I went on an epic vacation not too long
ago. And by epic, I mean I took a 5-day cruise, got home for 20 minutes,
and left again for New York to attend Electric Zoo. That was pretty
stressful, having to prepare for a second trip in 20 minutes, and I
forgot to bring several things with me. But that was nothing compared to
what I forgot to bring back with me when I returned home.
My bike basket!!
My
boyfriend and I stayed at the house of some of his relatives in New
Jersey. They gamely carried both our bicycles from the bus stop to their
house in the middle seat of their minivan, a feat which I never thought
possible. In order to fit my bike in the very cramped space, I had to
remove the basket from the handlebars. I kept it in the room that I
stayed in, and, in the chaos of trying to get everyone and everything
situated for the trip back (this time, the whole family came along,
necessitating that the bikes be tied onto the roof), I left my basket in
their house.
Oh, the woe!
Since I use my bike to commute
to the office every day, carrying such essentials as lunch and shoes and
any items I happen to purchase at Rugged Wearhouse after work—and since
I hate wearing a backpack while biking because it turns my back into a
swamp of sweat—I had to find another cargo solution—for the entire month
or so that I will be basketless until the relatives come into town for a
visit!
On the plus side, this motivated me to finally attach the
rear rack that I've been putting off for almost a year now. On the
minus side, the new basket that I found to fulfill the task has proven
wholly annoying (though popular with passers-by).
I chose to use
the wicker animal carrier that I bought for my rabbit but never used for
anything but storing his bags of litter. What makes this item so
annoying is, well, just about everything.
It opens via a door on
the side, meaning I have to bend over and feed all my possessions into
it sideways. It's bigger than my old basket, but because it's fully
enclosed, I have no option for an oversized load. It keeps coming open
when I ride, although I have not yet had the misfortune of my stuff
spilling out of it while in transit. It makes mounting the bike more
challenging, and it keeps touching my butt while I'm riding, which is
disconcerting.
I'm still looking for other alternatives. Stay tuned as the saga continues!
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I know his is too easy but you must be a real "basket case" right about now
Dad
Haha, just wait until my next post gets published (scheduled for tomorrow, I think?) and you will see just how easy it is!