(no subject)

[camwyn]

Yesterday I decided that I needed a new bicycle helmet and a decent pair of bike shorts. I have several pairs of the Spandex shorts that they sell for runners- old, but serviceable, since I only wear them when I'm skating. The problem with using them for cycling is that, well, I wanted something with a little more padding around the Downbelow Station region. I figured, hey, real bike shorts have that- let's see if we can't get a pair. And since Chelsea Bikes looked too small on my last visit to have a fitting booth on the premises, let's try for another bike store. We should have more sources than just the one anyway.

There's a bike shop on 38th, in Midtown, but I opted not to go there even though it was relatively close by compared to Chelsea. This was because of personal annoyance. According to their answering machine the last time I called, they were open on Sundays from 12 to 5 or from 1 to 5 during the summers. Last time I called was back when the pedal fell off my bike, back in July. When I got from the ferry to that store and saw that they had a sign up saying they were on Winter Hours and they were Closed- well- that cheesed me off mightily. The personal annoyance lingered yesterday, so I looked for another shop in the online yellow pages. Hmm, said I, I see there's a place on 58th. Swim Bike Run. That sounds promising. So I chose to walk there, because that's only ten blocks and really not a bad ten blocks either.

I got there.

Swim Bike Run is a highly specific store. They sell triathlon stuff.

No, seriously, that's all they sell. They had bikes for sale, but they were all scary things with airfoil-shaped cross sections. They had a decent selection of nicely aerodynamic helmets- some for $50, most for $100 or more. They had a lot of clothing, though anything designed to cover the butt was multiple purpose- you had to be able to swim in it and bike in it and do your marathon.

They had an Endless Pool in the store.

At least I assume it was an Endless Pool. I can't imagine why a place like that would settle for anything less, since its customers wouldn't be able to put their stuff to the test without the persistent current those things set up. It was next to the fitting booths and the peculiar bathing suits that only people who're swimming long ocean distances ever seem to wear. And the display of sunglasses I assume were horribly expensive, because they were locked in a glass case and had no price stickers anywhere in sight.

All I could think was 'I buy my sunglasses at the hardware store, I'm wearing $15 sandals from Modell's, and my bike is for commuting.' It was like being proud of having gotten good with a Cessna, and planning for taking the licensing test for a Learjet in a year's time, only to walk into a store where they sell parts for Air Force jets.

I wound up getting my shorts and helmet there anyway. The first helmet I picked up cost $130. I am quite proud of the fact that I did not flinch at the price. I have a feeling it would've gone like this:

ME: How much is this one?
SHOP PERSON: $130.
ME: OMGWTFNKVD do you people eat babies too?
SHOP PERSON: Yep. Did you want crunchy or chewy? Crunchy's got more protein.

Seriously, though, I was aware of how expensive helmets could get (we ARE talking about stuff designed to make you not die, so I wasn't gonna complain), so I just nodded and asked what the difference was between the helmets there. I have a very strong feeling that the shop workers were not the sort of people the store was selling to, because the girl who answered the question looked over the rack and said, "Not a lot, really. Colour mostly, and some of them we only have in some sizes."

So I put the $130 model back and picked up a different one that looked about right and had a nice blue and silver colour scheme. That model, it turned out, cost $49.99. They had one left in my head size. It was grey and silver and black and white and blazing red- in other words, a perfect match for my bike's colour scheme. I might also mention that it was made in Canada.

Quit snickering. Neither with the bike nor with the helmet was I trying for the RCMP colour scheme. And anyway there's no gold involved in either one.

I don't mind paying $50 for something that'll make me not die, as long as it fits, and this one pretty much did. At first I was a little weirded by the prospect of $44 for the shorts, since triathlon shorts are relatively small so as to shave precious grams of weight off, but then I thought- I will be wearing these for bicycling 20, 30 or more miles at a time. If nothing else, the padded forward bits will be helpful in not getting off the bike and staggering around in circles whimpering. Besides, women pay way more than that for ordinary skirts or trousers all the time. Heck, for ordinary undergarments.

I don't think I'll be going back to Swim Bike Run. Triathlon isn't my sport. I skate; I bike; I do archery. My biking is just starting off but is working its way up to being for distance, without being focused on speed the way theirs is. I don't want to be Lance Armstrong, Miguel Indurain, or Greg LeMond. I just want to be able to get in the saddle and bike to Philadelphia or DC someday. (I'd say Boston, but Massachusetts drivers scare the bahoogies out of me. At least the ones in the Boston area do.) Chelsea Bikes might be small and grubby-looking and horribly crowded, but the stuff they sell is meant for the world at large, not the tiny subset of that world involved in the Ironman. I can deal with that.

Comments

[charliesmum.livejournal.com]

That pool is just weird. How does it work?

My sister's husband is a triathloner. He did this big triathlon in Canada last year - proposed to my sister at the finish line, too.

I agree - $50 is good for a helmet that is good quality. It will last a long time, and keep you from dying, and also since you bike a lot, you'll be using it often, so you'll get your money's worth.

[camwyn]

As nearly as I can tell, it's got current generating built in. One end pushes water at you constantly so you can't make any progress; the other takes it in. It seems to be the liquid equivalent to a treadmill.

They had T-shirts at the store that I rather liked, but not being a triathloner, I wasn't entitled to one (in my own opinion). The slogan was something to the effect of "If Triathlon Were Supposed To Be Easy, They'd Call It Football".

[charliesmum.livejournal.com]

I'm totally getting that shirt for my brother-in-law. My husband's brother lives in NYC. I can make him go.

I hope you do bike to Philly one day soon, then we can meet!

[zou.livejournal.com]

Flashback to the Simpsons and Ralph swimming tethered:

"I don't feel right."