Thank you for your kind words, Jim. I’m glad you enjoy my silly posts because I enjoy writing them. 😊
I am enjoying everyone’s responses and have had a lot to think about after reading them. It’s so true that one cannot just replace a Rivendell. The availability is one factor, the discontinuation of models and changes to existing models is another. The presale for the Platypus was April 2021, and only now, November 2022, has another shipment arrived. So, yes, not a quick replacement if the bike is wrecked or stolen.
So, there are the above factors. And then there is choosing not to be precious about bikes. SO….what is everyone’s opinion of having a spare in a box?
I told Pam Murray that she might be the first Rivendell customer in history to wear her bike into steel powder. And what would she do without her tiny 47 cm Betty? There was a Betty frame at a dealer that I thought she should purchase and keep in case her bike is damaged or stolen. I guess that is kind of my plan with my two Platys, too. If the raspberry goes missing, I’ll have the mermaid painted raspberry. I even have the color tube so the painter gets it right! And where did I get this idea? From my recurring nightmare. I used to have differing variations of the same dream. I used to have a One and Only, a Betty Foy, that I would dream would be stolen. I would look for it relentlessly and always, always, I would find a spare Betty frame in a box in the garage and all would be well. Same ending, every time. But this seems rather wasteful, doesn’t it? Just keeping a Rivendell in a box just in case? People will have opinions. I am interested to hear them.
Lastly, I agree with Eric that there is beauty in a bike with miles on it. I want to keep mine nice, but I appreciate beausage. I am of two minds. Leah On Nov 5, 2022, at 10:37 PM, J J <junes1ju...@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks for starting this thread, Leah. I enjoy your writing… as I enjoy Grant’s. He’s very funny even when discussing serious things. At least I see some humor there, whether he intends it or not.
Anyway, my daily ride is a Hunqapillar that I bought new about 11 years ago. I was precious about it for a hot minute, but a) I realized pretty quickly that it was futile and thus stressful to try to avoid dings and scratches; b) I reminded myself that a primary reason I got the Hunq was that I wanted a fun do-everything bike, an “all rounder plus”, the plus being that it is robust enough to carry me and any size load I wanted to haul, for as long as I want to haul it.
So I use it in that way. I will take it grocery or farmers market shopping. I run errands with it. I use three or four locks. I used to occasionally commute to work on it (before my office went to mostly full-time remote work post-pandemic), but I realized that I do not enjoy commuting by bike. I live in a busy area in DC and the morning and afternoon rush hour commuting energy — definitely from cars, but also other bikers, including the rushing, the noises, the risk taking, the aggressiveness — was turning one of my very favorite activities, riding a bike, into another source of stress. It was as if commuting by bike was starting to sully my relationship to my bike and to biking. And I did not want that.
This sort of goes against Grant’s notion, or at least hope, that biking will be a huge part of people’s everyday lives. As far as a commute goes, it’s aspirational for me. I will do that when there are protected bike lanes and much fewer cars on the road. I am not keen on being a martyr for the cause of biking (or commuting!). The sort of change in road and bike infrastructure that I’d like to see (and I imagine most of us want) requires collective action, organizing, and so on. Individuals can only do so much.
By the way, my bike’s kickstand mounting plate also “peeled” partway off. I sent photos of it to Riv and Will said: “yeah we see that on some of our bikes, best thing to do is to buy the kickstand mounting hardware and a long bolt to pass through the (peeled) plate.” I believe it was a very rare for Rivendell design or manufacturing misstep. The weld simply was not strong enough. The peeling exposed a big area of raw steel on a part of the bike that is most likely to get wet and mucked up. I just have to be mindful of it. No rust has developed, I clean and treat it regularly, and one day I’ll get it repaired and reinforced and repainted (I’ve been telling myself this for a few years now! — I just can’t stand to be without the bike even for a day.
Jim
On Saturday, November 5, 2022 at 9:13:39 PM UTC-4 pi...@gmail.com wrote:
No damage to the frame? Or did you have to get it repaired?
I don’t have a picture, just imagine the weld giving way and the plate separating from the seat stays. I was using a double-legged kickstand at the time and carrying a fair amount of cargo (see attached), and evidently the seesawing action was enough to pry things loose. It bummed me out for maybe half a day, but it’s been fine ever since, now I just use the kickstand plate as a fender attachment point.
