Wheeeee! (-ls)

[unixronin]

Specifically, new ones.  I brought home a shiny new Gary Fisher Tiburon today.  It's built on a 20" frame, and I've already raised the seat another inch since we set it up at the shop.  It feels right now.  No wonder I didn't like any of the bikes we looked at elsewhere, which were all 15" to 17.5" frames.  I had them put a luggage rack and sidestand on it for me, and swapped the brake cables so the front brake is on the right, where I'm used to it being.

The smalls and I have been out riding twice today already.  I can get some exercise again, wheee!  ("Mercy, mercy," crieth my knees...)

Comments

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

wooohoooo!

does the state yer in now have a bicycle helmet law?

[cymrullewes.livejournal.com]

Does it really matter? Same as wearing a helmet while motorcycling, he's going to wear a helmet while biking.

If you're going to be invisible to operators of deadly machinery, wear personal protective equipment!

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

never mind,

the helmet law in spokane is why i won't buy a bicycle!

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

I think it's the same as for seat belts, actually -- required for under 18, "Common sense for all".

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

given the choice, i prefer to wear neither.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Out of curiosity: Why?

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

well, most of the cars i've had haven't had seatbelts and i find them restricting when i do have to wear them.

helmets are heavy, hot and annoy the fuck out of me when i wear them. and i can't hear a thing when i have mine on.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Hrm. By contrast, I like having the seatbelt to help hold me in position, especially when driving ... er ... exuberantly. As a matter of fact, I'm rather jealous that my kids in their child safety seats get five-point harnesses with decent positive-tension strap adjusters, whereas I have to make do with a three-point, and worse, one with goddamn inertia reels because so many people are too lazy to adjust their seatbelts properly if the belt doesn't do it for them.

(Yeah, I know, I could put a five-point racing harness in ... except that unless I install a full roll cage as well, there's really nothing to attach it to. Factory car seats sure as hell aren't stressed for it.)

As for helmets, I find bicycle helmets neither hot nor heavy, and in fact a helmet keeps the sun off my head. A full-face motorcycle helmet can be hot in hot weather, but I really don't notice the weight, and the few times I've been on a motorcycle without one, I had a pounding headache from wind roar by the time I got off. I'll bet riding helmetless on winter would be a recipe for frostbitten ears and nose, too.
On top of which, well, I'm kinda attached to my head and the brain I keep in it, and I wouldn't want to ride a motorcycle without the protection of a good helmet.

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

you left out the automatic ones that some cars came with.

my firebird had a 3-point manually adjustment system, i wore it to keep me in my seat when i had it.

never drive a station wagon with a freshly armouralled vinyl bench without a seat belt lol, i made that mistake once and ended up driving from the passenger side.

i've never worn a bicycle helmet, so i have no opinion.

as for a full face helmet, the one i currently have weighs 3.5 pounds. i learned how to ride in southern california before the helmet laws, i never had any problems with headaches from the wind roar and i used to do aminimum of 85 on an old RD400.

helmets are one point where we're gonna have to agree to disagree.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Perhaps the moral is more "Never use ArmorAll on a vinyl bench seat". ;)

(Or on any seat, for that matter.....)

[olafthunderfoot.livejournal.com]

lol, that's the truth. my dad thought it was funny when i told him he almost killed me with armour all!