Taj and Monty photo by Sandy Carson
Fifteen years ago I was a BMX pro riding around Austin with a single minded focus on BMX. I’d spend all day on my bike searching the city for the next street riding spot but hardly even notice I was on a bike, thinking more about the potential of the spots I’d find than enjoying the ride there. On one ride I found a rad old 1950’s grandma cruiser hanging out of a dumpster. I dug it out and dragged it home unsure of why I’d done it. I was so completely focused on BMX at this point in my life that I was actually embarrassed to be seen riding a non-BMX bike. A few makeshift repairs later I had it rolling as my grocery getter. On my first cruise I had an epiphany; this was FUN! That old cruiser reduced cycling to it’s most simple element… just rolling. There was no desire to push myself on that bike and there was no point trying to see how fast it could go. It wasn’t a work out, it wasn’t a challenge and it wasn’t a means to any end. It was simply rolling around on a bike and that was all it needed to be.
