It was years before Niner patented Balfa’s suspension design. The Fox TALAS travel adjust system was available on forks AND rear shocks. Many new mountain bike sales included swapping out big chainrings for bash guards*. It was a time of nine-speed drivetrains, Nokian mountain bike tires, and the brand-new Race Face Diabolus bar. The latter combined a massively oversized (31.8mm) clamp and exceptionally wide (28″/711mm) stance.
An ‘older’ (than me) fellow named Dan showed up where I was working bikes. I seem to recall that the boss had met him at the bowling alley. It may have been the pub. He had a joie de vivre that was undampable, musical talent, a K-car that that was every colour made, and the most enjoyable Bubbles impression I have ever seen.
*{Drewitors note: Other folks chose to break a few teeth – on their chainrings – first.}
{Above photo: Balfa.Wooyek}
We had little in common. I was going to college full-time, living at home, and riding bikes a ton. Commuting and mountain biking. I had interesting bicycles. Dan had a couple of groms, an old Rocky Mountain, musical talent, dad jokes, and good stories. And even if I pedaled more in a week than Dan did in a couple of months he had an honest passion for working in a shop. I mean, I hear he’s still doing it!
At the time I was still coming to grips with the realization that you didn’t have to love bicycles, maybe you didn’t have to have ever loved bicycles, to work in the industry (actually, that one might still be a bit fresh or at least wildly weird). And, I was also starting to learn that folks can absolutely adore bicycles even if they use them less frequently or for different applications.
Think of the tiny toddler who can barely walk and who points at you when you ride by, grins widely, and yells “BIKE! BIKE! BIKE!” until their exhausted parent finally acknowledges their excitement for a future life on two wheels.
Anyway, when I started writing this a couple of weeks back I was thinking about working with Dan. Nostalgia, it’s what we geriatric bike shop folks do with our spacing-out time now that most of the new bike sh*t is boring or ridiculous.
[Aside From Future Me] “Sorry, what’s that, the heads-up display on your Ray-Ban Meta Specialized co-lab glasses isn’t interfacing with your wireless drivetrain to indicate what gear you’re currently riding in? Have you considered just selecting an easier one when your current gear is too hard and vice-versa? Yes, apologies, my bad, I’ll keep my elitist gatekeeping to myself. Let’s turn them off and back on again and after that, if it’s still an issue for $90 I’ll plug them into our proprietary system to update the firmware.” [/Aside From Future Me]
It’s my turn to play shop tunes. I can’t remember what was on (how on message is that?), and in these cases, I always just say it was 2003’s Just One More. My littlest brother Stephen bought that album for me as a gift at the time, so it’s still one of my favourites.
Anywho, music’s playing, and one of the young fellers that I work with come back to the shop and that funny bunny says: “Drew, is this from your time?” And I says, “My time? What does that mean, my time?” And he says, “You know, right now is my time, so I’m wondering if this is from your time?“
Thinking about that moment, I wish that I could do a passable Bubbles impression. When the only answer that comes to mind when they look at you with their cocky I-have-you-now smile is a long drawn out “Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck Youuuuuuuuu” it’s time to jump into character. Or find yourself admitting:
“Yes, fine, it’s from my time.”
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