zhng my ride

When someone from church offered to pass me his road bike on a semi permenant loan while he was in medical school in Sydney, I don't know why I somehow conjured up images of some pretty pretty bike all decked out and adorned with the lastest equipment. And of course me riding pretty on it with shades and one of those cool riding suits. So when I went down to the guy's place to pick it up today I was...um...well...more than a bit disillusioned to say the least.
He'd already told me that the bike was years old and essentially rotting in his house, only being ridden once a year when he came back here on holiday. What I didn't expect was a rust ridden, age bitten frame that looked as if it had seen its best days during Mao Zedong's cultural revolution. Though I think anyone riding a bike like that in China would probably have been robbed, killed and blamed for bringing it on himself for being a capitalist.
Give or take a few years, the bike is at least 10 years old. One entire decade! Bikes these days have up to 10 gears in the rear gear set. This baby has 5. And tubeless tyres were all the rage 7 or 8 years ago but lost popularity because they had a knack of bursting at the most inapportune times.
Ah well what am I complaining about. I have a road bike! Well sorta anyway.

I think I'm gonna call it Rusty.