Today in the afternoon temperates reached 17C. Sitting in a park with the sun on my face I realized that this is my perfect temperature. It's just perfect. And it's not just the weather. Things are going very smoothly lately, and I can really feel the trip becoming a reality. I wonder if the good things will last though. Cross my fingers..
Here's the front brakes of my bicycle, old on the right, new on the left. I replaced them last week. Unfortunately the bike shop I went to only had one pair left, so I'll have to replace the rear brakes later. The rear brakes, by the way, are even more worn out than the front brakes..
But the thing that I'm most happy about is the suspension. Ever since I got the bicycle I had problems with the suspension whenever the front baggage rack was mounted. A quick visit to a different bicycle shop opened my eyes. The owner took one quick glance at the front wheel and immediately saw what I had not noticed for two years.
That thingie in the red circle is supposed to be in the place where the green arrow is pointing. It might make a bit more sense looking at it from the side. Here's a pic after I fixed it.
After moving the circle thingie the silvery brake thingie no longer hits the baggage carrier horizontal bar thingie! And I fixed it all by myself :D
Here's some more photos of the rather poor state my bicycle is in.
- Way too many tie wraps
- Head-mounted light that makes me look like a baka
- Some stretchy rope thingies
- Spare pieces that came off my bicycle before
- Cheap-ass 100 yen puncture repair kits
- A can of pressured magic puncture fixing gas
- Very unmanly pocket knife
- Heavy heavy spanner
A lot of the bike's parts are not in very good condition, but the parts that matter are excellent. Chain, gears, brakes. Very nice! The ride is extremely smooth. Stable and silent. One year ago, whenever I rode into the mountains, I would suffer and not enjoy it. I still suffer, but now I enjoy it. Perhaps it's because of the work I put into the bicycle, or perhaps (dare I say it) my practice is actually paying off?
Every day it's getting warmer now. Every day I'm getting a bit more fit. (Except for those days on which I am lazy and order pizza). Every day I'm getting a bit closer to something exciting. I'm enjoying myself.