As it happens I just gave away a bike last week.

The bike I gave away was my ultra-rare 1973 Steyr Clubman. (Ultra-rare in that it was in good working condition, not entirely covered in rust, and had not yet been converted to a fixie.)



I gave it to one of my daughter's friends because he kept coming to our house on a hideous old Huffy that was visibly falling apart. The brakes barely worked. There was a huge patch of casing thread showing on the rear tire. And, the final straw, the lock nut on the headset was cracked. He was also riding at night with no lights. So I put flat bars on the Clubman, aired up the tires, slapped on some "be seen" lights and a spare U-lock I had in the garage and sent it away. After one ride he told me it's the best bike he's ever owned, which really made me sad.

To be honest, I would have given this one away just to get it out of the garage. Not seeing that Huffy anymore is just icing on the cake.

He brought it back by last night and he and my daughter covered it in stickers.



I think 1973 would approve.