Conference noted::bicycle

3030.0. "Always Check Your Gear Carefully" by HPCGRP::BURTON (DIGITAL INTERNAL USE ONLY) Wed Oct 25 1995 08:27

Here's a funny story that happened on Martha's Vineyard a few weeks ago.  We
took the family over to bicycle the island for a day.  My wife packed the
bicycle helmets in our day pack so we can carry them over on the ferry.  We
arrived on the island, rented bikes and began the tour of island.  We stopped
in a number of the towns, parked our bikes and walked around the town.  So we
didn't have to carry them, we often wore our helmets as we strolled the
streets.  I noticed people were looking at me and then my helmet and then at
me.  At first I thought they might be wondering why a bicyclist was wearing a
helmet while not riding.  But then my wife looked up at my helmet and started
laughing.  When I pulled it off and checked it out, I noticed that two of the
letters in "Specialized" were gone and it now said "Special ed".  We found the
i and z in the bottom of the backpack.  The moral to this story is always
inspect your gear before you go on a ride.  BTW, it now says "Special". 

Jim 

Disclaimer: I have nothing against Special Ed, but I don't want to promote
            something when I am not a participant.

    Great story !
    
    Modifying decals is great fun.  My Marin 'Bear Valley' decal started to
    peal away where the bike rack rubbed the 'Valley' on one side and the
    'Bear' on the other side.  It now says 'Bear' on the port side and 
    'Valley' on the other side.  I frequently get asked, what brand bike 
    is that ?
    
    I also thought of raising the value of my mtb by modifying the 'Marin'
    decal to say 'Merlin'.  But then I would need to find a Ti decal to
    replace the CroMol one.  And I would need to leash a guard dog next to
    my wheels to prevent theft.
    
    My 5 year old son is always giving me decals - bugs bunny, tasmanian 
    devil, power ranger decals are found on our various possessions.  Lots
    of fun.