Saturday, April 26, 2008

Two-Wheeler

I'm a big fan of bicycles and scooters and buzz the streets of NYC on both each week. A reader of this blog who has a bike blog of his own, recently posted some pics of me and my vehicles (or "babies," as I call them when we're alone) and I wanted to share them with you.

Here is a small part of a photo of me and my wacky Copenhagen bike that Jon posted on his site. Can you even tell what it is? Hint: that black thing is protruding from my crotch. Check it out at the link below, to see if you were right.

Also on his site is a pic of me and CHNW on our Vespa. I bought it new in 1981 and have been its only owner – very rare for an old-school scooter these days. A comment in a previous post labeled me as "crazy" for riding it in NYC. Most people think so, but the truth might surprise you. Because traffic here is heavy, it tends not to move very quickly. I usually find myself cruising along at 30mph, passing the cars stuck in traffic. Also, NYC is filled with so many pedestrians, bicycle messengers, scooters, motorcycles, rollerbladers, etc, that all drivers are constantly on high alert not to kill someone. So in the end, this is the safest place I've ever ridden. Much safer than my previous Dallas location, where traffic often moves very fast and the roads are full of SUV-driving Soccer Moms who seem not to notice anything smaller than a Lincoln Navigator. I was nearly killed on a weekly basis there.
http://grinderswheels.blogspot.com/

4 comments:

HollyBerry said...

that bike is amazing, and i bet the banana-hammock seat is crotch-tastic.

Eric said...

Oh that is a SWEET ride. I get around on an old Trek 400 street bike and a Bridgestone hybrid and love my babies too, but I don't have ANY style at all and you have SO MUCH in SPADES :-) I also ride a Yamaha Vino 125 (4-cylinder, 125cc scooter). I see your point actually completely now that you mention it though, that probably IS the ideal environment for riding a scooter, my worst enemies here are folks in SUVs talking on the cell phone going 50 in a 35.

HollyBerry said...

and completely off-topic.. my cat has been gone for a couple days and i don't know if he's coming back. could you do a comic based on this question: where do our pets go when they leave for a couple days, and why are they so happy when they return? so many images pop into my head.. a cat-spa.. a dog pool.. conyac and cigars.. i don't know. you're better at depicting your imagination than i.. hence the recommendation. and i won't feel bad if you don't. peace.

Craig Zablo said...

I just discovered your site and love your art and posts. I, too, ride a bike regularly, although it's only been for the last month. I'm doing it for health reasons and I love it.