My impractical, hip, hard to pedal, thief magnet is now terrorizing the Swedish streets. Katharina saw it today and said "white is the best." Coming from a German girl I thought that was hilariously ironic. I'm sure she meant to say, "white is my favorite color for a bicycle". I need to invest in some basic tools to really get it dialed in. No one rides road bikes (racers) out here. The bike shop that I bought a few parts from thought I was an idiot for even being excited about it. Fuck em.
The bike is an old Crescent frame (made in Sweden) that some dude sanded and painted. The frame is heavy. The funny thing is the dude really had no idea about how to put a bike together. He just threw a bunch of random components on the bike that weren't really compatible with each other. First of all, it is a single speed (not fixed) and he never installed any type of brakes (in fact, he threw the old brakes in the trash). So when I rode it for the first time I had to give it the old Fred Flintstone to avoid killing myself. Also the gear ratio is ten shades of fucked up. It is harder to pedal than Phil's Raleigh (40/12). I need to find a different size freewheel. I also need to get some lights for the dark, brutal, black (metal) Swedish winters.
Cool things
- Everyone is psyched on bicycles in Malmö
- Extensive bike paths
- Bicycle specific traffic lights
Things to watch out for:
- Cobblestones
- Busses
- Immigrants learning to drive
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