Spare bike parts

and what to do with them

Here's a little break from Isaiah Berlin: over the summer I've created quite a collection of spare bike parts. The pile of assorted frames, rims, and sundry accessories, which overtook my small apartment several months ago, has now spilled onto my back porch. I don't have enough parts for a second bike, nor do I want one. So what the hell do I do?

The levenshulme bicycle orchestra - just outside Manchester, England - has a rather unique, rhythmic solution. One of its five members plays an original percussion instrument he built out of a frame and three wheels.

I don't know if it has a name yet. Perhaps some of you would like to suggest one? I'll be taking entries through the comments link below. After a week or so, I'll convene a small committee to choose a winner. The prize, other than boost to your creative ego, will be a couple of the stickers I recently designed for BikeWinter 2007. I'll pay the postage.

I'm figuring the quintet plays experimental music. The percussion, given the spokes and other steel parts, must offer a pretty high-pitched, tinny rhythm.

If you're not into that kind of music, at least it's an imaginative use for a beater. It definitely looks like a Raleigh to me.

Back to Berlin tomorrow.