Jay Lonner Bellingham, WA
Sent from my Atari 400
![IMG_0750]() What does a peeling mounting plate look like? Anyone have pictures? Not that I have kickstands on any of my bikes --- the one on the triplet got taken off ages ago... Just curious. When I was talking to Will about getting a double legged kickstand he warned me about the “peeling” mounting plate on the Clems. But, he thought I would be ok they had beefed them up. So far so good. Sent from my iPhone My Hunq is a daily driver and has the dings and scratches to show for it. Probably the worst one is that the kickstand plate is pried partially loose — no big deal, I just took the kickstand off and used the mounting hardware to snug things back up. Worst case scenario for me is that someday I treat myself to a new paint job and maybe some frame modifications to go along with it.
Jay Lonner Bellingham, WA Sent from my Atari 400 I haven't read Grant's Blahg on this matter (the ancient OS on my computer is so out of date that I can't load certain websites), but what he has to say does not surprise me. He's always been all about what he calls "beausage," a term he coined to mean "beauty through usage," or IOW don't sweat all of the nicks and scratches, "just ride" your bike and be happy. The good news though is that there is a happy middle ground between the complete over-the-top utility use of a bike (like Pam's), ignoring any wear and tear versus a finicky protectiveness, hovering over the bike at all times and worrying about theft, damage, etc. And in my way of thinking that means "just ride" it for all it's worth, but don't just throw it in the corner until the next ride, but take good care of it. Another way of saying that might be, "... take good care of it and it will take good care of you." This is no different than what one might do having just bought a nice new automobile and drives it everywhere, but also maintains it, washes and waxes it regularly, and is careful where they park it.
On Saturday, November 5, 2022 at 6:14:45 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:
I love this topic! I had my custom designed to answer the question, "What if I had all the qualities I love about Rivendells in a frame made exactly for my size, weight and riding preferences?", and at first I was super precious about it. Later I realized the whole point was to have a perfect bike I could ride every day for everything and that's what I'm doing.
Of course I'm still absurdly touchy about scratching all that beautiful Joe Bell paint but I don't let it stop me, I lock it up at Walmart, I fill the bags with laundry and go to the laundromat. Because I want my bike to do all the things bikes do!
Joe Bernard
On Saturday, November 5, 2022 at 3:15:18 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Did you read Grant’s Blahg? He covers a lot of ground, but most notable to me was the Please Don’t Be Precious About Your Rivendell section. In sum, Grant is saying it saddens him to think of people riding beater bikes instead of their Rivendells to do daily, monotonous tasks - because those tasks make up a lot of real life. If one “saves” their Rivendell, it will not realize its potential, sit mostly unused and then pass to one’s heirs who will sell it in “near mint” condition on EBay, and how sad. What was the bike for?
I have found myself both guilty and innocent on the matter. My #1 favorite bike is my raspberry Platypus. I ride it all the time, because I bought it to ride it, but I also dread any harm coming to it, and I do guard it from that. I got a second Platypus that I dedicated to shopping and traveling with and promised not to be precious about it. But now and then I still am tempted to backslide. When traveling to the Philly Bike Expo I dithered about which bike to bring. I didn’t want my raspberry Platy damaged while locked up at racks and I feared it being stolen. Roberta said, “I don’t think you have a choice, Leah. That’s the bike people will expect you to bring.” And she was right, and I did.
Then, there is Pam. Pam is at the other far end of the spectrum. Her bike is a model of beausage. Innumerable paint chips and little spots of rust cover her tiny Betty frame. Her Backabike bags are full of holes and the elastic closures are worn out. She locks it up and never worries about it. She did not obsessively stare out the restaurant window to see if it was still locked to the rack while we were at dinner (like yours truly). But she loves her bike, has real affection for it. She looked at me, eyes shining, and said exactly that. Ana, PurpleRiv, is another good example to us. She adores her bike, but has not spared it from hard work. Her bike has hauled obscene loads and taken her everywhere. I remember there was that one fateful camping trip for she 1. Posed it for a photo, only to have it topple and slide down the face of a boulder next to it. I believe she said she sat there and wept for 2 hours over her Joe Bell paint. And who among us would not do the same? 2. Same trip, another photo op, and the bike fell off a cliff.
So, who truly loves their Rivendell? The one who lavishes it with care and protection? Or the one who pulls it out of the garage and into all of life - the mundane and the adventurous?
On one end of the spectrum we have those who will only take a Rivendell out for special occasions so as not to spoil it, and on the other…well, we have Pam and Ana, who will give it a good thrashing. (Oh, don’t take it personally, friends, I’m being funny about both types of owners.)
I find myself wanting to be precious but fighting it and succeeding *most* of the time. I’m lucky that the raspberry paint hides beausage and dirt, so it looks pretty new. But a dent in the top tube or a large chip in the paint would really hurt my feelings. Heaven help me.
Where are you on the spectrum? What words of wisdom might you have? What strategies do you employ? Do you want to change? Or are you unapologetically staying put on the matter? It might be fun to hear perspectives. Leah
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