Coffeeneuring Ride 2, Atomic Cafe

Iced Chai and a cookie at Atomic Cafe, Beverly

Coffeeneuring ride #2 was a bit of an Errandoneur. I wanted to get my bike fixed before it became a nagging issue, but wasn’t sure where to take it (in my quest to find a solid bike shop). I decided to head over the bridge to Centraal Cycle in Beverly to give them a shot.

Now, honestly, I’m not a difficult customer but I do get tired of being stereotyped as a recreational cyclist. Granted, my rides these days are coffee rides and off-road adventure rides, but damn, I’ve paid my dues. In 30+ years of riding throughout the country and in Europe, from bikepacking, to endurance rides, to racing; from road to gravel to MTB, I’ve been at this for a while. It never fails, however, that when I bring my bike to a shop mechanic I’ll also get a dose of mansplaining along the way.

Yesterday, I learned that “a chain needs to be replaced because it stretches out over time”. I’m. Not. Kidding. (Eyeroll here.)

I was glad I took a quickie spin up to Beverly Farms and a detour over to Lynch Park to visit the gardens, before stopping at Atomic Cafe for an iced chai and a sugar cookie. The gorgeous weather and spicy, snuggly chai had me in a good mood when I brought the bike in to Centraal. I didn’t argue (much) when the mechanic insisted that my Wahoo trainer ”eats up my chain and cassette”. (I acknowledged the chain in this scenario, but not the cassette. The rear wheel (and attached cassette) sit idle in the corner while the bike is on the trainer. It's a different cassette. But whatev. I was feeling the chai.

Gardens at Lynch Park

Riley’s Rocks. A community remembrance for young
Riley Fessenden of Beverly

There’s still a lot of color left after last week’s nor’easter