Relative Something

My bike is in the hands of the professionals now. I dropped it off at the shop yesterday after receiving advice that I shouldn’t try messing with the drive components on my own to solve the annoying click when pedaling.

Since this will now be the third time I have brought this bike in with the same complaint, I am going to pressure the mechanic for as much detail as I can extract from whatever diagnosis he provides. I asked the person who wrote up my service ticket whether there is a known issue with this 2021 Trek bike model. He didn’t know, but said the head mechanic would review all related service bulletins to check.

When I picked this model of bike, I hoped it would be the last bike I would ever buy. I will be very sad if it turns out to have an unsolvable flaw.

It wouldn’t be the first purchasing mistake I’ve made. I’ve been wearing bike shoes that I bought a couple of years ago that have been too narrow for my feet, hoping that they would stretch out over time.

After trying a variety of seamless socks in the hope of eliminating painful pressure points, I finally decided to shop for a better-fitting (wider) shoe. Doubting the local stores would carry much selection, I tried shopping online. I ran into a surprising number of shoes that were either sold out or had limited sizes available.

While I was in the shop yesterday, I thought to ask about shoes. They had the half-size I was after in a model that suited me just fine. It was doubly rewarding to give my business to the local shop, and I was able to take advantage of discount points I had accrued as a member of their “fanatics” program. Plus, they have a 60-day comfort guarantee.

I’ve got two months to decide if this pair hurts my feet.

One other purchasing mistake I frequently regret was choosing the two-lever steering on the zero-turn mower instead of a steering wheel. I discovered right away that the many slopes I mow are a struggle with free-spinning front wheels. They offer a similar model to mine, but with a steering wheel that would have been the better choice.

Multiple thousand-dollar purchases are difficult to undo if you’ve waited too long to switch. One of these days, if I get as fed up with the mower rolling downhill when I don’t want it to as I did with my feet hurting in those narrow shoes, maybe I’ll just buy the version with a steering wheel and see if I can sell the old one to someone with flatter land.

Cyndie took a picture of storm clouds headed our way as she was driving home last evening. It got really blustery just as she arrived, but calmed considerably a short time later. I would describe it as more of a rain shower than a storm.

I’m sure glad I don’t have to purchase weather.

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