the old dutch treat takes philadelphia by storm.

This is too perfect. In honor of my 500th blog post (not all of them have been posted, I think, but blogger counts and I don't), I picked up The Old Dutch Treat from Trophy Bikes in University City. The bike was finely tuned and the ride pacific and pleasant. The humidity was unnoticeable; there was little traffic and plenty of bike lane to get me home. Even the hills were easy. Three gears are all a girl needs in Philly. I felt totally at home.

Everything was as sublime as the Rothko painting I saw yesterday at the PMoA until I came home to this:


As it turns out, the hand brake makes my bike just a bit too wide to get through the door. It took some jimmying to get in, but not after I damn near had a heart attack and said all the bad word combinations I haven't been using since I stopped driving. And getting it up the stairs, well, that was a pain too. It was a bummer end to a lovely afternoon ride.

I won't be getting rid of the beast- I enjoy the ride too much- but the stairs are definitely going to require adjustment and practice, and the reality may be that the ODT may not be the best everyday gig. Don't worry- the blog won't suddenly be "Church of the Folding Bike," but this just became a lot more appealing.