I got me a new ride today. An Electra 7D cruiser with this huge Wald basket on the front. The guys at the shop put the basket on since I was buying it with the bike, and I'm glad, since they had to tussle with it for a while.
Compared to my single speed, coaster-brake cruiser, this thing's a joy.
It's going to be basically, my car. Since I don't have a car, and can't afford a motorcycle either right now, this machine is it. I rode it home 10 miles against the wind, and since I'd done 35 miles on my other cruiser yesterday, a thing my butt does not forget, I was amazed how comfortable the ride was. The speeds came in handy, since a sit-up bike with a humongous basket on the front is NOT aerodynamic. It's nice having hand brakes again too, no more laying down a brodie and not really stopping that well.
Along with grocery shopping, taking recyclables to sell, and just all sorts of load-carrying, I plan to get a cooler that fits in the basket and see if I can get away with selling ice cream bars in town here. The hot weather's coming up, and I could make a really decent income for a few months. Sure there are plenty of Mexican ice cream sellers with their little carts in town, but they only sell Mexican ice creams or ices, and those are fine but people might like the US types too. And the Mexican ones are expensive, $1.25 and up. I plan to sell mine for $1. I can get them by the box at CostCo for half of that. I'm sure I'll have a maze of paperwork to get through to get all licensed, but I'm willing to try this. A lot of those guys aren't really salesmen either, they just kinda ride around, looking dour. I've been told I could sell ice to Eskimos. So, the bike could start me in a new occupation.
Anyway, there are a ton of new riders out there, because of the price of gas and the economy in general. If you are planning to use your bike to grocery shop or carry stuff, it's well worth it to look into the Wald US made line of baskets, or Cetma racks, also made here.
Compared to my single speed, coaster-brake cruiser, this thing's a joy.
It's going to be basically, my car. Since I don't have a car, and can't afford a motorcycle either right now, this machine is it. I rode it home 10 miles against the wind, and since I'd done 35 miles on my other cruiser yesterday, a thing my butt does not forget, I was amazed how comfortable the ride was. The speeds came in handy, since a sit-up bike with a humongous basket on the front is NOT aerodynamic. It's nice having hand brakes again too, no more laying down a brodie and not really stopping that well.
Along with grocery shopping, taking recyclables to sell, and just all sorts of load-carrying, I plan to get a cooler that fits in the basket and see if I can get away with selling ice cream bars in town here. The hot weather's coming up, and I could make a really decent income for a few months. Sure there are plenty of Mexican ice cream sellers with their little carts in town, but they only sell Mexican ice creams or ices, and those are fine but people might like the US types too. And the Mexican ones are expensive, $1.25 and up. I plan to sell mine for $1. I can get them by the box at CostCo for half of that. I'm sure I'll have a maze of paperwork to get through to get all licensed, but I'm willing to try this. A lot of those guys aren't really salesmen either, they just kinda ride around, looking dour. I've been told I could sell ice to Eskimos. So, the bike could start me in a new occupation.
Anyway, there are a ton of new riders out there, because of the price of gas and the economy in general. If you are planning to use your bike to grocery shop or carry stuff, it's well worth it to look into the Wald US made line of baskets, or Cetma racks, also made here.
