Home  Bathroom Reading / News Ordinary Average Guy Ordinary Average Guy
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Written by Top Jimmy
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Monday, 08 May 2006 |
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Ordinary Average Guy:
Hi all, Jimmy here. First off I'd like to thank Joe Walsh for the title. If you don't get that one then you're probably one or two decades older than me. So, what I'm doing here is hitting on what I think is the most overlooked rider out there. The Ordinary average guy or what I prefer to call "the blue collar rider". I'll be giving my OPINION on a bunch of stuff.
You see this year after much saving, research, and a couple of hundred Emails to Cpt. Big Al, I spent a good chunch of change on a Salsa Moto Rapido. I'm going to tell you what I think of everything on it over time. Now, if your a hardcore expert you might as well exit right now. This is not for you. You see, the Expert rider can see things much different than the rest of us. What might be light and responsive to them might be twitchy and harsh for us. Nothing against 'em though. As far as I go if you ride it's good enough. Every post that I do is for the time restricted bunch and for those of us who don't plan all of our habits around the weekly riding schedule. There's what, maybe a million real reasons your not getting the saddle time you'd like.
Let's just touch the iceberg for a moment. Getting married? Buying a house, building a house, owning a house, new baby? Getting home a half hour before your other half leaves for work so it's up to you to take care of the kids, make em suppa they don't eat, clean it up, help with homework that's got you scratching your head and toss them in the tub. Don't fall asleep while reading the bedtime story, they get wise on that one quick. Maybe you work at a 24 hour operation that takes up most of the daylight and all of the warm weather hours. Work overnight, sleep the day? It's not only the married mortgaged people either. Divorsed and your weekend with the kids? Maybe your not even old enough for the stuff yet. Work 10-12 or even more hours a day. How much drive you got left after a 12 hour shift? 60 hour weeks? Was at the stinking grocery store? Job interview? Working a flex schedule that's got you working the day's your buddies are riding. Sitting at the Doctor's office 45 minutes after you appt. time and seeing your little bit of free time tick away. Mr.Doctor says, "your blood pressure seems a little high and your face is red, how do you feel?" Meanwhile you had your gear all packed and bike loaded in just a HOPE you were going to get an hour ride in. Happy with getting in 7 rides in two weeks? (I am) Anybody nodding your head out there yet?
So, I'm not here to blow sunshine up your chamois. I am one of you too. But just because real life seems to get in the way too often and maybe we really don't need that extra plate at the table and maybe you prefer to open your "recovery" drink with a bottle opener instead of something out of a shaker cup and there's not much of a chance of getting rid of that "carb" roll right above your shorts waistband.(I like to call it organic vibration damping myself) it does'nt mean your not oogling some Ti this or carbon that. Read the articles in MBA and what the "wrecking crew" thought of said bike or component and you look at them and think, is this all these guys do? These guys get everthing top end from all the big guns in the bike world and ride the hell out it.
Cool job, but what does joe average think of a $5000 bike. I'll tell you what I think,ya still gotta pedal the thing!! No lightweight anything is going to magically shoot us over a climb like an elite level racer.
So this is what it comes down to, you want some high end stuff even if your not quite high end yourself. It's all expensive, so where do you spend the money? It's all up to you of course. What I'm going to do in these articles like I said is give my personal feelings on what was worth the money and what I could have done without. Me, not Bikeman. When I give a report on something I will also tell you what I was using before hand to give somewhat of a comparsion, not to shoot down a part or Co. Stay tuned, first report soon or when the site shuts me down when the bathroom rumor sneaks into the reports. So put down the coffee and get suited up, if it's raining get on the trainer, if your drinking, well then, we'll just call that carb loading for tomrrows ride. Just be sure there's a cold one to recover with when you get back!!
CYA, Jimmayyyy! |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 11 May 2006 )
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