I Am A F***ing Idiot... A Story About Bicycles.

[TylerDurden]

So, after about an 11-12 year hiatus from riding BMX bikes, and my oldest daughter already being past due to lose her training wheels, I get hit with the bright idea to go back to my roots and get a BMX bike to ride around with her and my son. You know, some quality family time.

So, I've spent the last week researching and reading up on what to look for. I've learned that the quality bike companies of my youth are no longer held in high regard and have fell to much cooler and randomly named companies. I also spent the last week relaying all of this to my wife and updating her on the best deals I could find on Craigslist.

I figure, hey, if I'm gonna buy a bike, I'm not wasting my money on a brand new entry-level bike when I can find a relatively brand new "pro level" bike on CL for the same price.

So, I find an awesome deal.

I found that Eastern Bikes are a top brand now, while the Mongooses I grew up on are now considered dept. store crap.

For some background, this was the last bike I had as a teen, it was in awesome condition when I bought it for $15 from an elderly man that fixed bikes and sold them by my grandparents house:

So, I come across an ad on CL for a new Eastern Vulture with a 21" top tube (which is recommended for my height of 5'10") that has only been ridden about 8 times and then it sat in a garage for about a month. It belonged to a teen who was taller than me and quickly lost interest in favor of basketball (I don't blame him).

It has a few minor scrapes on the bottom from grinding but overall is a beautiful bike.

I drove to their house after negotiating the price down from the asked price of $310 to $200. I saw the bike, thought it looked great and bought it.

It didn't even cross my mind to ride it, probably in part because I had some anxiety about looking like an idiot in doing so in front of them. I just figured, "it looks good and it'll ride just like my old BMX bike."

So, I get home and take it for a spin with my kids and it feels horrible, clunky, and awkward. It's super light, but it feels long and clumsy. On top of that, I can't even sit down comfortably and cruise because apparently it's the standard now to drop the seat as low as possible.

So, I go back to my garage, jack the seat up as far as safely possible, but to no avail. It still feels uncomfortable. If I try to pedal when I'm sitting, my knees bend so far that my calves touch the back of my thigh.

If I try to cruise with my feet even on the pedals horizontally, my knees are up in my chest.

If I sit down at all, I have to hunch over like Igor.

Look, I get that BMX bikes aren't made for transportation or commuting, but that's not what I bought it for. I bought it to ride around and to maybe do some bunny hops and jump a mound or ramp when the mood hits me... But, it rides nothing like the old BMXs I had.

I didn't want to tell my wife after coming in, but I immediately started planning on taking pics and putting it up on Craigslist. I eventually told her before she went to bed and she was pissed, lol. I rarely ever make a useless/dumb buy, but this one was.

IF the bike sat like, was built like, or rode like the BMXs I grew up on, no problem. But, I checked BMX sites and 99% of all the bikes out there now have that same low seat (with the seat basically angled up your crack), super long cranks (the arm connecting to the pedals), and generally seem to sit lower.

(Here is the bike I bought and am now trying to sell, lol)

I don't want a mountainbike, road bike, hybrid, or cruiser bike. I've always hated how they look and how they felt compared to my old BMXs. So what gives? Anyone have any knowledge in the area? What happened?

Why can't I find just a regular old 20" tire bike that rides like my old BMX?

Anyway, now I'm stuck with a $200 paperweight until someone takes it off my hands, hopefully for slightly more than that or I'd even take a little less. I put it on Craigslist tonight after I finished trying to ride it, lol.

Anybody have any insight on this stuff?

[B.B.S]

I would've given you my old Mongoose bike.

[lightsout]

I had a mongoose AKA about 11 years ago. Thing rode beautifully. Did me well (most I did was bunny hops, bar spins, the occasional 180 turn out, and the occasional 360 when I felt like taking the time to actually build a decent enough ramp) for about 2 years. Ended up selling the thing. Don't go by the reviews. Go out and look for them. It looks like the bike you have is a dirt/street bike (judging on the seat being at such a hard angle). Most bikes do have the slanted seat, but you can fix it to sit how you want (on most that I know of, anyway). There SHOULD be a small handle just under the seat that drops the slant of the seat. If it doesn't, you're just poo out of luck.

If you're looking for a ride, go get a decent mountain bike (can still do bunny hops and jumps with a quality one. I had one about 6 years ago that had GREAT shocks). If you're looking to teach your son how to trick ride, keep the bike, teach your son to be a boss with tricks. I'm sure he won't mind the seat (even if you and I do).

[Panthro]

Take it to Hell Track!