BICYCLE HELMET MIRRORS

These magic fingers have multiple talents...

Not many of you will know but before I started working in the hospitality industry, I worked as a factory hand.... and I loved it (well, certain parts of it). My mum pulled me out of school at the age of 15, because she said "I wasn't applying myself" and so she made me get a job. To tell you the truth it was the best thing she ever did.

That year I worked in two factories and learnt that I was really good with my hands. My passion was for machining and making various items that the factory needed. I was offered an apprenticeship and then the company went bankrupt! The other passion that I picked up that year was my love for mountain bikes and most of my pay went to doing up my bike each week... this was short lived as it got stolen after a few months!

I moved on to a sheet metal factory that made water tanks, I work there for four years. Starting out as factory hand I worked my way up to a store person and then got myself an office job within the company. I loved making things, designing new features for the tanks and watching ideas turn into products. While working here I bought my second bike and over the space of six years I had spent nearly $6000 on it.

Just before I stopped working in factories and warehouses I sold this bike and stopped riding for several years. I started working in my first hotel as an assistant manager and twelve months later I was the manager..... and a few months after this my partner of seven years broke up with me....

The first thing I did was walk straight into a bike shop and bought miss HR!! The love of my life! I don't know where'd I be without this bike... it manages to pull me away from the hard times and get me outside doing what I love, riding. This week for some reason I've made three trips to the bike shop. As she is just over a year old, I feel it's time for some upgrades, a bit of servicing and some tlc! So here I am stripping down my pedals and giving them an overhaul... with the fingers that began my working life.

I finally have a new frame: Marin Pine Mountain steel 21".

I bought it second hand. Actually I bought the whole bike, though it just had a few original parts: cantilevers, headset and front derrailleur. The rest was a mix of stx and unknown parts.

The overall condition is good. Just some superficial rust that I am still wondering how to remove before painting.

I stripped down the bike as soon as I recieved it to prepare it for the powdercoating but i have to decided the color yet. So many good options out there!

The frame, despite its size, it´s surprisingly light. I was planning it to be my next touring bike but I am afraid that it is too delicate to haul panniers and a big load.