A “Grocery Getter” is a Stupidly Good Idea, and here is Why.
So you got your Daily! I't’s amazing, you love it, and you could go to the moon and back without a single problem on it. You even maybe got yourself a tracklocross bike as well! Nice and comfy, big tires, small ratio, everything you need to enjoy some rough terrain with your friends. But one day, during a casual grocery shopping mission, you suddenly feel something quite strange… Like an empty space in your heart, there is something missing and you know it. But what could it be !? You are already set for pretty much everything, and the idea of a dream bike is not quite ready yet.
Well, friend, let me introduce you to the wonderful idea of getting yourself one more very impractical bike for the sole purpose of going on rides that are no more than ten minutes and loving (or hating) every second of it.
Here I present you: The Grocery Getter.
Who never wanted to explore the weirdest, wackiest ideas, just to “see what it does”? Whether you’re constantly searching your local marketplace and stumble on the strangest stuff, or just curious of blizzard bike builds, this is probably your best shot at giving a purpose to all your evil genius projects.
And here is mine. A 90s carbon frame, on tubular wheels, with terrible bars, an old carbon saddle, and a basket!
Does it look sick? Depends on whom you ask…
Does it feel great? Kinda…
Could it feel a hundred time better if it was built properly, built up? Definitely…
But this bike was my own vision of a terrible build to go get a coffee, come back with sweaty palms, hoping I wasn’t gonna get a flat or snap something.
To be more serious, the “Grocery Getter” thing is just a big scheme for us, track nerds, to build yest, one more bike. But in reality, it’s also an expression of your creativity that is completely free of constraints.
No problem using tubulars since you know you’ll never go that far with it anyway. You could convert that TT frame you found for cheap. Or, straight up, let all hell loose and put mustache bars on the most aggressive frame you have.
Everything is possible! And that’s the beauty of it!
It doesn’t need to be fast, or reliable. It’s just here to put a smile on your face and surprise you with the amount of stuff you miss in your surrounding when you're speeding on your daily. A make that memes you go slower, isn’t always a bad thing…
To be clear, it doesn’t have to be somthing expensive at all. And even if I agree that mine is a terrible example for what I just said. It’s just the result of years accumulating stuff that made my eyes sparkles, and not really knowing what to do with in the end. A very fancy parts-bin if you want.
It’s a fun ride, it makes me giggle every time I sit on it, and I had a few old fellows asking me why on hearth I would do that on such a bike.
Cycling is, for many of us, the ultimate form of freedom. No gas, no insurance, no crazy responsibilities, just you and your human powered machine. But the flip side of the coin is that the “freedom” that we’re talking about, is sometimes cut short by trends and expectations.
You don’t need the last Cinelli with carbon wheels and Thomson peripherals. They appear cool, because people made them look that way. But if you embrace something different, something truly creative, even something weird and out of everyone’s comfort zone. This is, where the true creativity lies.
Build unusual stuff! Try new things!
And show that you deserve more than a Vigorelli Shark with 88 mm carbon rims.
At the end of the day, all we want is to ride with friends and enjoy a nice snack.
🎞: Kodak Gold 200
📷: Nikon F100
📍: Tinto All Day
