2013 Giant Seek 3

And as my ancient Kona Hahanna rides off into the sunset, say hello to the Giant Seek. It’s a cross between a road bike and a mountain bike, with a mountain bike-style frame and a flat bar, but skinny slick tires:

The “3” in the name indicates that it’s the bottom of the range. Giant’s top-level bike of each model is “0” and they count from there. Not the end of the world: the Hahanna was the bottom end of the Kona line, and see how that turned out! $629 plus tax.

I picked it up this afternoon with Miranda, and then the next hour and a half was spent moving accessories from my old bike to the new:

• Headlight
• Front and back blinky lights
• Mirror
• Bike lock & mount
• Seat
• Water bottle cage

Because the wheels are larger (29″ vs. 26″) and skinnier, the old fenders couldn’t make the trip, so I got new ones. The only oversight at the moment is a kickstand: because the new bike has a rear disc brake, the old kickstand can’t be mounted. I’ll have to see what options are available. The biggest headache was mounting the mirror.

Riding it feels weird: it is very much more upright than my old bike. That will be good on my wrists, but we’ll see how much fun it is riding into a headwind. 🙂 I feel like a “giant” on it.

Updated

Here’s a picture of me giving it a test ride:

Further Update

Well, just because it’s a new bike doesn’t make me any faster. I did the same ride this morning as I have the previous two mornings as a test. I didn’t try going any faster than usual, just went at what I thought my usual pace was. And guess what? It took me exactly as long as my ride on Thursday, and I was slightly slower than I was on my broken bike yesterday. 😮 I think I might have been somewhat upset yesterday… That type of emotion seems to make me go faster.

My other note from this morning is that I need to transfer my mud flap from my old bike. It wasn’t raining when I left, but it was wet from the rain last night, and it was raining by the time I got home. My feet, legs, and lower parts of the bike were much dirtier than usual, which I attribute to the lack of a flap on the front fender. Might not be fashionable, but I ride in all weather. 🙂

Yet another further update

I have transferred the bar ends from the Kona: using a straight bar without the ability to change hand positions on a long ride hurts my right wrist. Now the transformation is complete. The Giant is the successor.

Beyond updating and well into ridiculousness

A kickstand solution has been found. Apparently Giant makes a kickstand specifically for this bike model, due to the problems I outlined. They have a pair of threaded holes to mount it on, as well:

Picked up for $16 + tax and installed in minutes.