A new day - but is there a tomorrow?

"Mum, there really are humans out there, honest!", 

I'm talking about people who understand balance, my favourite word! Balance is important in all things, life, love, work, training and BIKES.

Recently my bike was stolen. I dont nornally get to attached to anything material, if it goes it goes - BUT! my bike was different, it gave me my special place, i was unreachable, untouchable when i was on it.... and building it was a labour of love... see, we ended up doing the impossible, turing a Cannondale Bad Boy (thats been rotting in the shed for 12 months) into a fixed single speed beauty, a thing of zen, the ultimate in riding pleasure! - how does this tie in with the opening statement you ask!... well the guy who helped me convert it was Lawrence from Full City Cycles, Leather Lane, London.

His shop is a place of chaos, where the cellar is full from floor to ceiling with bike frames and oddities, where couriers (unwanted by others) congregate for morning, lunch and evening coffee, chats and on-the -spot fixes. Lawrence and his crew stand amongst the chaos, fire fighting requests to fix punctures, adjust gears and maintain bikes for the city bloke! But underneath all of this is a burning passion, a passion for the 2 wheeled wonder, the fixed wheel bike, raw, trimmed of its fat and ensuring the ultimate riding experience.

Lawrence and his crew where truly gutted my ride was taken and during a convo one day in the shop, i spotted a frame hanging on the wall - "i like that, i really like that!" i said... "thats a special frame", replied Lawrence, a thing of beauty and its expensive!"... turns out the frame was a vintage, limited edition Condor set in a pearlescent red. Out of the blue Lawrence then tells me he is going to set it up, build it and loan it to me to see what i think. Test driving is not uncommon these days, car dealers do it all the time - BUT this was a genuine offer to get me back on a bike and help me out - THE BALANCE! You give some, you take some. 

What was an incredibly hard and pretty miserable week suddenly turned into something special - my hope in mankind restored!

Lawrence, RESPECT. The Full City Crew are bang on the money, a little crazy but i love it that way!

Funny thing is, i'm writing this the morning after London burned, when peoples hopes for their country are shattered, whilst we watch worthless looters take the easy way out! People, keep the faith, the good ones are just around the corner.