A Lesson in Impermanence

Subtitled: Those Fucking Jack-asses Better Enjoy the Ride

So, I started a post this morning about the very cool One Laptop Per Child project, and the availability of these low power, low cost, nigh indestructible devices to children (and adults) in the U.S. for two weeks in November. Cf. David Pogue's review in The New York Times.

Then I got a call from my neighbor. Our (shared) garage was burglarized in the middle of the night, and they got away with my trusty Bridgestone MB-6 mountain bike, which has been my primary bicycle for the past dozen years or so. I'd tricked it out with an aerobar, mustache bar ends, front and rear pannier mounts and other bike-nerd accoutrements. All of which are now gone. And probably forever.

I'm bummed out. I'm confused. There's a lingering sense of violation.

I'm aiming for having perspective on the whole affair, trying to observe my own judgments about the fuckers who took this stuff (along with other assorted goods from the garage, including my little-used home-built "tadpole" recumbent tricycle / project bike and a pristine Yakima 4-bike trailer hitch rack with an integrated lock).

It's strange: I really love riding that mountain bike, but I'm acutely aware of replaceable it is, and ultimately how little an impact (financially) it will be for me to replace it, even with all the added gear. I can only assume that this was not the case for these thieves. So I guess I come back to the notion that the best solution to many petty or nuisance crimes like this is to share the wealth. But I also wonder whether there's a special level of hell for those who steal bicycles.

So, reluctantly, unhappily, I guess I'm in the market for a new set of human-powered wheels. (They left my rickety but faithful 1972 Schwinn 10-speed thrown onto its side in the garage. With the application of some elbow grease to bring it into repair, it will become my number one for the time being.)

I relied on my mountain bike to meet many diverse needs:

• An urban commuter and curb-jumper, sometimes subjected to winter riding


• A workhorse for hauling four fully-loaded panniers on solo bike-camping trips


• A long-distance bike (a role for which it was not especially well suited) with Continental Goliath tires to smooth out long stretches of pavement

Although thinking about replacing my bike gives me a stomach ache, I'd like to get your thoughts and suggestions about what bike should be my next ride. I'm not sure that having a single, all-purpose bike makes the same kind of sense it did when I bought the Bridgestone, so you should know that 99% of the use my new ride will get is that of an urban commuter. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks go to Jayme, Milo, the Geek Club forum on presidential candidates and the money I dropped on new music at Electric Fetus for distracting me from this unhappy news today.

*Sigh.*