Each Spring, Bicycles for Humanity - Thunder Bay, organizes and implements a Bicycle Round-Up Donation Drive.  Usually, such a drive will produce between 400 and 500 bicycles, of all shapes, sizes and ages.

Sometimes, speciality bicycles are offered, and gladly accepted.  Bicycles like this, very sturdy E-Z Roll.  Actually, the E-Z is not  bicycle, at all.  It is a tricycle.

This old tricycle was in stunning condition, the day it showed up in my back yard.  A day or so earlier, a fellow had called for directions that would allow him to drop off a bicycle he wanted to donate to B4H.  And, one afternoon, a day or so later, this incredibly well preserved old tricycle was sitting in the back yard, waiting for my to return home from my ride.

I looked the trike over, realizing that it would have to be checked over, thoroughly, before offering it to a handicapped person.  As it turned out, one of our volunteers offered to refurbish the bicycle, at his house.  A week, or so later, I delivered the Regal up to the recipient's house, dropped it off and left, once again, feeling pretty good about what we do at Bikes 4 Humanity.

The EZ, made by Ashtabula, is anything but a statement in technological wonder.  Rather, it sports tractor technology, which is, basically, bigger is better, and stronger and heavier.  None the less, the machine works quite well, at low speeds, and would be perfect for the individual who intended to use it so.

A couple of the neat things, about this pretty much neat everything old tricycle, was the speedometer and radio.  How often do you see those these days?  Speedos, in the form of computers, but radios - no way.  Ipods and walkmans, are they still around, perhaps, but not radios.

Anyway, this old ride is pretty interesting and, perhaps another, even more interesting one is on its way.  A group of students at a local high school have taken on the task of restoring an identical E-Z Roll, but in much worse condition.  I can't wait to see, and share, the results those community minded kids have to share.