Driving Amy

I'd like to introduce Amy, a 1959 VW Panel Van conversion that I co-opted for light duties as the 69er Collective's vehicle of choice. Named Amy after the original California plate of AMY 932, she now sports the somewhat more mundane registration of 204 XUG. She needs some work on her chassis and the interior needs ripping out and starting again; however, I did spend a few nights camping in her at the Bontrager Twentyfour 12 and the following NPS in Plymouth.

She'll get a bit of a makeover over the winter and be ready to appear with the 69er Collective throughout 2008. If you see us out on the road, give us a beep.

Getting Shirty

I don't know what many people think the guys at Trek UK are like, but I daresay not many people think most of the 45 strong company ride bikes. It's almost like the company is too corporate to actually be passionate about riding bikes because we sell so many. If you do think that way, and I hope you don't, you'd be wrong. At a rough estimate, about 85% of the employees are cyclists. Due to team and logistic limitations, only about 24 rode at the Bontrager Twentyfour12 but many more were wanting to. How hooked are they? Well, here's a picture of Gareth from the Warranty department with his collection of jersies; I guess you could say 'keen'?

New Wheels

I'd like to think I'm an early adopter. New tecnology, new bikes, new thinking. What has gone before isn't necessarily wrong, it's just been superceded. You catch my drift. So when it came time to choose a new company car, I thought I'd look outside of the normal company car box and make my own mind up about what I wanted in a means of transport. Here's my list.

1. A tax break. Yeah, it sounds selfish, but having just moved house with the job, I could do with saving a few quid.

2. Value for money. Not just my money, as I'd be paying the fuel costs, but the company's money as Trek would be picking up the lease cost and this is in part dictated by the resale value.

3. My 'green' credentials. I own a 1960 VW Camper so my carbon footprint is screwed, what can I say?

4. Finally, style; my own identity I'd like to think is mine and nobody else's, so peer pressure has never meant a great deal. I wear cowboy boots for crisakes!

So what did I come up with? A Toyota Prius. Okay, style is a question of taste but there's no denying numbers 1-3 are well and truly ticked. In a company whose product line is primarily an alternative to the car, I felt it is also important to be doing something to help make a difference; let's face it, in a few years, hybrid or electric car technology will be a choice we all have to make, I just started early.

What has this to do with mountain bikes? Maybe nothing, but driving a 'milk float' as it's been dubbed, doesn't preclude me from being a biker at heart. Book, cover? You decide, and think hard about your next car.