My Trek 800 (AKA the T-Rek Beater)

Like many bike-minded people, I own more than one bike. Furthermore, each bike has a degree of specialization and purpose in mind. Of the three functional bikes I own, the most multi-purpose of them is my Trek 800. It is a winter bike, cargo bike, and commuter bike all rolled into one. I heap abuse on it on a regular basis. For a while I even used it as my off road bike (until I got my tricked out Kona Munimula, my dirt bike deluxe).

What I love about the bike is the fact that it has been through almost as many incarnations as David Bowie. I've had 4 different types of bars on it, from mustache to giant cruiser bars. I had it set up as a single speed for awhile. I've had a basket on it, and I think at some point soon it will again. Basically, I love the fact that I can play with its configuration and beat the shit out of it and not feel the least pang of regret. It is meant to be ridden and to be creatively tweaked, and I like that freedom from limitation.

Currently, I have it set up as the multi-purpose-cargo-commuter. The bars are cruiser like in rise and sweep, but are also aggro enough to allow me to heap a little off-road abuse on it if the need should arise. It is back to multi-gear glory, which I realize loses me some cool points in the single speed world. I've never been one for pigeon holes and I love variety, so not having a multi-geared bike when I already have a single-speed mountain bike and a fixed gear road bike seemed inappropriate for my own tastes. Plus it forces me to unlock the mystery of the derailleur, which curiosity insists I understand. I love the rear rack which allows me to carry a fair amount of cargo. Someday I might add an Xtracycle to the mix (in fact, I see it as inevitable). It ain't the fastest bike or the lightest, but I'm no professional rider nor am I looking for expensive components. Hell, that would go against the sort of DIY concept of the bike. If I were looking to build something a little fancier, I sure as hell wouldn't do that with a Trek 800 frame. It's a mule, and it is meant to be treated with all of the grace and dignity that pack animal requires. It's official model name is Antelope, but that isn't a very appropriate animal to compare it to, unless this antelope is built more like an elk or a moose.

I also love the fact that I paid nothing for the initial bike. Sure, I've invested a little money on fixing it up and on some new components. But the bike itself was all but abandoned when I first received it from an old co-worker (who I tipped in some good bottles of beer for his generosity). The idea of giving a forgotten bike a new lease on life is a pleasant one for me. Someday when I have more money maybe I'll lose sight of this outlook, but I doubt it. None of my bikes are set up the way the engineers that conceived them intended. I think that serves to exemplify the beauty of the bicycle, that it is a thing of limitless possibility while at the same time being a very mundane and practical tool. It is a device that satisfies the left and right brain, being both a creative enterprise that is grounded in time tested systems and patterns.

Anyway, that is my Trek 800. Not something for gearheads to drool over, or hipsters to admire and envy. Just a bike that satisfies my love of riding and that desire to pull things apart and rebuild them just a little differently for no other reason than curiosity's sake. Best of all, I think it serves as a reminder that a great bike doesn't need to be an expensive bike. It doesn't take alchemy or an engineering degree, just a little motivation. A few friends with a lot more know-how doesn't hurt either.

That being said, I should check on the poor beast of burden. I mashed its rear wheel against a curb when I failed to hop it. Again. Did I mention one of the best ways to get motivated to rebuild a bike is to break it? I guess that almost goes without saying.