"A bike without a bag or basket is a eunuch, a race bike. If you don't race, your bike should be usable, able to carry something, so the first thing to do to a bike is to junk it up with a bag or basket. Baskets are harder to mount, but easier to fill and unfill… .Get over the "clean" look of a useless bike, and learn to love that useful look of a bagged and basketed one. The added weight doesn't matter. You're not racing, you're living a bicycle life, and that means riding a bicycle that's useful."
Grant Petersen--The Twentieth Catalog, pg. 62
I know. I know. There hasn't been a post in awhile and all I'm giving you is another (ANOTHER!!) post about something to do with bicycles. I know. I'm sorry. There will be other posts. Different posts. They're coming. Trust me. I've got some lined up and mostly ready to ship out. I've got some old ones that I've been meaning to post and there are others; some about books, some about music, one about running, and a few odds and ends, but this is all for now. Things have been busy here. No, not busy, like you tell people when you feel them getting ready to ask some obligatory favor that involves time, money, smiling, hugging, etc, or they invite you somewhere you'd rather go watch paint dry than go, but really busy. It is the Spring semester at school and if you teach, you know how busy that is. I'm currently teaching 7 out of 7 periods a day. And on top of that, for the last month and a half, I've been working part time at a local car wash here (I'm not skipping that, but it is just too much to tell about now). And….And…And, two weeks ago, I spent the whole week in NYC with the senior class from the school I teach at. It was an awesome trip. I'm still recovering. Maybe one day, I'll have a few moments and I'll write a little something about it. To be honest, I'm still trying to digest all we did. It was a whirlwind trip; one of those once in a lifetime type of trips where one moment you are standing in front of a real Monet and the next you are watching a Broadway musical. That kind of trip, but let's get on with this post. For those of you who write with music or to music, this post is being written to two of my newest musical purchases: Kathleen Edward's, Voyageur, and Andrew Bird's, I Want to See Pulaski at Night. They are worth a listen if you like a music. If you don't, then stay away. You'll hate it. If you love Top 40, you'll hate it. If you like strange music with strange titles so you can look down your haughty nose at others, you'll hate it too. Well…to the post.
Wald. Enough said. Really.
If you don't have a basket on your bike, I get it. I was there about 2.5 years ago. Baskets are lame. They are girly. They are only for those weak sauce beach bikes that you are forced to rent when you're at the beach. You know the one's with the Hawaiian flowers and huge handlebars. They take your man card away from you (when did this become a thing and when can it quickly become a non-thing!). I get all of that, well, except the last one. Pretty sure I never want the guys from Men's Health and Spike TV and such to NEVER define for me what a guy is or what makes a guy. Anyway. If you have a bike that is basket-less and the thought of putting one on there makes you cringe a little, or a lot, I get that. I was there. However, after using my bike as my second main mode of transportation over the last 2.5 years, I am not the same guy when it comes to bikes, baskets, bags, and just bike riding in general.
If you use your bike for more than a Saturday ride with the guys who are going to put the hammer down for 30-60 miles wearing spandex and trying to one up each other every couple of miles and then load them up on their Nissan Xterra's, Toyota 4-Runner's, and Chevy Z-71's, and drive home thinking they could have done more if only they had a more expensive bike that weighed less, then you are probably going to be carrying a little more than a bottle of Gatorade and a few of those nasty energy gels. You will probably have a lot of stuff and you're probably going to need somewhere to put it. You could wear a backpack. That's what I did. And it works. Sort of. I say sort of, because it sort of works. If you sweat at all when you ride and if you live in somewhere real then it's probably hot (somewhere above 65+ degrees) for most of the year and if you're pedaling farther than a mile, chances are you'll sweat and if you're heading to work, you'll probably not have access to a shower. That is what I needed, but never got. I would get to work really sweaty and would have to settle for a quick change of clothes and a quick "bath" in the staff bathroom sink. You don't want that. Just take the plunge. Get a basket. Load it up. Say good-bye to a sweaty back. Sure, you'll get made fun from time to time, but that would happen sooner or later for one thing or another. That's why there is a saying out there right now that is pretty good: "Haters gonna hate". Too true. Let them hate. Get to work, the store, XC practice, church, home, without carrying an over-packed backpack and arrive without a sweaty back.
The front view. Unloaded.
