i was lost but now I'm found...

Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum

Help Support Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Jul 16, 2013
Messages
135
Reaction score
173
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Oh, sorry… no religion allowed.

I started riding and building my own bikes when I was a kid. Every kid in my neighborhood did the same thing. It kept us off the school bus. They all started out as trash (the bikes, that is). We all pieced broken bikes together with other trash finds. Some of them were actually pretty cool as irreverent trash goes (again, the bikes). It was a cultural and economic reality.

Well, fast forward to 2001. I needed a bike for the NYC Five Borough Tour. My garbage picking days were past (I thought) so I picked up a Fuji Sport 12 speed at the Salvation Army. Drop bars were out of the question so I scavenged a flat bar, Shimano brifters, a rear der and freewheel from my MTB and rode.

And I kept on riding. I was back; but the technology was so new, I was lost. Stuck in a time warp, I could no sooner ride a plastic bicycle with giant lettering on the wheels as I could wear a multi colored leotard while I was riding it. I needed steel. Lots of steel.

I kept building and riding in my own creations, my soul becoming more tortured with each passing season. I drifted around different forums and found lots of smart people. They were knowledgeable, disciplined, pure. No, I needed to remain the iconoclast. Where could a crazy mixed up kid like me go?

Well, one day I was web surfing some rat rod car photos looking for paint ideas for my fixie and there you all were. I thought, “man, these cats are all form my planet. I’m home”. So it's back to garbage picking and dreams of lugged steel. I guess i'll see you all later.

Peace everyone, (oops sorry, no politics)

John O’Donnell
Yonkers, NY
 
Last edited:
Welcome from Massachusetts!

Great story :D

Cant wait to see some pics of your creations !

Trash picking is the new " black" :wink:

:mrgreen:
 
Thanks for the welcomes, folks.

I'm posting a build in progress soon called STEAMPUNK 1987 Cannondale ST400 as soon as I get some pictures done.

But I'm already looking past this to a real rat bike. It's brewin' in my head. Meanwhile, nobody's garbage is safe cuz I made a deal with the sanitation crew. They deliver, you know.

Peace,

jodphoto
 

Latest posts

Back
Top