Jeff Campbell

I've now had 2 bikes stolen in the last 18 months. Fortunately the 2nd bike stolen, a mid 1980's Schwinn, only cost a fraction of the first, a Yeti ASX w/ 7" of travel front and rear. But I was much more dependent on the 2nd. I travel by bike everywhere except to ski. When I left the library at 1 a.m. the night before my last final and found my lock cut, bike gone, I was filled with apathy and frustration. But I was simply too tired and mentally exhausted to be furious. I'd invested less than $100 into it, so rather than hunting it down with the cops, I figured, let the junkie who stole it get his fix and hopefully OD.

And so began the search for a new bike. Call me picky, but when I spend a lot of time in a vehicle or on a bike, I need to feel a connection. And boy, I felt quite the connection to a lot of bikes well out of my price range. I had to re-evaluate my priorities and decided my only criteria was a reliable bike that wouldn't scare me to death when attempting to brake in a finite distance or be a thief magnet. I visited ~12 bike shops in the Seattle area and had yet to find one that I was excited about that I could afford. But as the end of my Spring Break is upon us, I was feeling pressure to pull the trigger and get a bike. I had "settled" on a low-end Raleigh road bike but was feeling very reluctant about getting it. It was bulky, had TONS of cables/wires/bells/whistles that I didn't want. It SCREAMED: "I just bought a road bike to ride to the coffee shop and get excited about the Tour de France". I would have had to buy an Obligatory "Live Strong" bracelet.

But as I went back to the shop to look at it again, there was a mid-1980's Pinarello right next to it. It was sleek. Efficient. Lite. Flashy only if you looked at the details. I took her out for a spin and was SOLD. Apparently it had just arrived that morning with a twin flourecent yellow track bike. It broke the managers heart to sell them separately as they are something of a collectors item, but you can't deny true love. 

So now, I have a "fly" ride as a friend so elegantly put it. It's SO much fun to ride. Now if the joy of riding it can surpass my fear of it getting stolen I'll be set.