Two of my bikes have found new homes.
Both my 1990's Yongjiu lightweight city bike, and it's diametric opposite, the super-robust, Little Blue Hat delivery bike have been sold. Claire Markgraf and Judah Sueker are the proud new owners.
Claire and Judah pose with their bikes in front of the Sanlitun Village. An ultra-modern shopping area in downtown Beijing. Quite the contrast, but China has many such contrasts these days. May they be served long and well by these two classic steeds.
When I first bought The Little Blue Hat, my impulse buy used delivery bike, it had a number of problems. Like a rear lock which could not be detached from the bike. This kept me from riding it on the spot. The boss of the Little Blue Hat delivery service was trying to tell me that something else was broken...as I soon found out, it was the front fork! After the lock was removed I soon found I couldn't keep the bike straight...or turn for that matter. Disappointment.
This, my friends, is what happens to delivery bikes that live a hard life...and in Beijing they all do. And this is why they are eventually put out to pasture. Notice that not only the rear tines on the fork are snapped but also the front tines are cracked. Now as you might imagine, this fork is HEAVY, and very, very strong. It's the kind of massive, blunt object that Col. Mustard might encounter in the Drawing Room. What did this guy stick his fork into that broke it? Nevermind, I can only guess...
The recent Dragon Boat holiday here in China afforded me and my family the time to travel to South Korea. Although Korea is a very developed country bicycles are still very much in use as cargo carriers. In fact about 90% of the bicycles we saw in Seoul were used for this purpose. Which is to say that very few people are riding bikes just for fun.
So what is this thing in the photo? Well, as a bicycle accoutrement, it surely is NOT a thing of beauty. In fact, it is rather ugly with uneven welds and haphazard paint. However, it is virtually indestructible and something I have been looking for for months. What is it?
Front mount package rack for China Post bicycles. That's right. The post man delivers.
Continue reading "This Week's Score: The Postman Always Delivers....Mail" »
It is interesting sometimes how one thing leads to another. When I went out to shoot photos for "All Gum Tire Install" I went out looking for someplace new to photograph. This lead me down some local roads which I have never taken before. That's a pretty common in Beijing as the neighborhoods can be very intricate.
I had just finished taking my photos and was looking for an exit to the housing project I was in. This lead me down a small avenue of shops where I happened across a small delivery service: The Little Blue Hat Newspaper. Apparently they also delivered jugs of bottled water when they were done with their newspaper rounds. Regardless, The Little Blue Hat had a corral of ancient, corroding double-bar delivery bikes. Yongjiu/Shanghai-Forevers, in fact.
Continue reading "New Project: 小蓝帽, The Little Blue Hat, Part 1" »
