Cycling

This is now about 4 weeks late, but who cares. I bought a bike with a Surly Cross Check frame from Pacific Coast Bicycles up in Oceanside. The shop is great, the owner, Chuck, is great, and the bike is amazing. It's so much more comfortable than the old Giant thats it's actually kind of ridiculous. My back feels great, my knees feel much better (albeit still a little sore after a long day of riding), the ride is more solid, and it's actually easier, this despite the bike being noticeably heavier.

Seeing as Chuck painted the bike a bright orange, and seeing as it's big and gangly, I've decided to name it Jack, as in Jack Skellington. Pic up soon.

Today I paid a visit to Pacific Coast Cycles up in Oceanside to check out the Surly Cross Check. It was originally just going to be a fitting and a glance over the geometry chart, but then something fantastic happened. A 56cm Cross Check, powder coated bright orange. A near perfect fit. Only problem was, it wasn't completely built up, and so I couldn't ride it around the lot. Chuck, the owner and an absolutely awesome guy, had to put the build on the back burner to work on another bike, but he says he's going to make it his priority this weekend to get it all set for me to ride early next week.

I have to say,  this is pretty amazing.  I'm really psyched.  I was hesitant about the 56cm'er, mostly because of the whole steel-to-groin issue, but it fit with room to spare.  So.  Exciting.  I might have a new bike by this time next week.

I've been riding for a little over a year now, and have had my current bike for most of that time. I'm riding mostly for exercise, though often for recreation as well.  I hope to use biking as a tool for some pretty serious weight loss, but first I need to figure out how to bike long distances without agitating my nice little weight-associated problems: sciatica and sore knees, mostly.

My current bike is a Giant Kronos GS, which as far as I can tell was sold as a low-end touring/sporting bike in the mid 90s.  I've had to replace a number of parts on it, parts that seemed to have been original from the bike: headset, front shifter (this was most definitely damaged in a crash), bottom bracket, front derailleur, and wheelset (including cassette).  The crash I mentioned also damaged the handlebars, the left side of which are bend forward.

The bike works, even if the rear shifty can occasionally be a bit flighty.  The biggest problem with the bike right now is its size: it's just every so slightly too small for me.  Well, maybe not slightly.  It's at least one size too small.  Depending on how high the seat is, it irritates either my back or my knees.  I had planned to add a riser stem, but now am leaning toward getting a new frame that's the right size from the get go.

That being said, I'm currently leaning toward either a Surly Cross Check or a Surly Long Haul Trucker.  The primary use for this bike over the next 4 years will be a 40-mile round trip commute to school, so my main concern is comfort.  It needs to handle a rack and bags, and it needs to be solid in the process.  Plus, given my graduate student status, it needs to be cheap.  So, we'll see.  Just wanted to finally get some content up on this page.