2017 and rode RAGBRAI then left it in Mader's garage for 5 years. During RAGBRAI 2022 Chris and Jim and Mader and Andrea came up with a plan to get this bike back to me in Seattle. Andrea schlepped the bike 2000 miles back to Portland and eventually Seattle. Now I'm riding it to work everyday with full fenders. 

 1991 Specialized Rock Hopper sport

slow and heavy enough to change your perspective on cycling