The bike that I ride... a description

            Any person, place, or thing always has some kind of backbone. For humans, it is our spine. For a place, it is the ground beneath. For the object I am talking about, it is its frame. With a blue coat of paint, it is the oldest part of the bike that I ride. Signs of age and wear can be shown in the rusting that exists around all of the moving parts. The frame starts in the center triangularly-shaped and balanced on single vertex. It is not exactly a triangle, but the metal rod on the front side is so small relative to the rest of the rods that it looks just like one. The rods are no bigger than 2 inches in diameter. Sitting on the bike seat, I see the handlebar is connected to the top and two prongs are projected forward and down to connect the wheel. The seat I am sitting on is connected and tightened to the frame with a bolt. Two more prongs project backwards and downwards to connect the rear wheel. At the base of this triangle is a set of pedals that and project off to the left and the right. I can easily touch my feet to the ground, let alone the pedals.

            As I look at the front and the back, there are two circular shaped wheels connected to the frame. The wheels on the bike are black, thin tread rubber. The tread runs in a series of straight lines that are imprinted around the entire wheel. The tire is no more than an inch from left to right and is inflated with air. This rubber itself is not directly connected to the frame. It runs around the outside of a metal wheel which cradles the rubber. The metal wheel is connected to the frame by a series of metallic silver spokes that meet at the center of the wheel. A cylinder, about the size of a hand formed into a fist, connects the wheel to the frame. The front wheel is free to rotate and the rear wheel is connected to the pedals.

            Right in front of me is the handlebar. On this particular bike, it is wrapped in white grip tape. The metal bar is shaped like a drooping mustache. You can either hold on to the bike near where it meets the frame, or you can lean over and grab it at the end of the drooping mustache. If you pull on one side of the bar, the wheel in front of you rotates. The bar and this wheel are connected through the front part of the frame. The frame does not rotate itself. I can also grip two metallic levers on either side of the bar. If I look at the lever, I notice a wire running from one to the front and from the other to the rear. They connect to a set of calipers that are less than half an inch away from the metal part of the wheels. When I pull on these levers, the calipers clinch and stop rotation of the wheel. At the point where the handlebar meets the frame, there are two more metallic levers. Two more wires run from these levers. One lever towards the pedals and one to the rear. These are connected to the driving mechanism, to a set of gears. As I move the lever back and forth, I notice that a chain connecting the gears shifts from larger gears to smaller gears and vice-versa. The other lever works does the same thing on the rear set of gears

            Below me is the seat. It is also triangular shaped and pointed forwards. It has a soft cloth surface and is filled with a firm foam. Towards the front is the point that presses against your crotch. The back half supports the middle of your rump, but does not seat the whole rump. It is slightly uncomfortable, but matches the sleekness of the bike. The seat is at the top of the rod that is bolted to the frame.

            The pedals are on either side of the bike. The pedals are metal matrices. They are connected on the side of the matrix to ‘L’ shaped rods that are opposite of each other. The rods are connected to the base of the frame and are connected to the driving mechanism. The driving mechanism is made of a series of gears and flywheels as well as a chain. Mentioned earlier, this chain connects the series of gears in the back to the series of gears in the front. All of these parts have rusted over the years and the chain has been stretched.  As I press the pedals in the forward direction on the petals, I notice that the bike starts to move as the rear wheel is connected to the driving mechanism. If I pedal backwards, the pedals are free to rotate and the rear wheel is not affected.

            The bike has the ability to move fast. With thin tires, a handlebar mustache and a light frame, it has the ability to get places it needs to in a short amount of time. The bike cannot handle off-roading very well, but it masters the road. A vehicle solely based on man-power. A great invention.