And if you get a basket for your bike, make it a Wald basket. There are a lot of companies that make bike baskets, but just go ahead a buy a Wald basket. It'll be worth your time and it isn't going to cost you anymore than some other brand and you'll probably have to replace that one a few times for any number of reasons. Wald Sports has been making bike related things since 1905 and doing so in the USA. Their current operation is in Maysville, Kentucky and has been there since 1924. Their first product was a bike repair tool, but they moved on and now carry a variety of components, but all of them are built here in the US and they have quite a reputation for building things that last. I've seen Wald baskets from the 1950's on bikes that people are still using. In an age where it seems all things are being made to just last a little while before you throw them away, this means a lot to me. It feels good to buy something that I will still be using 20 years from now. If I'm not using it, least it will still be around. Sort of makes it feel like the money I'm spending means more or is worth more. If you don't believe me, look them up. Buy a basket. Test it. If you hate it, then email them and tell them all about it. They'll actually answer you back within a few days with a personal email message and try to remedy your problem. I'm trying to think of another current larger company that stands behind their product without making you jump through fifty hoops and I'm coming up blank. Apple is awesome, but I've also spent the last 2 months trying to get my iPod up and running. In that time, I've gotten three small and personal emails back from Wald after I sent a mere question to them.
A side view. Unloaded.
After FH and I smashed our previous basket, we needed another option. I tried to convince Sweet Melissa into burning the midnight oil for us a few times and come up with something that could attach to FH's bike seat that she/we could sew/build that would carry all of our crap, but nothing seemed to work out. Buying another basket was the only really option for us. So, we scoured the inter web for bike baskets and read review after review and our sources kept making us come back over and over to Wald Sports. Now, Wald Sports makes about 11 or so different basket models, but the most popular models are the Wald 137, the 139, and the 133 Quick Release. Sweet Mel bought me the 139 for Christmas, but we haven't found a real use for it because it is HUGE. I'm pretty sure I could put our lab Jack in it on the front of our bike and ride. This sounds absurd, but I feel it is about 90% true. I know Ford fits in it. I'll put it on a bike, but it will have to be a different one than any that we currently have. So, FH and I ordered two Wald 137's and then waited with baited breath at the front door for the UPS man. It set us back exactly $32. We could have just bought one basket for $16, but ordering two just felt right. I had plans of using the second one on my Trek 1000 SL, but alas the handlebars were a few inches too narrow. RATS! If you're wondering, Mel and I spent around $20 for the cheaply made (in China) basket that we smashed.
The legs that can attach to any kind of hub and can be adjusted to fit 18''-22''.
I feel like I could say more than I really should about the Wald 137, but I won't bore you more than I already do. The basket itself weighs 2.2 lbs. and is 15in x 10in x 4.75in. This makes it the perfect size for carrying most of what you've got. I can't find the limit on how much you can or should carry in the basket, but since it is attached to the bike in four places, it seems to handle weight pretty well. But it would be good to note that additional weight in the front does change the steering ability of the bike; not by a lot, but you can feel the difference between an empty and loaded basket. The 137 comes with legs that will and can attach to any type of hub and allow you to have the basket at either 18'' or 22'' above the hub depending on where you need it. These legs are a recent, but very nice addition to the 137 model. Without them, I'd had to have bought a pricey front rack and had it installed. The legs saved me around $130. The basket also has two clamps that allow you to secure it to the handlebars. Altogether, I think it took me around 20 minutes or so to put the basket on the bike, which didn't feel that long or that difficult. The 137 model isn't a model that comes off the bike for you to take into a store or inside your house, but that isn't something I wanted. Our previous basket did and FH and I never used that feature.
A cockpit view. Unloaded.
A look from the front. Unloaded.
I can't say enough good things about this basket. It was most definitely worth the $16 that we paid for it. And we bought a small cargo net ($7) off of Amazon to go over the top of the basket and help us keep all the things in place. FH and I have made good use of the basket and we've carried everything from groceries (4 total bags!) to cameras and jackets in it. We've also brought mom home some breakfast from our Sunday morning rides along with dinner a few nights from places not too far from us. And I've even brought home a few drinks home with refills. It is a great addition to our bike and I'm so glad we sprung for it. It is so nice to be able to carry all that we need to with us or to know that if we went somewhere and got something that we'd have a place to carry it home with us. And aren't those two of the drawbacks that most people have with biking somewhere as opposed to taking your car? I feel like that is pretty close to being true. I'll end the post with several pictures that I've taken over the last several weeks since we've had the basket on our two-wheeled beast. It's a great basket. It's useful and it looks about as neat as a basket can.
A view from the bottom side. Fully loaded. FH and I put in over 20 miles this day and took a 45 minute nap in a local park. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.
A view from the top. Fully loaded. Taking a few moments to look at some daffodils.
FH's backpack and a view from the top. Fully loaded. We were headed to church.
Proof that it is a very useful addition. It definitely carries its own weight at the grocery store.
FH, the fully loaded basket, and the bright lights of our local Kroger.
Get a basket. Make it a Wald. Install it on your ride. Make your life easier and better. Leave the car at home. Save on gas. Get some fresh air. Don't be stuck in traffic. Ride down a hill with no hands. Remember as Hemingway is credited with saying, "When you stop doing things for fun, you might as well be dead.".
Happy reading,
DAVID
