Upon the suggestion of @mrprofessor I took up the challenge posted by @friendlymoose in the Cycling Community to introduce our (favorite?) bicycle. More details to this initiative you can find in this post. Since I just fell in love with an old Dutch bike I fixed up for riding the streets of Berlin, and even took it on a major day-trip - and back, I will forgo harping on about that here.
Instead I want to go back a bit to dwell in my memories of the best bike I've ever built. Don't get me wrong, she is still strong and healthy, and our ways have not parted either... she just happens to be on a different continent, waiting for me patiently to continue our journey across North America, which I wrote an entire blog series about. Feel free to check it out, if you feel like being taken along a long bike journey from Vancouver Island to the Mexican Border.
Big Ups for the Red Fox
Now I really wish this wonderful bike was here with me, if only to take some good pics of her, and also fill in the specs, which I may have written down at some point, but now I can't even look at them. Instead, I will have to make do with the pics from my previous posts.
I think everyone who loves bicycles will agree, that the more you ride a bike the closer your relationship will be with it (which soon enough changes into a him or her). That's true, still it's nothing compared to the closeness you develop when fixing / building your bike. Since I built my Zorra Roja from scratch, you can imagine my deep love for her right from the start.
Now I don't want to repeat all the details I have already explained so well in the post about building her. The couple of thing I could add have to do with an aspect that I only realized later, when someone pointed out that she was a master of disguise. The idea being that I had maintained a scruffy look to draw attention away from the best components I could get my hands on (using the oldest trick in the Shimano book, by going for names possibly late in the alphabet). But a potential bike thief really would have to take a close look for that. The first things to notice would be the sawed-off milk crates with old inner tubes woven into them, serving as rear baskets, and that small scrap piece of wood from my friend's sawmill mounted above my front fender. It's not strong enough to hold anything heavier than a solar charger, and I only took it because they didn't have any stickers! But a crude wooden board certainly doesn't make my bike look any fancier, and that's precisely what I wanted.
Dreaming About the Next Plans
Nice! So after seeing my magnified pics and short introductory paragraphs, you have probably all gotten excited enough to read through all my links, including the shorter day-trips on and around Vancouver Island, and possibly other bike related stuff I've posted passionately. 😜
And now you may be wondering: What's gonna happen to the Red Fox? Sure, she's well taken care off in California, but she probably misses being ridden as much as I miss riding her. So ultimately, that's going to have to happen... Since I live in Mexico City, the least I should expect to do is to ride her down there, probably along the most recommended routes by my warmshowers guests: First along the Baja California, then from Mazatlán inland towards Durango, onwards through San Luis Potosí, finding the coolest way down into the city. But from there I would absolutely love to continue towards Mazunte on the Oaxacan coast, and then through Central America into Colombia. Yeah! And from there I really should arrange a ride down to Patagonia but let's cross that bridge once I make it to South America.
The Changes I Need
Before doing all that, I really would like to do a general overhaul of the bike: Changing the chain and maybe cassette is a given. Cables and crank only if really needed. But then, there is the front wheel, which has served me quite well, yet I want to change it in favor of one with a generator hub. And that means, I may as well re-build it. I will have to take a close look at the rim, to see if it's still as decent as it was before putting another 4-5k km on it. But that is the main update I think the Zorra Roja needs. A photovoltaic charger (at least the one I used) is useless, and thoug Mexico is generally sunny, I really prefer relying on the resource I always have on the road, and that is my potential energy after climbing inevitable mountains. Together with a power pack my lights, phone, speakers, etc. should be always charged to the max, and I won't have to look for cafés and gas stations constantly.
Join the Challenge
So, now that I've presented the bicycle I have grown so attached to, I'm curious about your rides! Take part in the #mybike challenge, and tell us why you're so excited about your bike (which I am sure you are!)
