On the road

Scott and I are mostly out of pocket this week while visiting family and friends down south. We're spending the first half of the week in Memphis and the second half in NW Alabama. We are taking our bikes and looking forward to, weather permitting, exploring the Greater Memphis Greenline which includes the Wolf River Greenway -- which is fairly close to Mom's neighborhood -- and the Shelby Farms Greenline. Ultimately, I'd love to ride from Mom's house in Germantown to my sister's house near the Cooper-Young district. I don't know if that'll happen this trip since we're looking at this for the next five days.

Ouch.

The second half of the week will be spent at my folks' vacation home on Pickwick Lake in NW Alabama. It's close-ish to the Natchez Trace Parkway which is apparently a "designated bicycle route", whatever that means. I've never been on the Natchez Trace, even in a car, so this will be a new adventure. I do hope we'll be able to drag ourselves from the lake and/or terrace hammocks for a ride. Since it's supposed to be in the lower 90s -- whoo hoo, break out the fuzzy wool and flannel! -- during the second half of the week, we may actually hit the road. I hope to have lots of photos when I return. Scott may even provide some GoPro video as well.

More customization

(I don't know about y'all, but I've been having EXTREME difficulty accessing any Google site except for the main home page. This has put a serious damper on my ability to email or blog or upload photos. Grr.)

(Ah! Looks like the flash upgrade from earlier this week munged things up. With the new download, everything is again tickety-boo.)

On to the actual post: I mentioned my dislike of the stock saddle and grips on the PUBLIC Bikes C8 and I took haste to replace those troublesome items. The creamy white of the Selle Royal Contour and the PUBLIC Leather Ergo grips purred "Buy ussssss..." and I was powerless to resist.

The saddle installation was surprisingly easy. It was so easy, in fact, that I worried I'd done something wrong. But, after several test rides around the block, the saddle felt like it was in the right position and angle. After the saddle installation, I scoured the intarwebs for information on how to remove and install handlebar grips. I was shocked to learn that three out of three bike shop guy videos said to use hair spray as both a lubricant and adhesive.

Sure enough, with a light coating of hair spray inside the grips, they slid right onto the bar. I waited a while for adhesion and then took the bike out for a spin to test the new grips. I took off... and nearly crashed when the left grip popped right off the bar in my hand. That was more than a little bit terrifying. I tried coating the bar ends with hair spray, slid the grips on, and let them cure overnight.

I tested the grips in the morning and they popped right off again. After work yesterday, we carried my bikes over to Spokes, Etc. After the wonderful mechanic swapped the clipless pedals out for my old spiky pedals on Lily the Ariel -- the numerous and painful crashes just weren't worth it and I wasn't strong enough to remove the pedals -- I asked him to make my grips not slide off the handlebars. What I didn't realize is that the tiny little hole in the end of the grip held a tiny little screw that would help the grips not fly off the bar when I took off from a standing position.

The mechanics fixed my grips -- they needed to slide the shifter and brakes in a bit -- quickly and I was a fairly happy cyclist. When I got home I futzed with the brake and shifter position and got them back into more comfortable positions. Scott came into the kitchen at one point and said that I was as bad as a gearhead. I don't think I'm worthy of that title until I actually build up a bike, though. And with everything accomplished, I was a completely happy cyclist.

Now my beautiful bike is even more beautiful and the color coordination eases my need for harmony. I realize that the saddle and grips will get grimy just like the lovely cream tires have, but for now everything is perfect.

In the name department, the top contenders are Mina, Hermione, and Cate (as in C8...Cate). Yes, the cruiser is "Kate", but I think of that bike as being free spirited like Kate Winslet and the loop frame is more elegant like Cate Blanchett.

Adjustments

Still love the new bike. Still working on a name for her. Still writing sentences without a subject.

I realized during yesterday's commutes that I'm sliding off the saddle towards the handlebar. This won't do, especially since it's exacerbating pressure on my wrists and causing my hands to go numb. Scott helped me with testing new saddle angles last night, but this morning's commute showed more fiddling is required. I think I need to raise the handlebar a skosh so I can sit just a bit more upright and not lean on my hands so much. Of course, I'm going to get everything just so and then the new saddle -- I decided upon the Selle Royal -- will arrive. What a difficult life I lead.

