Modern day bike riding

This morning I was out and about on what's becoming my usual short (1 hour) ride. After a brief stint on the trail dodging prams (I guess they're called strollers here) and dogs and what have you then I took off onto the local neighborhood streets. Much quieter, one of them is in fact named "Quiet Place Drive", can't beat that. School is still not open until next week so no mommy vans to contend with at this time in the morning. Very peaceful, the road smooth and cool.

Taking the Northbound trail, after the end of Walnut Avenue, along the canal, it was just me and a few walkers. In my mind I've named this stretch the "good morning" trail. Because most people that I meet take the time to say, or at least mumble, "good morning". I've noticed that these are generally older folks, the youngsters having I suppose gone off to work. I'm not sure whether it's because they just have the time, or because they were brought up in gentler times, but I really appreciate the greeting. I figure that I look like one of them too, especially when I haven't shaved for a few days, which is pretty normal, so with my gray stubble I am glad to return the gesture.

On the way back home, westbound, away from the sun, it's all downhill following the canal back towards my house. I noticed today a couple of examples of the latest in bike fashion, fixies. (as in fixed gear). We used to call them track bikes, stripped down to nothing. No gears, no brakes, as light as possible, built to be pushed around a banked track without any limitations. These two were made up from classic steel frames, one a Peugeot and the other a Schwinn. To slow down, you need to pedal backwards, or at least to push that way in hopes of stopping. The look is a bicycle about as clean as you can get.

I have a suitable Peugeot frame, but I don't think I could really take on one of these beauties. On the road or the track, my ability to take a crash is not what it used to be. In the meantime it's just great to get out in the morning and I do enjoy seeing those old frames getting the respect they deserve.