fifty; Aaron, Schwinn fixed gear with carbon forks

He left college in Aberdeen just a handful of credits shy of a degree in urban social development to actually live in an urbanized social development (“with way better weather”).
Though he sports northwestern fixed gear intimidation like a second skin, it’s clearly just a familiar coat from harsher environments (he sheds it like a winter coat in spring the instant he starts to speak).
Now he reads crime novels (because he can) and sucks in bits of California between pulls of hand rolled cigarettes and coffee.
His head now firmly in the clouds: his feet loosely in the street.

forty-nine; Daniel, Road Bike (little brothers)

He’s holding a healthy chunk of man’s most precious commodity (time) and it’s burning a hole in his pocket.
He’s got time; to decide on a major (History or Econ), to sit up until 5am writing fanatically about protest, to follow the evening without (much) regard for midterms.
He’s thinking of letting his days in speech and debate “die with high-school”, but he still holds an intrinsic ability to speak intelligently (or not at all).
Berkeley was a choice he made over a beer and a professor’s turn of phrase,
“He just said it perfectly, just at the perfect time.”

forty-eight; Tristan, Ibis Cyclocross bike

He’s a grower: of plants, of family, and of future.
The independent landscaping business sprouted from necessity (his lady was having twins),
“It all changes when you have kids.”
The triathlons stopped somewhere around then.
But that was four years and a few community colleges ago.
Now he commutes to Cal from Oakland for a program in agricultural architecture and races Cyclo-Cross (he probably likes the dirt more, anyways).
The kids in day care, the Lady at work for a non-profit in the East Bay, he’s loading up on a little warmth and caffeine for a night of building trees.

forty-seven; Becca, K2 Commuter

With a Masters in Anthropology from SFSU, it only makes sense that she would become an educational culinary entrepreneur.
“I was fascinated with people and essentially food is people.”
A love for culture drove her to Mexico where she gleaned the only ‘formal’ training in cooking she’s received.
Tonight she was in the city for Yom Kippur service.
Though imbued with an inspired curry, apparently it missed the spot and it’s looking to be a long twenty-five hours until this can be reconciled.
Until then, she modestly recites the fine art of banana-leaf wrapped tamales for me (free of charge).

forty-six; Gabriel, Red Commuter

He’s spiked and studded, friendly and faithful.
We laugh about the ironies of Berkeley’s “liberal free speech” attitude as he walks to grab dinner for his lady,
“Like say whatever you want, as long as it agrees with them.”
Exhausted from hosting an all day card game, it looks like he’s going to miss the Dead and Gone show tonight.
He’s heading to San Jose in the morning for his sisters wedding, but he commits to a few minuets for me.
Kindly he invites me to bike polo in Oakland (they’ve got loaner mallets)
“My other bike is a skateboard.

forty-five; Barrett, Ten-Speed Road Bike

Flipping through discarded books and vinyl under a street light on his way home from practice, he feels that he really started to grow once his options were stripped down (referring to playing in a two-piece band on a borrowed kit).
His band is named after the giant squid and there’s truly something epic within him.
“The best work I’ve done has been shorts stories about my life.”
On paper he’s a philosophy major; in practice, a drummer; in spirit, a writer.
Under no delusions about his future, he knows that no one is hiring philosophers (not in this economy).

forty-four; Kyle, Mountain Bike (brand new, way more fun than a road bike)

It’s a toss up between civil and mechanical, but it is most definitely engineering.
Freshmen year is full these new definitions.
The kind that changes the way he perceives time,
“Fifteen minuets or an hour.” (Referencing to how long it takes to get to his hometown to grab essentials like…cereal).
“We’re getting started at 11pm.” (Referencing his bike ride).
He’s designing a human powered vehicle for competition and he thinks he wants to go into alternative energy.
I assume then that his eyes are on the future, but he his smile assures me that he is thoroughly enjoying the present.