The other adjustment is mental. I tried not to race the other commuters going the same direction as me, and I failed. I mean, I failed at not racing: I totally flew past them, skirt billowing in the wind gust. Sigh. I could chalk it up to being overly excited that I'm no longer the only west bound commuter in the morning, but it's really because I'm too competitive for my own good. Just ask Scott about my mother's and my full-contact Scrabble games.

Huh, I just realized something. I'm only competitive on my "underdog" bikes and when I'm on the road bike, I peacefully accept that I'm going to get left in the dust.

Like buttah

Loaded down for this morning's commute.

There's something about the loop frame that makes me appreciate the world around me more than I ever did on the hybrid. I haven't decided if it's the upright posture, the lady-like step-through mounting, or something entirely different. And aside from a short bout of Cat 6 racing -- there were commuters riding in the same direction as me: I was morally obligated! (And I won.) -- I kept my ride at an relaxed pace and arrived at my destination barely glowing from the exertion.

Aaahhh.

Scott asked me, just before her maiden voyage, if I was going to get a cycling computer for the C8. No, I don't think so. He said that he was mostly kidding. I replied that I'd given serious thought to it and eventually decided that I wouldn't because, to me, it would ruin the experience of such a lovely ride. I don't need to be so analytical and goal-oriented on my commutes and leisure rides.

We'll see how long this zen attitude lasts.

Love at first sight

Okay, so my trip to Columbus was kind of fun, as much as business trips can be anyway, except for the getting into and out of the city. My experiences reminded me of why, when I fly for personal reasons, I never fly with... Oh, wait. Y'all don't want to read about my business trip do you? You're here for the PUBLIC Bikes C8 review, aren't you?
 

The PUBLIC box is sprinkled with quotes about bikes from the likes of Susan B. Anthony, Albert Einstein, Ernest Hemingway, and Bob Weir. I savored every moment of opening the box and Scott hauled the bike out for me.

The PUBLIC assembly team had already installed the seat, rack, and bell for me. All I had to do was slip the handlebar into the head tube and attach the pedals (which are not part of the recalled set) to the crank arms -- pretty simple tasks, truth be told. The included tools meant that I didn't even have to search for anything in our toolbox except for a Phillips head screwdriver. After I'd put the bike together and pulled off all the cardboard packaging, I stepped back and gasped at its elegant beauty. I began champing at the bit to see if it really would be love at first ride.

It was. Sure, the C8 is no speed demon, but it holds its own. The ride quality is fairly smooth and it corners well. The bike is simply fun to ride. And hills? What hills? The 20-hate bridge was no match for this San Francisco-designed cycle, even with a basket and pannier loaded down with groceries.

Speaking of which... who knew that a Po Campo Loop Pannier could comfortably carry a six pack of hard lemonade?

I love how easy it is to step through the frame. The opening is not as spacious as my cruiser's, but I'd put the C8 on par with a Linus Dutchi. The reflective stripe on the cream tires is an inspired safety feature. I'm going to have to get used to such an upright riding position, but I'm willing to make that sacrifice. It was also fun seeing appreciative glances from passers-by and even getting "That's a great looking bike!" from an overtaking roadie.

Now, there are a couple of things I don't love: the grips and the saddle. The triangle grips hurt my palms and the material makes my skin crawl. The saddle is quite plush and feels ~so~ big compared to my other bikes' saddles. I will be trading out both of those items. Right now I'm considering either a Velo Orange or Selle Royal saddle. Grips will follow to match whichever saddle I decide upon since I can wear gloves in the meantime. I'm not in love with the bell, either, but that's a fairly minor swap if I decide that it's too irritating.

Overall, and after only a few miles of riding, I am beyond pleased with the C8 and I do not regret the purchase AT ALL. I'm looking forward to many, many miles ahead. Oh, and figuring out what its name is.

 More impressions on the C8 can be found here, here, here, and oh heck, just use the Public C8 tag. :)