Let me tell you kids a story... Years ago I acquired a Marin hybrid bicycle. Now, the events leading to my acquisition are some what convoluted and might, or might not have involved a dead body in a Dairy Queen dumpster, but thats a story for another blog. So, at that time in my life I was fresh out of the hospital, recovering from a life changing injury. And after spending a long cold winter nearly bed ridden, I was itching to get outside. The Marin was waiting patiently for me and as soon as the pavement dried, we were hitting the road. We became fast friends and I believe she played a key role into my speedy recovery. I was riding nearly every day and loving every minute of it. With every mile it felt like I was getting my life back.
At the time I was living in a sketchy part of town and sure enough, one night the Marin was stolen. Now, if you have ever had a bike stolen, you will know the feeling. Its absolutely gut wrenching. I felt as if my friend was kidnapped and I'd never seen them again. Fate on the other hand, would play its card and the very next night as I sullenly walked to the gas station, I noticed two crack heads at a telephone booth and sure enough one of them was sitting on the Marin! Instantly every possible scenario played through my mind. The two that I thought made the most sense were; perform a running drop kick, take my friend back, and ride away before they knew what hit them, or, follow them and learn everything I could. I chose the latter. And after stealthily following them through a few back alleys, the opportunity for rescue presented itself and I simply took my Marin back.
Now, I know you might be thinking thats the end, but no, ohhh no.
We spent the next few years together and traveled the world together, until one day I handed the Marin over to my girlfriend, Bryn. She was living in Victoria and needed a bike for work and she knew the history of this one, it was a match made in heaven. The two of them became fast friends and were loving life together. Until one day. Yup, you guessed it, the Marin was stolen again! This time I felt our time and luck was through. Victoria being a big city and all, I thought the chances of crossing paths were slim to none. Every now and then I would see a bike chained up downtown somewhere that reminded me of Marin, but it never was. 2 months went by and hope was all but gone. And then... Today, as I came back to my car and began to curse loudly at the parking ticket I got, something caught my attention and instantly calmed my temper. I stared blankly for a moment at this familiar stranger with disbelief. It couldn't be... But it was! The Marin!
Bryn called the police as she had made a police report and we needed some bolt cutters to cut the lock. Now, this is where the story gets a little weird. The cop came over to us and asked us all sorts of question to make sure it was our bike. He then went into a little corner store that the Marin was chained up outside of to ask the owner if they knew anything about the bike. He came back out with a puzzled look on his face and said to me "they told me that it was you who locked the bike up here and that you forgot your key and would be back in an hour". All I could do was laugh, cause it was so bizarre. Long story short, he cut the lock and gave us Marin back!
