Ramblin' On A Cold Day

The weather has been lousy as of late.

I hate talking about the weather but -30 is cold and I just want to be in the desert right now.

Luckily for me, the Arizona Trail Race is in two months!

Ok, that's that on the weather.

On another note, the thousand-plus bikes in my apartment are in utter disrepair. I would love to go into the details on each bike but that would be excessive… so I'll just focus on three.

The Trek 1200, Univega Alpine 500, and Giant Anthem 3 would be considered mid-range bicycles from there respected time, but at 30, 25, and 5 years old they are showing their years.
I am a firm believer that a well-maintained bicycle will last a lifetime and that new is almost never worth it. That being said I would be lying if I said I wasn't looking at new bikes 24/7, but I have 1,000 bikes so I don't need any more taking up space in my bedroom.
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The Trek 1200 is a 30-year-old aluminum beauty who has been outfitted with a 10-speed microshift group set, Vuelta Zero Light wheels, and a carbon seat post. Oh but don't worry it still has 30-year old look pedals on it cause that makes sense. This bike is my main training whip and it shows it. The chain is gross, the tires are worn from the trainer and I think there is still dirt on it from the fall. If I was riding it outside right now maybe I would get it fixed up but as a training tool for a few hours a day, it's just fine! This summer I will be upgrading it but for now, it’s relegated to the stationary miles.

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​The Univega Alpine 500 is hilarious in every way. It’s been all around the country, has stickers, gorilla tape is covering some rust spots, and the bottom bracket is one hard ride away from saying “fuck it, I'm done”. That being said as a winter commuter and gross weather trainer it’s freaking awesome. In an attempt to “customize” the bike I threw on some SRAM grip shifts and a new rear cluster. It’s been super icy as of late so I haven't gotten it out much and as a result, I don't think the chain will move anymore and the brake pads are so hard they may actually speed me up instead of slowing me down. I plan on doing a massive rebuild this summer in an attempt to get it set for a ride from Alaska to Argentina that Olivia and I want to take in the next few years. 

​Now onto the Giant Anthem 3. Man oh Man do I love this bike! It’s taken me everywhere and been crashed hundreds of times but keeps on ticking. It breaks my heart that it’s in pieces right now but it’s for its own good. I am upgrading wheels, handlebars, and brakes and I am sure as hell not getting it covered in snow and ice so it’s relegated to the bike stand for the next month or so. There are some exciting changes for this bike coming soon that I can't wait to share with y'all. 

​Wish I had more time to tell you about my other 997 bikes, but I need to go ride an aluminum bike that's older than me for a few hours!
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Stay warm,
Dylan