Joker Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 Credit is the Devil's business... Unless you have a well paying job and low overhead ( rent, bills etc. ) credit is abd thing. I mean it's good if you can afford another bill at $50 or more a month, but it sure sucks when you're already struggling. Without a credit history though... your future will be dim if you ever want to buy a car or a house. Be careful my friend. Look for something with a low APR... anything above 19% and you're looking to get screwed. Even 19% is high, but standard for new card holders if you find the right one. My advice... layaway. Most shops do it and it commits you to the purchase. You know you're going to have it eventually, it's just going to take two to three months. That's how I bought a few of my things. I bought my race bike through a shop loan. Most shops do that as well. They offer a loan service with a fairly low APR and most people I know with decent credit history apply. Those Zipp Wheels are pricey!! Very cool looking though. I don't anything more than that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest THE LAW Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 TEARZ, the LAWMAN is 2500 down right now with no hope of taking much of that debt out any time soon. please don't go into debt for a bike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DIBS Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 Originally posted by TEARZ but i've just discovered this thing called a credit card... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! tearz dont do it, credit bad, very bad. maybe its just me cause im totally an asshole when it comes to credit and i really fucked my self with it, but please, take another avenue. listen to joker, do a layaway, the commitment is there and knowing that you cant heve them till theyre paid off youll work harder to get them payed for quickly. no credit for bike my friend, dangerous waters you tread with credit.plastic has no face but wields a dagger long and sharp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alkaline Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 Amen to that. I'm about a grand in the hole right now, and I'm about to get married. Right now, I've got a decent job, so I'll be able to pay it off before the wedding (hopefully), but still, it's there. That's some shit you don't want to mess with. I keep my bike money in a box in my room. Every paycheck, I put a little bit in. It worked for a while, but some things have come up lately that have forced me to take some of that money out. It's still a good system though. I'll be on a new bike in a few months ... I hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alkaline Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 On a side note ... Last night, I was talking with my fiance about the new bike that I want to buy soon. She says, "That will be the second bike you've bought since we've been together! That's crazy! I've had the same bike since I was a kid!" She just doesn't get it ... She doesn't love bikes. That's okay. Some people are that way, and there is nothing wrong with it. But it got me thinking ... what was it, that made you love to ride bikes? Was it a specific moment, or a feeling that grew over time? I think for me, at first, it was the freedom. I've talked with my lady about this. She asked me to tell her a happy memory, and I told her about the day I learned to ride my bike by myself. She knew I would tell her that it was the freedom of riding that made that memory so happy for me, but she asked just the same. When I was about 12, I retired from bike riding, after a number of painful and graphic crashes. A few years ago, my love was rediscovered on a vacation to Colorado (see previous story). I became enthralled with the simplicity of a bicycle. I started riding again (on bikes that I would borrow from friends) and later bought my first bike in years. I've been hooked since then (a relapse if you will). So how did it happen for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohno*rock Posted January 31, 2002 Share Posted January 31, 2002 Re: after looking through this Originally posted by willy.wonka should i steal one like i do my pens? no Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon toast crunch804 Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 i ride because of spandx and i get to shave my legs and arms Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TEARZ Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 hahaha. we have many in here with a case of credit-phobia... it's funny. i'm old enough that it's weird that i haven't had a true credit card yet. i've had an american express for like 7 years, but the one i have is technically a charge card and it can't carry a balance without SEVERE penalty. i have a good paying job, little overhead and excellent credit from student loans mostly. the loans are my principal expense every month. i have a card now with a fixed 6.5% apr. i still haven't fucked with it, but i've been thinking about just up and buying a bike on that shit. haha. my credit and everything is great, but i have awful spending habits and i know that one of these days i could just be feeling real crazy and do it. al, i know precisely the moment that i fell back in love with bikes. i used to ride freestyle bikes back in the 80s, but i probably didn't ride a bike from 94-98. in 98, my friend james and i got out of work on a beautiful spring evening. we worked in east boston, and there were these little kids out front that knew us pretty well and they were all out cruising on bikes and were talking in front of our building. we were about to just walk to the train when james said to one of the kids we knew real well, "yo, lemme borrow your bike real quick." the kid said ok, and james started rolling around on it. it looked fun, so