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| Puerto
Rican Bike Men |
Copyright 2004-2006 Zina Saunders All rights reserved |
 Pedro,
age 46, is in the middle of decorating about 20 bicycles crammed
into his apartment in the South Bronx. His wife doesn’t
like them too much. She trips over them all the time, so now she
wants to throw them all away. It’ll never happen.It all began with a 20-inch bicycle in Puerto Rico. It was the first bicycle that I ever got. Then, when I was 22 or 24, I moved to New York. And when I went to the Puerto Rican Day Parade here, I saw other guys with their bicycles, and I said, “I’m going to go get mine so I can ride with them.” After I went to the Parade and showed off my bicycle, people started coming to my house and they asked me how to set up their bicycles. I do most of the customizing for about 12 guys, up in the Bronx. I close my eyes and visualize what kind of parts I want for the bicycle and then I go and add them on. Sometimes I talk to my nephew, Joey: I describe what I’m thinking, and he will sketch it. I just get inspired. I work 10 hours a day on the bicycles … well, not every day, but sometimes! Normally, from three or four o’clock till one in the morning. It takes about a week for me to do a simple decoration, but when I’m doing someone else’s bicycle it takes me longer, since they’re paying me. |