Last night the weather was so nice here in Dallas that I decided I’d go for a little bike ride.  I asked to borrow Juddson’s Schwin [pictured above].  This is a classy re-done fixed -gear road bike. I took it outside of the apartment complex and began riding around the parking lot.  Then I headed over to the parking garage.

Our parking garage looks a bit retro.  It was constructed back in the ’60′s and has these cool ramps up to each level.  I rode the bike up to the 2nd and then to the 3rd [top level].

When I had had enough fun up there I decided to come down.

Now, allow me to interject here and explain that Juddson’s bike doesn’t have brakes.  The way its build makes the pedals the brakes because it is fixed to the tire.  So if the tire rolls forward slowly the pedals roll forward slowly.  If the tire rolls backwards quickly the pedals roll backwards quickly.  

So as I begin going down this steep descent, I’m working my hardest to make slow revolutions with the pedals.  Gravity, however, had other plans.  The bike quickly gains speed as I race down this slope.  

The pedals soon begin spinning to fast for me and my right foot slips off the pedal.  I try desperately to slow the bike by standing up to apply pressure on the pedal. But that only begins to raise me up and down as fast as the bike is going.

I finally made it to the second level only to have to do it again to get to the ground level.  I survived though.

Andrew Nemeth

P.S.  Shout Out:  Today is Alan “A-Town” Jensen’s Birthday.