If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

At least, that’s what my Grandad used to say to me.

So, with this branded into my psyche, that’s what I’ve been thinking for the past few months as I blast around town on my Rocky Mountain street bike. Over the last week or so, though, I’ve had the sneaking suspicion that Grandad’s mantra was yesterday’s news.

After sliding through turns a little too much, and not having the same kind of control that I’d been used to back when my RM was all shiny and new, I began to think that what I had passed of as an issue with low tire pressure was just the tip of this two-wheeled iceberg.

And, according to Ride On Again at 2255 West Broadway, I was right.

There was indeed something wrong – worn sidewall, low pressure, valve tear, and a few more nasty things that if I hadn’t caught them (read: Brad from Ride On Again caught them), my rims, which are kick a$$ in my mind, would have met Mr. Pavement (and so too, would have I).

What struck me with Ride On Again’s service offering was that it was:

1) laid back and knowledgeable

2) set amongst a whole host of very cool bikes and gear that bike addicts would climb over each other for

3) local, and friendly

4) saw me immediately (read: put aside other work) without an appointment

5) dished out against an audible buffet of classical music – very soothing, made me want to buy stuff/talk to them more

So Brad, and the staff at Ride On Again in Kits, who I understand re-located after their former shop burned down a few years back, thank you very much for changing my tire, suggesting a better type of tire for the type of riding I do, oiling my chain for free (something that our writers appreciate), and best of all, proving that Grandad wasn’t always right.

darren