i proceeded to convince this other kid to let me borrow his bike. so i got on, and cruised down the street hesitantly and turned around and did this a few times. james was doing the same thing, but when we got to the end of the street where we had previously turned around, james looked over with a smile and said, "let's go for a little ride man." so we cruised. we went over one street and raced each other while colombian families all outside taking in the sunset watched us with marginal interest. we got brave and went down to maverick square and weaved through traffic, and then flew out to the stadium past the guys playing soccer out there. it was just a beautiful orange night, and we went all the way out to the hills at orient heights before we turned around. everyone was outside, and it felt so good and so different to be seeing the world in the way i was now seeing it. so different from walking or in a car. as it was happening i knew that the experience was renewing me. after an hour or so, james and i returned the bikes to the kids out front of the building. they didn't care, they were neighborhood kids and they thought it was funny. i couldn't believe how fun and so good it had felt to ride a bike. fresh from the experience, i wondered how it was possible to forget such a feeling. after that day, i was obsessed with getting a bike. that day may have been one of the better days of my life; hard to capture in words here. but for sure, it was a specific moment that got me back into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Shit, Tearz... you've got a level head. You know what you're doing. Take care of business and I'm sure all will be well. As for what got me in to bikes, I can pretty much say the same as Alkaline. That freedom to roam and be peace... by myself. I dug it. Even at a young age I couldn't wait to get out of school and away from all the noisey kids and just groove around on my bike. When I moved from Wisconsin ave. in DC to a little shit town in Virginia called Reston, I discovered these great things called black paths. This small town had them all over the place... for miles. I would hop on my bike and go discover shit. Where they led to and and how far I could go. Eventually I found this huge plot of land that was, at one time, the beginnings of an apartment complex. ( for those of you who might be familiar with what I'm talking about... it was called Shadowoods ) Everything was dug out and shaped, but no concrete layed and no wood in sight. Like a big bomb hit the place. And to my amazement... there were these kids flying in the air on these cool looking bikes. Turning their handlebars to the side or ducking behind their seats in the air and then landing with a thud and riding away. Aw shit... I'ma get in on this. Not that easy. I got heavinly into BMX for several years after that. I was sponsored for dirt jumping by Rockville BMX and co-sponsored by Hutch... and I mean co-sponsored. I still had to pay for shit. I did ramps for a few years and then got bored with it because everyone I rode with switched over to skateboards. I was the odd man out for months. Riding by myself and shit. ( This was the time of Mike Dominguez, RL Osborn and Mike Buff... showing my age again ) I picked up road bikes for a little while, but it never really took. Eventually I fell hard for skating and for years I never touched a bike. I guess about nine years ago I bought a mountain bike to cruise around San Diego and to get back and forth to work at Tribal. That feeling I had when I was a kid came back. But as an adult it was more like a video game on the street. Dodging cars and going as fast as possible. I've been in love ever since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CIPHER_one Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Originally posted by Joker ....to get back and forth to work at Tribal. no way! Everyone wish cinnamon toast crunch804 a happy birthday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TEARZ Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 after reading joker's last reply, i thought it would be appropriate for us to recognize just how absolutely incredible this thread is. that's all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TEARZ Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 HAPPY BIRTHDAY! keep on doing it cinnamon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HESHIANDET Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 happy bday cinn. as for me, well...hmm. i was super into bmx when i was younger. like from 4th-8th grade. all i did was go to the track, my buddy and i would built a starting gate at his house and if i wasn't at te track i was at his house practicing starts or just hitting some jumps in he woods. long story short, i broke my nose TWICE! and gave up bmx. skateboarding consumed me and i would go on the occasional mountain bike ride here and there. about 3 years ago when i moved to this city is when bikes really grabbed me again. my bike was no longer just a fun thing to do on a lazy sunday, it was my bread and butter, my connection w/ the world at large. the more i rode in a crowded congested cit the more i realized how dumb it is to not love bikes. somewhere in the middle of all this i feel in love w/ track bikes, lets face it they are the supreme example of a simple perfect machine. not to mention works of art! yada yada, becoming a messenger only strengthened my love and hightened my connection w/ the road and my legs and my cogs and my wheels and my energy. im rambling pretty bad, but its hard to manifest all my thoughts. basically i do it for the spandex and funny shoes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Happy Birthday Cinnamon!