I raced.. when I was a kid
Not like an official race. They didn’t have those for poor kids. Well, maybe they did, but I wasn’t invited.
We would race through the streets day after day. Spinning our pedals as hard as we could. There were days, weeks even when only one of had a bike. Something broken or stripped. We would anxiously await our next chore to earn a few dollars. A quick ride to Cy’s Cycle to buy parts.
Mainly there were two of us. Sometimes 6 of us, but always the two of us. We did everything from a young age til adulthood together. He was always stronger. He could drop me like an empty bottle. When I would take off on his bike he could chase me down on foot. There were times when I could take him, but not many.
I look back.. it was a blast. Now knowing why he was tougher and faster than I. My bike was broken more. I had no older cousins to help get mine working again or donate parts when needed. I was solo - when my bike broke, he rode me every where. This is why he was a machine.
Riding double was awesome. I remember, on this first day of summer 2010, all the summer nights I spent on his pegs or handlebars. SO fun, miss him so much.
Wild look… it’s me on the back of your bike.
June 22nd, 2010 at 4:59 pm
Is your cycling buddy still cycling? I remember when I was thirteen yrs old, living in Ft Worth, TX and one day I decided to ride to my Grandparents house in Weatherford, TX about 30 miles. My bike at the time was a clunker and in place of one pedal I had a bolt, which by the way wore a hole in my tennis shoe. I had no kit, no water, no spare parts, just me and an old bike and I had a ball, my Grandparents nearly had a heart attack and they did give me a ride home, thank goodness.
June 22nd, 2010 at 6:37 pm
No he’s a car guy now. Hoping he sees this and chimes in.
We rode BMX bikes when were kids.
I love bolt (pedals). NICE!