A different pair of wheels…

We had a gorgeous day today, and I wanted to play around a bit with the Midland XTC video cam on a different pair of wheels…

That’s my Bianchi Campione, and don’t let the Italian name fool you.   Although Bianchi is literally the world’s oldest bicycle company and they’re from Italy, this puppy was made in China (as are all Bianchi bicycles these days).   My Campione is decidedly old school with a steel frame (not aluminum or carbon fiber like the hot rods), downtube shifters, and plain old pedals (not clips).   It may look like something expensive, but it’s not.   It’s just a basic bike and I love riding it.   When I’m two wheeling and I’m not on the California Scooter, odds are this is the set of wheels I’m on.

I love bicycling.   I got started like you probably did….on a hand-me-down Schwinn that was the coolest thing in the world.   That old balloon-tired green monster from Chicago worked.   It was my first taste of freedom.   It was the first hint of what it was like to get my knees in the breeze.    It represented independence, fun, and all that is good in the world.   I still get that feeling today when I get on a bicycle.

Haven’t been on a bicycle in a while, you say?   Hey, let’s go for a ride…

That first taste of two-wheeled freedom sticks – it’s been with me for nearly 60 years.   Not surprisingly, many of my motorcycle friends ride bicycles.   Steve does, and so do a lot of other guys and gals I putt around with.   It’s great fun and you can get into it without spending a fortune, or you can go nuts throwing cash at fancy bicycles.  I’ve done that, but these days it’s the inexpensive steel-frame Bianchi you see in the photo above that floats my boat.

We’ve sure gone from one extreme to the other in the blog this weekend.   The Big Boy weighs 1.2 million pounds.   My bicycle weighs 20 pounds.   Quite a spread.  

So, enough about bicycles, locomotives, and other cool stuff.    This week I’m going to get out on the Baja Blaster and grab some video…maybe I’ll even ride it to work one day.   We’ll see.

Later, folks!