Bike in the Shop
Owning a Prius, I only ever took went to the service center for regular oil changes and checkups, and once for a service advisory to re-program some computer. When I got my tires changed at Costco, it was only because I wanted better tires, not because the old ones were worn out.
Well, having purchased a used bike in the Netherlands, I didn't have the same pride of ownership in it as I did the Prius. But over time, I've come to really love my bike. Even when I was test riding different bikes, this one really felt the most solid. And it has a Prius-like feature which I haven't noticed on other bikes - it is completely silent when coasting. That is, most bikes make the "click click click" sound when you hold the pedals in place and just coast. This bike makes absolutely no noise.
Biking to my friend's house last weekend, suddenly the ride felt very harsh and when I rode over cobblestones, the bell (to shoo people away) was ringing by itself. It wasn't until I pulled the bike out the next day that the rear tire was completely worn out! It even had a red stripe which I guess shows that it's completely bare.
So I walked my bike to a bike shop relatively close by, and asked for them to replace the rear tire (outer tube and inner tube), as well as the rear caliper brakes while they were at it. I asked for an estimate - €60 which was a bit high since the whole bike cost €99 - and left. The next day, I got a text message saying that it was ready to be picked up. Very nice service!
When I picked the bike up, I saw how the bike shop is really like a tiny auto shop. As in, there are devices which raise up the bikes to be worked on. You give a slip of paper to the cashier to pay, before picking up the bike.
The guy who unlocked the bike for me called out the model of my bike, "Mohawk" like it was a car model name "Prius." I didn't think that the names were as meaningful as in cars, but I think in the Netherlands, bikes are like cars and Mohawk is a meaningful model name. I checked it up online later and the Dutch company Batavus names other bikes after American Indian tribes, like Comanche.
When I checked the rear tire, I found that they installed a tire from another brand name (Dutch) bike company, Gazelle. And then I realized that, just as there is selection in different car tires (I specified a type of Michelin for the Prius), there must be different bike tires! Owning a bike is really a lot like owning a car. Oh yeah, and the bill came out to just over €40. I was just thinking to myself, in some places they would have just charged me the original estimate!
