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Though today is slightly overcast and mainly humid, it makes for the perfect respite from the punishing summer sun.

After searching and searching for what felt like a lifetime on craigslist for a new (to me) bike, I finally found one the other day and have been waiting anxiously for an opportunity to ride. But as we have all recently experienced, soggy shoes and all, the weather has been less than outdoor activity friendly.

Until today! I was finally able to take my 1970′s All Pro (is that even a legit brand?) cruiser lake-side and enjoy the sites from a new place. Okay, I’m going to run off on a tangent here and relay and truly ridiculous tale of how I got my bike. As I said before, I was searching religiously on craigslist for a bike. And as we all know, second hand sites and stores are fairly hit or miss.  Well, I hit the vehicular jackpot by finding the friendliest couple who collect vintage bikes, repair and then sell them. Despite my initial hesitation to go so far out of my way to see them (in Northbrook), I had a feeling this place may just be hiding my dream bike. So what, you say? Please refer to figures 1A-C below to see the extent of my bike “options” when I arrived about an hour later:

Road bikes for men and women.

Cruisers.

Kids bikes too.

Imagine my shock when I first entered the office expecting to see the solitary biked pictured online! I was like a kid in a candy shop, with every piece of candy discounted and in my price range. Needless to say, I found the bike I had been searching for all this time.

But back to today’s ride; The path picks up close to my new place in Lakeview and rides north/south. I may be stating the obvious, but it is an absolutely stunning ride that takes you out of the car/train/bus/hovercraft and right on the proverbial front lines of the city. You can stop, dip your toes in the frigid Lake Michigan, or sun in a grassy knoll. I also found that there are a medley of kitschy places to grab a drink or a quick bite. My ride only took me downtown today due to impending storms, but I’m looking forward to riding into Hyde Park in the future!

My suggestion? Get out there and enjoy the weather while we still have the chance! (I also hear it’s amazing riding when the leaves are changing in the fall.) Craigslist may be worth another look too.

-Ileana