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DIBS Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Originally posted by TEARZ after reading joker's last reply, i thought it would be appropriate for us to recognize just how absolutely incredible this thread is. that's all. happy b day cinnamon!go for a ride. i guess my love affair with bicycles started out by accident, like every little kid, i rode bikes but never thought about it much. when i was 13 i started skateboarding, became consumed by it, and skated hard untill a couple years ago. when i lived in detroit i would bomb on a bike out of nessessity(spelling??) and because i had screwed up my credit sooo bad i had to commute to work on a janky mtn bike, 18 miles each way out to the suburbs. for those of you who dont know anything about detroit, its fucked up beyond what you could imagine, really no exageration. after the riots in 68 things just went down hill, anyways thats another story. on my 18 mile journey i would ride through some of the worst nieghborhoods in detroit, people would throw 40 oz bottles at me, hookers would threaten to attack me, i would get run off the rode regularly, it sucked! i hated it, i resented my mistakes that made me do this, i hated to ride that bike. after a couple years of this though, i decided that i should at least have a nice bike if i was going to endure this everyday, the streets of detroit are very beat up, cracks and potholes that will never get repaired, so its kinda like ridding on singletrack in a way, and on a rigid bike i felt like i was getting beat up ridding it, so i went to a shop and put my first nice bike on layaway, it was a trek 8000 with rock shox judy forks, it was about 25 lbs and was nicer than any bike i had ever owned, the shop kids woulkd ask me when i would come in to make payments, where do you ride?, you gonna ride trails on that? etc etc, id always answer no, im gonna commute on it. evryone at the shop was dumbfounded by my responses, i didnt think much of it really, it didnt sink in a was buying a race bike of sorts, i just saw the shocks and the light wieght frame and thought, comfort. well when i got the bike finally paid off, needless to say i was happy, i rode it to work like i planned. it was great. then i showed up at a sunday morning soccer game i would play with my freinds , ridding the new bike. when i arrived it was crazey, some of my friends who rode trails and others were just like, what the fuck, where did you get that. i explained the deal and the excitement grew, i was still confused. turnout happened to be poor the sunday so everyone was like lets go ride, do you want to go to some trails they asked, i said id give it a try. we went to this fun little system of trails out side of detroit and rode, i was amazed on what i had been missing out on, the speed, the challenge, the danger, the excitement, new levels of adrenilan, the solitude and beauty of the woods and trail, the focus involved, i could go on forever, thats when it happened, i was sooooo hooked, i felt so good, i had never been into something like this, skateboarding was a different feeling, ridding the bike was like, well being a kid again. ever since then ive steadily become more and more a bike nut, toatally consumed buy my passion for it, changed alot about my life because of it, learned alot about myself through it.so here i am, toatally and hopelessly in love with bicycles and ridding them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alkaline Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Happy birthday, Cinnamon! Originally posted by TEARZ after reading joker's last reply, i thought it would be appropriate for us to recognize just how absolutely incredible this thread is. that's all. I agree. It is quite amazing how such a simple, and as Hesh put it, artful device could make so many people so happy. Keep going with the stories. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon toast crunch804 Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 thanks everyone well damn im no longer a junior so now i have to race with the big boys well for me i got into cycling a few differnt ways. when i was 12 my father asked me if i thought i could ride 14 miles and of course i said yeas i won the va state road race that year as the only 12 year old that didn't really get me to ride. at 15 i did my first real road race a kid went down in front of me and i crashed going 20 mph or so and got hurt bad this was 500 yards too the finishline. i guess that started the drive to win the feeling of crossing the line in last place or close to itsucks. when i was 15/16 my dad introduced me to cyclocross i feel in love instantly it was a rush i have never felt before a high i have never experance. at the same time and all my childhood i was a soccer star i was one of the top soccer players in the state had colleges after me, but i chose not to play b/c after college all there is in soccer is becoming a coach with cycling you can ride till you can't ride any longer. i also was a pretty good skateboarder and skated from 12 to 18 i have resentally stopped skateboard it saddens me greatly but all good things much come to an end. im sxe not much of a party so cycling is now my soccer. my skateboarding my drug i guess i cycle to competition i strive to win i love nothing more then having my heart rate at 195 with my tounge hanging out and wanting to stop but continueing. it's the feeling you get in you stomic after doing a nice hard ride. the talks you have on the bike when your riding with someone. the freedom of going for aslong as you want going the extra mile i go to school in richmond va but i live in charlottesville va which has some of the best mountains in virginia. for right now im still learning as im concerned i have everything in place to be good i just have to apply myself and spend those count less hours on the bike buildint up my muscles it's something to do and i love it hey joker if you ever comeback around here to reston hit me up and i'll come up and we can go on a ride or if your ever in richmond that shit would be rad.