The Reluctant Return of Johnny One Bent

After a day of pain from my fall off the Streetmachine and my inability to start the bike reliably at intersections, I had serious second thoughts about the bike and me. When I am rolling, the bike is a ton of fun. The seat is super comfortable and great for my back. But the negatives are undeniable.

First, for the life of me I couldn’t figure out how to reliably start riding. The problem is partly a balance issue (my balance stinks) and partly the inertial resistance from the bulky tires. These tires combined with the suspension provide a comfortable ride but they are a beast to get rotating. This is a manageable shortcoming except when I am dealing with cars at intersections. It was obviously dangerous and downright scary to be stopped at a highway crossing knowing that I might not be able to get underway.

Second, I could get on the bike about half the time on the first try. And I could get off about 90 percent of the time without trouble. When I was tired, however, I struggled. I once fell when getting on my Tour Easy which is much easier to mount. I had spent the day in the sun and I was tired. My foot didn’t clear the top tube and I went over the bike face first. Not fun. I also fell dismounting The Mule at the lunch stop of the 50 States Ride one year, after probably 10,000 successful dismounts over 25 years. Given the design of the Streetmachine, I think it was only a matter of time before I fell getting on or off it.

I am nearly 70 years old. My legs strength, balance, and flexibility are likely to deteriorate over the next few years. Even if I kept the Streetmachine it would only be useful for two or three years.

When Tim and Beth saw me struggling to get on and off the Streetmachine they suggested I try a tadpole (two wheels in front) trike instead. After witnessing my fall, Charmaine said the same thing. My biggest issue with these trikes is that I’d have to buy a trailer hitch and a hitch rack. Somewhat ironically the same company that makes the Streetmachine makes a trike that takes the same comfy seat. My guess is that getting a trike, hitch, and hitch rack would set me back $6,000 (before tariffs).

I slept poorly last night because of pain and anxiety. This morning on four hours sleep I rode The Mule to Friday Coffee Club. It felt odd being on a conventional bike but I was soon spinning along just fine.

So I have decided in the interest of self preservation to return the Streetmachine to Tim and move on. I’ll let the trike idea roll around between my ears for a while. One of these days a proprietary part on the Tour Easy is going to fail. The manufacturer is no longer in business so that will force me to find a substitute and a trike, maybe even one with e-assist, will be top of the shopping list.

I am planning on taking the Streetmachine back tomorrow, provided my right arm and rib can tolerate lifting the bike onto the car bike rack.

So it goes.