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Written by Zach Magoon
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Wednesday, 14 November 2007 |
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No I didn't ride it, but man that would be cool, wouldn't it? I was out in Portland, OR last week on business and just wanted to put in a good word for the city. Everyone there seemed so relaxed, friendly and chilled out. And the bikes? Tons of them. Everyone was riding-- all ages, sexes, races in any weather. And there were a crapload of single speeds as well.
The company that I was visiting had a covered bike garage (of sorts) for commuters. Picture a 30x20 tent with chain link fencing for walls and bike racks in the middle. There were about 20 bikes in there for this company alone and room for another 20. I was even told that this company (a trucking company) had started a competitive team--way to go.
Portland, OR has nice wide streets too which makes it a little more bike friendly than many cities back East. And the bike shop employees were friendly. Don't get me wrong, the folks at Bikeman are the best in the biz--friendly, courteous and respectful, but other shops in the NE area think they have to know everything about bikes and try to intimidate you into buying crap you don't need. One employee in OR asked "do you need help or should I leave you alone?" Nice. So if you haven't been out that way, check it out. Great food, coffee and beer as well. What more could you want in a bike-friendly city?
On a personal note, I've decided to get the Redline 925. It fits into my dwindling bike budget and is a nicely equipped bike for the price. I had to recently drop some cash on my car and always think about the amount of bikes and or parts I could've bought. In this case, I could have bought that Salsa I wanted. Damn you cars.
New for me this year will be some winter specific bike shoes. I've decided on the Lake MXZ302 Winter Mountain Shoe. This thing is a beast of boot that should hopefully keep my warm and dry all season. I'll write up a review once I get them to let you know how they work out. Get out there and ride. The cold winds are comin--can't wait.
Zm |
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