There are the rare gems of companies and people who not only love, but also support my adventure stories – and I would love to thank them here.
Diamantrad ❤️
Diamantrad …
… has not just supported me by creating the love of my mid-twenties (Red), but also by introducing me to (and gifting to me) the love of my late-twenties: Mango.
How Red and I (and Diamantrad) met
“Someone stole my bike!” – “Happens,” the man I had yelled those terrible words at remarked as he shuffled on, while I stood alone with only horror and disbelief as company on the dark, empty street of Berlin.
That was over three years ago. That night, I had walked back to where I had locked my bike, 11 hours before. But when I arrived: my trusted little trekkie was gone. I cried for a week straight, searching every corner of the city, but to no avail. Desperate and heartbroken, I stumbled into every bike store I could find, hoping beyond hope that even if I couldn’t find my bike, perhaps I could find a twin somewhere. But this particular bordeaux-colored version of the @diamantrad “Elan” was no longer being sold.
I had to accept that I would never see Red again.
Life in general didn’t really get much better after that. Between trying to find a new job and a new flat (different story) my parents tried to cheer me up with a visit to a lake. We ended our stroll at their car, and I didn’t understand what was going on, when my mom opened the trunk and my dad lifted out….
Red. My trusted little trekkie.
“We asked around the local Diamant stores, whether they still had this bike hidden somewhere. We got lucky.”
I remember how I wasn’t even able to thank them in words. I just clutched the handlebars and cried and cried and cried.
Red was back. Everything was going to be alright.
This little trekking bike puts up not only with my stubborn refusal to clean it on a more than irregular basis, it also carries me an average of 30km of commuting. Every. Single. Day. And it survived the trip of a lifetime with me – even though I only really learned how to fix a bike tire on the road.
I couldn’t love ya more if I tried, Red. I’m so happy that, in a way, you came back to me when I needed you most.
Thank you, @diamantrad. Y’all are the best. ❤🚲