When I lived in south jersey I was obsessed with cars.  It was my hobby.  I would buy them cheap, fix them up, get new parts for them, etc.. And even when I didn’t have the money to do any of that, I’d still spend time washing and playing with the cars I have there.  Being a computer guy, this mechanical connection is sometimes needed.  It allowed me to let go of all that super complicated “using my brain” stuff and just mindlessly work on something with my hands.  I haven’t had that connection since I moved up here.  Living up here you don’t even get a guaranteed parking spot on the street, let alone a driveway to take apart or just wash your car.

I seemed to have found a solution in bikes though.  Thanks to my boy in college Ed Dudek, who introduced me to real mountain biking.  (not that sissy dirt path stuff you do with mom, dad and sister at the park)  Ever since then I’ve realized I have a huge passion for biking.  Being out there in the woods ripping up trails, adrenaline pumping, getting great exercise is awesome.  And since my original Mongoose Pro Zero G 2 that Ed built for me, I’ve recently upgraded my mountain bike to a ‘08 Cannondale F5.  I’ve always had a love affair with cannondale frames and I finally was able to afford one.  The bike is amazing on the trails and I certaintly don’t regret that purchase.

Then one day at my job a Tony, a coworker, says he rides his bike to work a couple days a week and rides right past my place on his way.  I immediately said yes and prepared myself for the next day of riding to work.  I learned a couple things that day.  #1 - I’m pretty out of shape.  #2 - Full on mountain bikes suck on the road.  Tony had a road bike with skinny tires and I had to work twice as hard just to keep the pace.  I’m sure you’ve seen both types of bikes and know how differnt they can be.  Other than having 2 wheels and pedals, they’re totally different animals.  This of course put me on the hunt for a road bike.  I searched craigslist and forums for about a week straight.  Totally consumed with getting a skinny light road bike, I read tons and tons of articles and blogs stating whats the best type of bike.

The biggest decision I had to make was a single speed or geared bike.  This might sound easy to some of you, choose the geared bike!  Afterall, the more gears the merrier right?  Not exactly.  There are many advantages to a singlespeed bike.  First of all, weight.  All those gear, and the shifters, and the lines, the derailleurs, and even the extra length of chain all weight something.  On a road bike, or any bike really, weight is everything.  If you don’t think so I dare you to take the Huffy challenge.  (take a walmart huffy and a real bike and ride them both up a hill).  The second advantage is maintence.  Less moving parts means less adjustments, which means more time riding and less time at the bike shop.  And if its a bike you use regularly to get to work and back that matters… a lot.  Thirdly, its torqueier and more responsive.  Its simple physics really.  That chain goes from one ring to the next, and doesn’t have the drag of a gear system.

So one faithful night I went to James Vincent Bikes in North Bergen here and they let me ride a number of single speeds and geared bikes.  I instantly fell in love with the Cannondale Capo.  Besides having great looks, its super light weight (to the tune of 15lbs), and takes off like a motorcycle.  $800 later I’m leaving the store with it.  This bike just begs to be ridden over and over.  I love it and know there will be many adventures with us!