LeMond Keg-wagon
When I (David) was in my early teens, it was a common sight: The disheveled, Zubaz-wearing, suspended license type, cassually biking down the sidewalk with one hand on the handlebar and the other on a case of Miller highlife that was supported by one thigh. Even if the rider wasn't both wearing Zubaz and carrying a case of Miller, there was at least one common thing that identified this population; they would spin the drop bars on their bike (usually a Coast King 10-speed or one of the many similar brands of bike that utilized that colorful plastic bar tape) so that the ends of the bars pointed forward, and the brakes were operated by pushing with the palm of one's hand.
Since that era, I have seen a few if these modified department store bikes, but it isn't nearly as common, and (unlike the aforementioned population – who presumably sold off their Monte Carlos to pay for their beer and their steed) it is obvious that it is not the rider's sole transportation. Nevertheless, I had a bit of a flashback on Monday. The county's compost site opened for the season on Monday, so I loaded up the car with bags of last year's hall of foliage and twigs, and headed over to the dump. On my way there, I came upon a relic from my teenage years. He was a thin Levis-wearing man with a mustache and a tan line on his neck from where the mullet used to be. He was riding a bike with its handlebars turned upwards in this manner. It seemed like he was test riding the bike; perhaps he recently had a DUI relapse and was reacquainting himself with the old tradition.
Now despite using language to associate people who wore Zubaz and mullets with alcoholism, I'd like to think that I'm not very judgmental. That is why I am a bit shocked at myself for wondering what this guy was doing on a Lemond bicycle frame. Did he know a fellow lush who had gotten so used to biking that he upgraded his standards, and who through coincidence of timing was ready to reactivate his license and trade his Lemond for this guy's old Monte Carlo? I didn't get a long enough look at the bike, but I think it had STI shifters. I have a suspicion that this phenomenon is something that could fit into the category of “only on the East Side”.
Since that era, I have seen a few if these modified department store bikes, but it isn't nearly as common, and (unlike the aforementioned population – who presumably sold off their Monte Carlos to pay for their beer and their steed) it is obvious that it is not the rider's sole transportation. Nevertheless, I had a bit of a flashback on Monday. The county's compost site opened for the season on Monday, so I loaded up the car with bags of last year's hall of foliage and twigs, and headed over to the dump. On my way there, I came upon a relic from my teenage years. He was a thin Levis-wearing man with a mustache and a tan line on his neck from where the mullet used to be. He was riding a bike with its handlebars turned upwards in this manner. It seemed like he was test riding the bike; perhaps he recently had a DUI relapse and was reacquainting himself with the old tradition.
Now despite using language to associate people who wore Zubaz and mullets with alcoholism, I'd like to think that I'm not very judgmental. That is why I am a bit shocked at myself for wondering what this guy was doing on a Lemond bicycle frame. Did he know a fellow lush who had gotten so used to biking that he upgraded his standards, and who through coincidence of timing was ready to reactivate his license and trade his Lemond for this guy's old Monte Carlo? I didn't get a long enough look at the bike, but I think it had STI shifters. I have a suspicion that this phenomenon is something that could fit into the category of “only on the East Side”.
2 Comments:
He flipped the handlebars on a Lemond? That's like, sacrilege or something!
mayfield is suckin' an egg.
a huge egg.
gosh.
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