I'm sick and tired of making due with what I have. When I first moved to Vancouver in 1991, I got caught up in the mountain bike craze of the late 80's and early 90's. so I purchased a rigid frame Rocky Mountain Hammer for about a grand. ( a bike similar to this today would be $500.00) I ended up using it for everything from trail riding to commuting to touring with a full compliment of panniers. Holy crap my back would hurt after a day on the highway ! I went through numerous drivetrains and many tires. I still have that bike today ( with a new tranny) and use it for the many snow days here in Vancouver ( 1 ) Then I got a Cannondale CADD 600. I used it for everthing also. God, I loved this bike ! I didnt take it on trails as it is a road bike, but I altered the geometry a tad and gave it aero bars and a new job... Triathlon. Anyway, what I'm saying is I'm tired of one bike for many jobs. With that said, I bought a new bike ! In fact, my philosophy of bike distribution started 3 years ago when I gave up on the Cannondale for a sweet carbon frame Specialized Tarmac for Ironman racing etc. Then, 2 Septembers ago, I bought the Trek Portland that you see in earlier blog posts. ( for commuting.)
I was worried about the wheels on the Portland not handling the load, the carbon forks breaking, the high maintenance disc brakes, and the costly non-serviceable shifters. So I bought a brand new SURLY LONG HAUL TRUCKER. I've heard this bike come up in conversations related to bicycle touring. Caps Bicycles has this bike, so I decided to add to the family. Like I said earlier... I'm sick of making do with what I have. I added " Old Man Lowrider" rack for another hundred bucks.
This is a simple bike that can handle a load and can be fixed during a breakdown. No high tech crap to cry over. And you know what ? ... She's a beauty !!!
Will need to get used to the gear levers as opposed to the newer shifters. I am excited to take her out on a test ride. Next on my shopping cart will be a netbook, so I can pick a front pannier although Arkel has a sweet 28 L with a backpack attachment.
As I fill my shopping cart, I also need to work on my fitness/weight. At current time I am 200lbs ( Molson Muscle). Time to get Cardio !
