Looks Can Be Deceiving

At first glance, you might cite a whole host of Rules being broken here.  Bars too high, not enough set-back on the saddle, lack of chain, to name a few off the top of my head.  Furthermore, the rider of this particular bicycle lacked cycling-specific eyewear and was wearing knee pads, and was doing nothing towards cultivating the “Pro Look”.

But the truth is, what we’re witnessing here is the sapling of a future Keeper.

Related Posts

24 Replies to “Looks Can Be Deceiving”

  1. @Marko
    No, not related to me or Jim. Just a young stud, ready to rip that shit up when he’s old enough to rock some clipless pedals.

  2. @bob
    I think technically a curricle has room for a passenger, but now that I think of it, I suppose this bike does have room for himself and his bucket of AWESOME. So, yes, it is a curricle!

    Thanks for stopping by.

  3. @bob
    Further research has shown that this is in fact a curricle! A pedestrian curricle, to be precise. Learn something everyday, I guess!

  4. The youth deserves some credit for heading out on two disc wheels and the handle bar color match the saddle color. He or she is on the right track providing the socks are not too high.

  5. @Marko
    Indeed. What’s the rule for the color of the bushing between the frame and the unifork? It appears to be matching the bars and saddle, not a bad choice.

    It has to be said, though, that you can’t just follow some rules; one is either in compliance with them or not. There’s not really a middle ground here.

    This little punk is obviously reckless in his youth, a phase many of us go through. All we can do is hope he comes around before he hurts someone or himself even more.

  6. Beyond the rules! Starting out on one of these avoids the need for training wheels when going to the bike. And what is gong to build guns more than having no mechanical advantages. BEAUTIFUL

  7. My young padawan has one of these. He’s 3 1/2 and it’s not as though the likes of Bianchi is offering a more rules-compliant ride for the little ones. He’s had one since he was 2. There wasn’t much interest at first, but when dad got a new ride last summer all of a sudden he said “I have a bike too, daddy. Let’s go for a ride.”

    You have to start somewhere, and the little guy has already had some lessons in Rule #5, for instance when I took him out for an ambitious distance and he had to get himself home after he bonked, and again when he got speed wobbles on a short downhill, crashed, and got to ride himself home. I’m working on Rule #59 — kid does a wicked Mark Renshaw immitation if I try to pass him. Of course, given his insistence on going first, he full well appreciates Rule #67. Indeed, I caught hell from my wife for adding “wheelsucker” to his vocabulary. And not having training wheels, ever, is so fundamental a rule it need not be stated.

    I can confirm, also, that the bushing matches the bar grips matches the seat. Junior now wants a water bottle cage fitted. Of course there is no downtube, but I’m thinking a Coppi-style mount out front will be just the thing.

  8. @Nate
    It sounds like your Velomitoddie is being groomed in the The Way. Well done.

    If you think your wife is upset with “wheelsucker”, just wait till he learns the text for Rule #5.

    I’ll restate John’s observation here, impressive stuff that he’s running double discs ala Fignon in ’89.

  9. I’m so glad this popped up after I ranted about the VSP today. Reminded me that my daughter is her generations Vos. She’s 5. She’s been riding something or another since she was 2. She demanded things like trips to the local ice cream parlor on her trike since then.

    Never had training wheels.

    Loves to yell, “Passing, on your left.”

    And most importantly, she is demanding a big ring from me. She is spinning out the gear on her bike and is all but threatening to take my Bianchi from me. Thank goodness she is too short or we’d have a fight on our hands.

    Educate them early… and they will carry on.

  10. Another future Keeper in the making! We’ll start first thing in the morning!

    Have a great, safe Christmas you all!

  11. Last week the littlest Steampunk started riding without training wheels. She’ll be 4 this weekend. HUGE source of pride for her and for me. Great to see the freedom associated with it and her own confidence. I also see a new padawan and lifelong riding partner for me. It’s been a very good week.

  12. Chapeau, Pere! I got home and my bigger one had been out for a ride with grandpa, and he stacked twice on some sort of obstacle, suffering several scrapes. Had to give him the Rule #5 talk while dressing the wounds.

    The little one is almost big enough to get on the Skuut. Very excited.

  13. @versio
    If you are talking about moving this conversation to the other thread I think I’ll keep my kids away from that discussion! Otherwise, as noted above, I had the opportunity to give mine the Rule V Talk last night while dressing his scrapes.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.