Bikechain's Big Day

We have not done a group ride since last Saturday. A full week without the crew. We typically ride together 4 days a week, and I ride with singular crew members at least 2 other days. Not this week. The powers that be dealt me the solo card that Wrecking Ball's been mumbling about. It actually wasn't all bad. No arguing about direction, pace, or meeting times. No feeling responsible for everyone else's happiness. Just me and the trees.

I did get to ride with Ricky Silk, one of those days. Hoss was dead set on doing the 6 hour solo race down in Santos. He lobbied pretty hard to get Wrecking Ball and myself involved, but we both had our reasons for dodging that bullet. By now it's over, and I hope he did well. He should have good stories and pics up within a few days.

Today was the crew reunion, though. Stubbs is in town, and it was time to get the band back together. Micro, W.B., Marcus, the Pink Cotton Candy Dragon(Bikechain), Stubbs and myself all rolled east through TB Park, Cadillac, etc.

Now I've titled this Bikechain's Big Day for a reason. With Bikechain, he's always the center of the universe. If you don't believe me, just ask him. I could regale you for hours with tales of his one upmanship, but we'll save most of those for later.

Bikechain has been dying to show off the latest endeavor of he and cousin Marcus. So the ride met at the new Bikechain.com warehouse/manpad/used bike parts emporium. Many of us who spent years pedalling bicycle wares to the recreational bicycle pedaller, miss it badly. As much as the actual job, there is the club like effect of likeminded souls gathering around the grease and rubber smelling bike shop meccas. While each shop may attract slightly different followers, the overall effect is the same. Every shop has its regulars who show for lunch, the rides, or just to hang out on a rainy day. These camp followers become a family, and often lifelong bonds are formed, even here in college transient laden T-town. While Bikechain does not miss trying to pay his mortgage as a bike shop owner, he does miss the gatherings at the shrine. So when his garage became overwhelmed with the paraphernalia of Bikechain.com, he played on Marcus's memory of lunch time gatherings and foosball championships, and viola, the Bikechain storefront is born. Viva la Revolutions,.....again! The "Shop" will likely only be open on weekends, Yours truly will probably show up every other weekend to turn wrenches. The goal is not to bail on the day jobs, and takeover the T-town bikeshop scene. In actuality, it would be very cool to see it pay for itself, while allowing a place for people to unload some of that older gear, that just isn't being used any more, or pick up some preowned parts, at less than new prices. If nothing else, it should be a cool place to hang out with others who dig on bikes.

Bikechain's Big Day, chapter 2: Just in case you did not hear the monstrous boom, that was Bikechain's head exploding with sheer awarness of self greatness, Bikechain rode the drop at the end of Cadillac today. Well, he kind of rode at it in such a manner as to fall off of it without dying, but props are due where props are due. I wouldn't even try, and he definitely pulled the trigger today. His aching fork thanked him later for not pulling an encore performance.

Chapter 3 involved a crew dinner at La Fiesta. Now I missed the dinner, but I'm sure Bikechain carried his triumphant glee well into the evening. I know this because I've already received a rowdy phone call from the dinner party, reminding me that I better tell the tale of his exploits to my gentle readers. So there you go, Bikechain. Enjoy your 15 minutes of fame, until these 3 readers go watch I Love Lucy reruns.