I got all excited when I saw GT has a new single speed for the masses, the “Peace”. Skipping the smart ass comments about the name, I’m not sure I understand the reasoning behind it’s stock build.
Here is a picture and the specs. If you’re not going to put suspension on the thing, why do disc brakes? Lack of braking power was never an issue for me while single-speeding (grunting in agony was, but that’s a different story). The whole retro-grouch thing doesn’t hold water with those brakes on. Pick a theme and stick with it. GT, gimme a simpler one, or one with suspension, and I’ll run out and pick one up.
A while ago, I worked as a guide/mechanic/barista in a pretty cool bike shop. Our lead mechanic was spot on and actually did time on Le Tour. I trusted him to work on my bikes, and didn’t really hesitate to leave them around the shop.
One day, I got on my fully to make a lunch run. I’d left it there overnight when a storm blew through. He knew that I liked tooling around in big ring/small cog. I made it to the only stoplight in town and did a track stand waiting for the light to change. It changed, I tried to take off and down shift – I ended up going over sideways like a first-timer in cleats. He’d thoughtfully reset the limits on my rear derailleur.
Revenge is best served cold. I needed a plan. It had to be diabolical, and it had to be so simple that there would be no reason for him to look in the “right” place. One of the people in the shop came up with a suitable evil plan to even the score. We waited about a week and then took his beloved road machine, a paperclip, a piece of thread, and a washer. We made a little spring out of the paperclip, attached the piece of thread to it and tied the washer at the end. Said paperclip was then inserted into the seat tube, far enough up that it (and the washer) couldn’t be seen. The key was the length of the thread, short enough not to be seen, long enough to let the washer rest easy on the side of the tube when not in motion.
Of course, he heard it clanging around every time he rode. As soon as the bike was on the stand, the noise would mysteriously disappear. It took him four days to figure out (I thought he’d get it in one). I’ll never forget struggling to keep a straight face as he sat looking thoughtfully at his bike on the stand.
These things would include big thunderstorms and the tops of large cottonwood trees that fall on the roof of the house.
Just when you think it’s safe to go back in the water, three people have died on the Arkansas River in the last week. All were rafters, two at The Numbers and one at the rather innocuous Pinball rapid. It was joining the swim team at Rigor Mortis on Clear Creek that ended my run (and I was playing it safe, at that), but I was thinking of picking up a new boat and puttering around. Suddenly memories of bouncing off of boulders, bleeding profusely, and hanging on with the tips of my frozen fingers in snow melt waters are in the forefront of my mind. I actually paddled four more times after the Clear Creek incident, including two each on the rapids mentioned above, but all I could think about was catching that next eddy, or else.
I guess my paranoia about it isn’t completely gone, dropping sideways into a hole in a whitewater park has no appeal to me, and sneaking every route seems beside the point. I’ll have to ruminate a little further before I drop dime on some new gear.
P.S.
I never met the guy, but I really miss William (not Bill) Nealy.
Went to the Cherry Creek Arts Fest and beat the meat of the storm back to the house by about a minute and a half. I did get a bit soaked, but it’s a duck-drowner out there right now.
My favorite at the festival? Not sure, one thing is for sure, a lot of the stuff I did like cost more than every bike and bike part I’ve ever bought. I really liked some of the stuff Stephen Hayes, out of Ontario, had on display. I would have snapped some shots, but it was elbow to elbow.
