"Bad Bike!"

Monday, November 29, 2010

It was an amazing day considering it was almost December. The temperature was hovering in the mid-50’s and the sun was shining. I got home and took the bike off the trainer and quickly prepared for an outdoor ride. I figured I had an hour of daylight and knew I wouldn’t get too many more days this nice. I rode to the end of the street and was about to hop on to Wilson Mills when I noticed my rear brake wasn’t functioning. I remembered that I’d had some trouble with them on my last ride, but that had been some time ago and I’d completely forgotten. I don’t use the brakes much on the trainer…so forgetting was easy.

I hopped off and began to investigate, but with little success. They were locked and there was nothing I could do to release them. I got the bike back to the house and began trying to remedy the problem. Daylight was burning and I was still thinking I could get in a ride if I hurried…but hurrying is never good when doing work on a bike that you’ve never done before. I disassembled the brake and tried to feed the cable back through the housing, but the cable was rusted so it wouldn’t go. At this point, I knew I wouldn’t be riding outdoors so I slowed down and tried to get it apart correctly. I was working under the main tube that runs from the seat to the handlebars. The brake and gear shift cables run along the underside of this bar and by trying to remove the cable, I noticed just how bad the rust on my bike had gotten…which was really bad.

If you don’t already know this…I sweat…a lot. I have already destroyed two bikes over the years due to excess corrosion resulting from the sweat I generate on long rides. It tends to find its way into all of the components of the bike as well as attacking the joints and butts of metal. I had gone to an aluminum frame when I was racing and put a lot of money into that bike, but it currently hangs from the hooks in my garage because it has a crack in the frame most likely the result of poor manufacturing…and that’s another story.

In any event, I knew that I shouldn’t be riding this bike any longer whether I got the brakes fixed or not. It would, however, be perfect for the trainer. I could ride it all winter and not worry about the effect of rust since I wouldn’t be hitting any bumps and racing down any hills. By spring time, I’d have to figure out what to do, though. I’ve never been without a bike.

I was heading for the trainer when I received a call that sent me to the hospital to visit a friend. By the time I returned home, it was…for me…beyond workout time. I’d been consistent since getting off the crutches, so I suppose one day won’t matter.