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alkaline Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 Kind of weird how we all used to skateboard, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pilau Hands Posted February 1, 2002 Share Posted February 1, 2002 That one thing that stands out to me is the freedom. I never ride a bike in nyc. I'm not a messenger guy. I guess that part of it doesn't appeal to me. I like the backwoods riding on a mountain bike. No noise, no one to contend with, just the road. I need to take my bike up to a small town somewhere and fly. stinky hands...the pebble kicker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TEARZ Posted February 3, 2002 Share Posted February 3, 2002 "hi. if levi were here, we'd have america's best riders assembled together in one place. oh yeah, BUMP." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HESHIANDET Posted February 3, 2002 Share Posted February 3, 2002 hahahaha, there i am in the back. in the yellow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 My legs are weak... and I broke a spoke My drivetrain is all mucked up because I converted a triple to a double and my broke spoke set my wheel really out of true. Today's ride was not a blast. So for the last seven days I've gotten in 170 miles. Nothing really fast minus a few sprint intervals, mostly tempo riding and lots of hills because my endurance is for shit right now. I'm two weeks out from my first race and I don't want to over-train but I also want to be competitive and at least stay with the leading bunch. Finding time to train is really becoming hard due to work and trying to find a house and artwork. I seem to be making more excuses than just making my legs stronger. Oh well. Maybe this race will be an eye opener. Let me know where I stand with the other Cat3-4's. I'm also in that picture! Look at the light pole. Now scan down and you'll see a guy who's balding with a mustache. Next to him you can see a forhead and some short hair. That's me. I was eating a falafel and giving Michael Barry of Saturn a hard time for being so skinny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon toast crunch804 Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 http://www.deadinthedirt.com/postingfor12oz/kinkosnerd/fat.jpg'> this was posted in the bench but it belongs here joker just to let you know the first race of the season is meaningless. if you over train for it you'll burn out by the end of the season, if you under train then you'll get a damn good workout at the race and you'll have a goal/know where you need to be and yes im a cat4 so if you ever come my way watch out. to tell you the truth im only riding 100 to 150 a week, im taking it easy it's a long long season and i want to make it through injury free. so just calm down and ride. it's okay to lose sometimes, it's for the best, it'll give you something to strive for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 Awesome... That was just what I needed to hear Cinnamon... thank you! I keep thinking that I need to win and that I have to be better than I am. When in reality, racing doesn't have instant gratification like that. It's hard work and lots of it. The same way writing is. It took me over ten years to make a name for myself in writing so I guess I need to look at cycling in those same terms. Take it easy and train right. Again... thanks for the words of wisdom!! That photo is great! It makes me think of that "Cars are coffins" company for some reason... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon toast crunch804 Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 Re: Awesome... Originally posted by Joker ! It's hard work and lots of it. The same way writing is. It took me over ten years to make a name for myself in writing so I guess I need to look at cycling in those same terms. exactly. good point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HESHIANDET Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 1:i was lying, that definitely isn't me. 2:right on w/ taking it easy guys. im happy i can say that i do things purely for fun. especially graffiti and bikes. no ulterior motives, just kicks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alkaline Posted February 4, 2002 Share Posted February 4, 2002 Hahaha! That billboard is rad. I had another lazy weekend, but I bought a cycling jacket to help motivate me to ride on those cool, hazy, Texas winter days. I also decided to not buy a new bike. Instead I'm just going to upgrade my Pista with all kinds of swank components, and then when my lady isn't paying attention, I'm gonna order a custom Ti track frame. Bwah hahahahahaha! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 5, 2002 Share Posted February 5, 2002 My fellow Cyclo-cross friends... If you don't have OLN... find a bar that does... http://www.olntv.com/fs1_1423.cfm The Baltimore finals are going to be shown on Sunday at 3pm Eastern time. It's only for a half hour but should be good watching! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon toast crunch804 Posted February 5, 2002 Share Posted February 5, 2002 Re: My fellow Cyclo-cross friends... Originally posted by Joker If you don't have OLN... find a bar that does... http://www.olntv.com/fs1_1423.cfm The Baltimore finals are going to be shown on Sunday at 3pm Eastern time. It's only for a half hour but should be good watching! hell yeah i was there thanks for the info damn i don't have it at school but i'll get my dad to tape it again the pictures should be coming sometime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DIBS Posted February 6, 2002 Share Posted February 6, 2002 rescued from page 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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