Last night my bike was stolen.

Not only mine, but the bike it was locked up to: my best friend Tope’s BMX. Ya, he’s a semi-pro bmx rider, and his bike was worth even more than mine (financially speaking).

This is officially one of those “fuck the world!” kind of moments.  However, with the encouragement of Tope, I guess its better not to harbor that kind of negativity.  After all, I’m not a very sentimental person when it comes to material possessions.  Multiple travels, displacement from home to college, and my recent trip have left me with the knowledge that possessions are temporary and impermanent, which is why right now i’m trying my best to react to this assault on my transportation in the most buddhist kind of way.  Just breathe, it will be alright.

Now I can say without a doubt that our country needs change.  This economy has people pulling some of the shiestiest moves ever..stealing bikes being one of them.  I guess it all comes down to the money, its a sad thing to say, I know. But I press on recognizing this theft as more indicative of a larger system that has folks in my working class and low-income neighborhood hard pressed to get by.

I am one of the more fortunate cyclists out there now, with the opportunities that this trip has blessed me with, I have many projects in the works and have a feeling like I’ll be able to get another bike someday soon…but it sure would be nice to have all those signatures back.
This bike had meant a lot more to me than rubber, aluminum and carbon fiber..it reflected in its very frame the Americans that inspired me to continue on in my nationwide trek.  From the mom and pop bike shops that fixed my bike for free, to the camera crews that followed me from ABC, the only signature that seemed to be lacking would have been the president’s himself.

For all of my bike lovers out there: Learn from my mistake, don’t leave it out of your sight…especially in the city.

Moving forward, I have to press on to the projects I have in the works.  Yesterday I contacted producers and editors in Hollywood to try to get my documentary put together in the next two weeks for the 2009 Bicycle Film Festival.  Along with that, my agent Sven has been working in Switzerland to secure sponsors to continue the ride internationally.

Many things to look forward to, so i’m just going to keep my head up and keep the rubber side down.   Off to build my next bike- I’m goin fixed gear!