My Fuji Espree's story

This bike purchase a couple months ago, in truth, was mostly a curiosity and also a spur of the moment investment. Boy did it take me by storm, I do not consider myself an avid cyclist, and the only real knowledge I have is through trial and a whole lot of error. That is pretty much the point of this blog, people who are new to cycling like us, then telling the dirty cheap story.

Since the initial purchase I have ridden several hundred miles, I commute to work 90% of the time on bike, and I do my utmost to just not touch the car. Inspired by the article Two Wheels to Freedom Part I: Thoughts on Bike-Touring I set out with a dear friend of mine. Full of learning and misadventure we planned a second tour. Now with new company we set out onto the 180 mile trip to Key West. Or as I like to call it, the Tour de Azure Keys.

Many things need to be considered, but before anything, look at your bike. My Fuji changed a lot from it's initial purchase from gentleman at craigslist. 

The Espree with all its original parts (except pedals)

I researched extensively into cycling, I wanted to make sure I could repair anything and do regular maintenance, (reason being) because I just have little to no finances. Even so I still ran into issues with this older model, mostly through ignorance. 

I found a way to neglect the crankshaft and rings to the point at which during one commute I managed to mangle and warp the 52 ring beyond repair. Mostly because the stack bolts fell out... I was accelerating and dropped the gear during a rotation when the part of the ring that was unbolted was at its highest tension with the chain and instead of rotating it bent over its disk, I almost crashed into the median but was able to downshift and continue until i was safe enough to check the damage.

 I felt like such a noob. A friend of mine lent me a spare 48 ring and a new crankset, which is on the bike now. For the tour I am switching to it's older configuration. 

When I got the bike I read many articles about the superiority of clipless shoes and pedals in terms of power, speed and comfort. Not until I found a pair of Northwave Cycling shoes at the local thrift shop did I set out to try, the pair is a size too small but I figured why not? I bought a pair of look pedals with cleats the next day at my local shop (the cheapest pair) and slapped them on. To this day I use and love them.

This brings me to how my Espree works today. All the research in the world I have found, just cannot replace experience. Going out and just putting tire to pavement is the best research. Unfortunately for me my lab is Miami, Florida.... Long story short, to say the drivers here dislike cyclist is an understatement... 

My Espree after a tune-up

In all I love my bike, I hope giving it a much needed make-over, plus another hard pressed trip will allow me to continue to love cycling, at least until a driver finally makes good on their threats... sheesh...

-Carlos