BRO QUEST 2009

My trusty bike is a heavily modified mid-nineties Giant Innova (a mid-level hybrid/commuter) that I purchased in 2005 from a bike shop in OKC on consignment from the (then) police chief of Norman, who's named Clovis. The bike cost $200 used and has probably seen close to $1500 in upgrades/repairs over the course of 4 years.

Simone De Beauvoir, Jr in Forest Grove, OR

The bike started as a baby-blue hybrid with well-used parts, which over the course of some 10,000 miles I have swapped for better parts (and then swapped for other better parts when those wore out).

(This paragraph will be hella boring to pretty much everyone except hard-core bike nuts) The only original part left on the bicycle are the chainrings. These chainrings are also the most puzzling thing I have seen on a bike: The smallest and largest are normal, round rings, but the middle ring is a Shimano BioPace ring--BioPace was a gimmick introduced in the early nineties, an oval chainring designed to more naturally work with the movement of a cyclist's knees. There's not really a noticeable difference in pedaling efficiency or knee wear, it just makes the chain bob up and down every half-revolution.

I have used the bike as a super-heavy duty commuter (300 miles a week), a grocery bike, a road-racer, a tri-bike and once, memorably, as a cyclocross bike. The bike is currently being employed as my touring steed and has been performing admirably.

The odometer is taped over because realizing one has 70 more miles to go before dinner is boring/depressing

Really, the only thing anybody notices about the bike is the fact that it is BLINDINGLY pink. So pink that it may be visible from space. The other occasionally noticed feature is the SUPER-G Brooks Professional leather saddle, which has been broken in so thoroughly people sometimes think it is a custom color. This saddle is easily the most comfortable bicycle saddle I have ever used, able to keep me from griping on hundred-mile hauls. I cannot recommend enough Brooks products, their expense is worth the quality.

Detail of Brooks saddle. Getting my wheels trued in Anacortes

In case there are any serious equipment junkies out there, the bike is a total franken-list:

• Bike weighs somewhere around 30 lbs, including fenders, lights seat-bag etc
• Front shifter a mid-nineties ultegra integrated brifter(missing the top plate)
• Rear shifter a 2008 ultegra integrated brifter
• Wheels are Mavic CP-22 700c rims laced to 32 hole Shimano 105 hubs.
• I have no idea the model on either derailleur, probably ancient low-end Shimano.
• Cassette is a Shimano nine-speed 11-25
• Chainrings are a standard triple, except for the middle biopace
• Handlebars are generic chromoly, covered in really nice stitched tape ($10 more than cork tape and well worth the investment)
• Tires: Front is a random Vittoria Zaffiro Pro that I had laying around the house, Rear is a Continental Gatorskin that is hella strong but an absolute BITCH to unbead from the rim
• Pedals are Look deltas. May replace these with SPD in the near future because I keep destroying my cleats

The bike is totally, utterly bombproof. It has been hit by cars, dropped down stairs, ridden down stairs, wrecked multiple times at velocities ranging from 10 to 25 mph and covered in snow, mud, dirt, sweat and blood. An illustrative example: I was sort of lost at 11pm trying to finish the 135 mile Spokane ride and ended up riding through a field in a weird suburb-mountain neighborhood. I came to a 4 foot drop off. I jumped off the bike to figure out how to get my equipment down, and the attached trailer rolled forward, throwing my bike off the ledge. Trailer followed. Neither trailer nor bicycle suffered injury.

The only real issue I have with the bike is that the fact that most of the parts came from different bikes and thus the bike needs relatively constant tightening/maintenance. It's not really noticeable unless you're riding like 8-10 hours a day, though--OH WAIT, I AM.

Bicycle is easily modified to fit changing circumstances

Aside from that the bike handles like a dream, is Xtremely visible (important if you don't like getting hit/accidentally run off the road), and is probably my favorite bike.

For the trip, I am hauling a Burley flatbed trailer, which I was able to score wholesale through Outdoor Adventures. The trailer is useful if rattly, and weighs 21 lbs, which is almost invisible when unweighted. I'm carrying somewhere near 35 lbs on the trailer, and it still pulls well. Will review the trailer later.

RATING: ONE MILLION FIVE THOUSAND