Conspicuous

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Robb was out riding his recumbent trike the other day, and next to him on the service road was a beautiful vintage Porsche. When Robb finished drool-gawking at the car, he noticed the expression on the driver's face.

This man was drool-gawking at the trike.




Even in the famously weird Bay Area, Robb and the trike turns a lot of heads. We were out on the Bay Trail on Sunday. Robb had stopped to powder his nose, and I was watching our stuff (and this milk-moustache crow who was eating spilled ice cream). An elderly couple who were just about to get back on their bikes were checking out Robb's trike. Robb has a lot of style, but getting back into his seat is a somewhat awkward maneuver, which prompted the woman to ask him if he had an artificial leg.

A lot of people are curious about the gear, and about Robb's situation, but often people aren't really sure what questions are all right to ask. Often, this can be a bit awkward for all parties involved, and I suspect that Robb is a bit sick of fielding the "what's wrong with you?" questions.

We haven't figured a way of having these sorts of conversations with curious and well meaning strangers without having someone feel a bit uncomfortable.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Ha Ha! A Porsche owner gawking at your bike! That's awesome!!!!! MW
Anonymous said…
For the "curious and well meaning strangers" you probably have stock answer A, a short version of the true story. I expect that satisfies their curiousity.

Bet you didn't expect to become a spokesman (no bike pun intended) for spinal cord injury patients but good for you, Robb, to be courteous even when your back is aching !! --Laughing Gravy from AQ
Anonymous said…
You need a Top 10 T-shirt.

- Yeah, it IS pretty cool, isn't it?

- about $1,700 and worth every penny.

- Pretty fast.

- No, you can't ride it.

- Spinal Cord Injury, yeah, ouch.

- Wanna race?
Lisa said…
Actually, we let anyone who is interested take the trike out for a spin.

People start off very tentatively, and then when they get the hang of it (in about fifteen seconds) they get the most GIGANTIC GRINS on their faces!
Anonymous said…
This is a great story.

About the questions: A friend who has a companion work-dog has a sign on him that says "I'm working--please don't pet me." I'm wondering whether there's a sticker or sign that you could affix to the bike that gives enough information to stop awkward questions, but which might lead to interesting conversations (if indeed these are welcome)? (Something like "Yet Another Person With a Spinal Injury Biking to a Letterbox Date" or some such...)

Anyway: I'm drooling over this bike, and I already have more bikes than is quite right...

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