Kona

A year or so ago, I bought myself a new bike back in Manila. Check this post. It was a good bike, but not great. And unfortunately, Malabon area wasn't suited for cyclists so I ended up not using it as much (but that's just one of my excuses). Now it's currently gathering dust in our garage. Hmm, maybe I should just sell that.

Anyway, over the past few months, I've mentioned that I’ve been using my aunt’s old mountain bike to ride around the area. I’ve been enjoying biking here because Vancouver is a cyclist’s city. It’s very bike friendly. There are bike lanes and paths everywhere. Especially during the summertime, there are a whole lot more cyclists you’d see around the city. I’m still not a cyclist commuter, but who knows, maybe next time I’d be like my teammate, who goes to the office using her bike.

As much as I love riding around that bike, there are two major problems with that bike. First is that the lower gears are very noisy. Since it wasn’t used for a long time, it just probably needs more tuning, or maybe even parts replacement, who knows. I had it checked out previously, but he said that it might have to be replaced. The challenge with being unable to switch to lower gears is when you’re riding uphill. Bike just gets too heavy that I have to just walk the uphill area.

And this brings me to the next concern that I have – the bike is a bit too heavy for me. It’s actually built as a mountain bike. I wanted something of a hybrid between commuter and road bikes.

And besides, it’s really not mine, it’s rusty….

And… ok, I’m giving myself a lot of reasons why I need to get myself a new one.

And thus, last Saturday, I finally got it. My new toy!!!!

It’s a Kona Dew 2013 model. It’s the basic model of the Kona line of bikes and it’s a hybrid between commuter and road bike.

My cyclist friend recommended a nice bike shop by Burnaby and so I decided to drop by there last Saturday. My friend actually recommended this brand as well, and when I asked the shop keeper what he would recommend, he actually recommended this Kona Dew for me. It’s a pretty good bike model for someone who’s simply looking for a good ride to get around the city.

He allowed me to test the bike outside the bike shop (there’s a bike pathway just by the back). After riding it for just 5 minutes, I loved it so much that I went back and bought it at once! 

It is however on the pricey side…but nothing to worry about because I’m loving it so far!

I had to wait for Sunday night to finally ride it out in the city.

My first ride on my Kona was going to Granville Island, which was roughly around 16.6 km according to Runkeeper. I rode it at night, while the sun’s just about to set. And such a wonderful experience because not only did I get to see the sun set by False Creek, but also discovered that there are public pianos situated at different locations along the seaside path, and anyone can freely play on it. I got to watch this awesome lady playing and you can actually see a crowd forming already.

My second bike ride yesterday, I took a different route – towards the Langara golf course. Nice route too. I still hate uphills though (who doesn’t?).

This weekend, I’m planning to go ride further out to Stanley Park this time. A lot of cycling routes available so it should be a good and safe ride too.

Now, the next project I have to sell off my aunt’s old bike, that is if it still has some value. Who knows, maybe we can still get some money out of it.