Cheap cheap stuff in India
 

So I had to get my first repair on my awesome $50 US bike here in India. I went to the "lbs" in Sahakara Nagar, the village north of Bangalore where I live to get a new seat post for my wifes bike and to get a new freewheel for mine. All the bikes here are s/s and the mtbs are 48/18. Total cost for parts and labour....75 Rupee, or about $1.25 US. Not bad, not bad at all. Not exactly dura ace parts but at that price maybe I can save enough on repairs to buy a frame from Thy;acine whan he comes to Sri Lanka in April. For all those interested I will be posting pics of the amazing Atlas mtb s/s and bike shops here in Sahakara Nagar. An interesting place to ride, no stoplights or signs, cars, buses, bikes and cows all merging and dodging along the roads. Makes me miss traffic back home in a way yet it admist all the chaos it all works smoothly and I have yet to see a single accident here or during my travells to Delhi and through the north. It is crazy yet organized. Oh well I am off to Chennai to watch India and Australia play a test Cricket Match. Aussies are looking poor today Thylacine. More to come next week.

Damn! You ought'a start a mail order business.

I thought traffic would be too terrifying to ride my bike in Bangalore... hmmm...

What about cross country? Is it reasonable to bike to like, Goa, if you really wanted to?

I want to move to Bangalore, but I heard that traffic is crazy, and that riding a bike in it would, "get me killed." This same guy weaves in and out of traffic on a motorcycle there, though.

Just think how fast you'll be when you get back to high quality machines. Moving those heavy bikes around has got to be building you up a bit.

I can't wait to see those!

VIncent

I think the bike weighs 35 lbs, light twitchy steering and all that. I don't ride much in the village, maybe a few miles a day. Still it is fun to be out riding, even in monsoon season.


I dont actually ride into the city, I'm too scared to try that yet. Just learning how to ride in the village atmosphere was nerve racking the first few times. It would be possible to ride to Goa, I wouldn't recommend it but people have biked the country. From what I have read about it most people realize that that being killed is a very real possibility. The roads are horrible, the 'highways' can be one wie lane with no lights and shared by cars, bikes, buses cows, etc., dangerous riding in the day, god frobid riding at night.

Isn't Goa like 300 MILES from Bangalore? Anyway, even travelling by train in India is hair-raising....I wouldn't even consider riding there. It's the law of the jungle - the bigger you are, the more rights you have. As a cyclist, you'd have less rights than a cow!

Not too worried about our Cricket team not doing well in India, Pyzeguy. We've won everything for so long now, I'd be happy for us to loose just to break the monotony. It's funny though. India, population 1,250,000,000. Australia, population 20,000,000. You'd think India would kick our butts, but noooooooooo. :)

FYI ACS freewheels are made in India. You should be able to pick them up for 35 Rp!

The freewheel is an ACS, and was 45 Rp with labour, I don't know how good it is but at that price I really don't expect too much.

If you watch any of the 2nd innings, look in the crowd for a single white dude in a blue Go India hat, surrounded by thousands of Indians, that would be me. Everyone here thinks I'm an Aussie and can't understand why I have no Aussie flag and am sitting with the locals. I suppose there are worse things to be thought as.

As for riding here EVERY vehicle has less rights than a cow. Biking in any city here is dangerous. Perhaps in a few months more I will venture out of my little village, but not right now, I like being married so far. Later, well we'll see.

Well, the only white people who play cricket are Poms, Kiwis and Aussies. Well, the Poms left India decades ago, and the Kiwis are too busy lounging on Bondi Beach, so if you're a Anglo in India watching the cricket, chances are you're not a Yank. That whole concept would warp their minds....a Yank in India watching the cricket......woah.

Dude, you seriously need a digital camera. We need pix!

Yours sincerely,
B.M.H.V.T.O - Bikeforum Members who Holiday Vicariously Through Others

No, definity not a Yank, Canadian. And as soon as I can find a place that will allow me to download pixs I will be posting. I want to get a labtop but they cost more than motorbikes here, and that's for basic ones. I hope to do it this week, as I am going away this weekend, again. Oh the life of Riley is for me. Send me a PM to let me know when you are in Stri Lanka. I'll try to coordinate my trip there to your ride.

If you get a USB universal memory card reader, then you should be able to offload your pics at any PC with windows. If anything, just mail them out right off the memory card. They are about $20 stateside. Probably cheaper there.

Anyway, I'm moving to India, probably in February, and I am determined to learn anything and everything about it... so please do post pics!

*cough* sorry for assuming you were a Yank and not a Seal Clubber, 'my bad' as they say. :)

I'll be in Sri Lanka from the 2-13 of April next year. That's the dates of the official ride, but me and a mate will be taking some time off after that to probably go lounge on a beach somewhere and drink beer. That gives ya plenty of time to plan, eh?