Though the cozy colors of fall haven't yet shown themselves, I notice the weather turning cooler and the mornings becoming noticeably chillier... Hopefully we'll have a broader transition between oppressive heat and cutting cold this year than years past, though one can only hope. If we do get a gradient of weather that carries us predictably into winter, I've got at least a few more months that I can ride the Allez to and from work comfortably.
Riding through rain, sleet, or snow for months on end isn't something I'd really want to subject any mechanical device to, so naturally I've been flirting with the idea of buying a beater to get to and from work on and run errands in an effort to protect the road bike from less than ideal weather and temperatures. Since I'm not made of money like many cyclists are, I can't really afford anything that won't annoy the crap out of me without the replacement of a lot of parts, at which point I would honestly be better off just buying a built-up used frame from an LBS like BByB.
Fortunately for these apprehensions, I discovered a promotion by Specialized for their new brand Globe, which is geared (pun very much intended) toward urban commuters.
It seems that in an effort to generate grass-roots publicity, they're [loaning?] bikes to bloggers in exchange for being mentioned in posts a couple times per week. Of course, seeing as I now ride my bike seven days a week, that would be as easy as being a corrupt police official in New York.
You're supposed to post a link to your blog on their facebook page and show an interest in cycling to some degree which struck me as a deviously clever scheme to get "fans" of their company who have yet to actually try their product by cornering the facebooking crowd (thats basically everyone these days right?).
Anyway, seeing an opportunity to break into the time honored blogging tradition of reviewing stuff for companies, I of course became a fan of globe bikes and posted a link to here on their wall along with zillions of other bloggers and bloggers-to-be. Then this morning I logged in to facebook only to find that Globe bikes finds JSYNYC to be a "Cool blog."
They went on to say that they'll be making their decisions soon (if that was obscured by my excitement) and I do hope they let me review one of their new rides. Of course, I wonder which variety of "urban bike" (which for some reason translates into single-speed these days) they'll pair me with should they deem my posts conducive to their pandering.
Anyway, if they read this or not, I'll say right now that the free bike is going to be the default bad weather bike and the Allez will stay high and dry in the apartment. I'm sure they expect the bikes to come back with some amount of wear, because to properly understand the strengths and limitations of any product, one has to use the hell out of it. I think carting me to and from work on salty streets is about as much abuse as any bike could get, especially considering I ride hard enough to wear through a brand new chain in less than a year...
They might front me one of these dapper looking be-racked bikes which comprise the majority of their lineup:
I don't know if I'll be using it as beach furniture or for hauling casement windows, but I do have a very real need for added carrying capacity that will be much needed in coming months. However, I kind of hope to get one of the "Roll" bikes that appear to have a more aggresive frame geometry than the slow pedalers above, even though they're cheesily pre-fab single speeds.
It boasts a flip-flop hub for when you decide you're skilled enough to ride fixed, and white tires for added style. Also, I'm proud to announce that they offer this frame in "kiwi" which looks to be pretty darn close to the BADA55 'colorway' that I use to point things out or grade bike lanes on this blog. While I'm not one to be loud and outgoing about my clothing or accouterments, I think it would be magnificently ironic if I pedaled around on a garishly painted green bike as opposed to my usual black and white bike (oddly, they also offer the Roll in the ghost-bike 'colorway' as well, though that seems a little morbid to me).
Anyway, heres hoping I get a bike worth the trouble of twice a week saying "...so I rode the Globe in today..." And if you post semi-regularly, I encourage you to benefit from the marketing ploys of bike companies as well; one can never own too many bikes.
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