Bike Snob NYC was a mistake.
In June of 2007, desperately bored and frustrated with my job, I opened a Blogger account and picked apart a Craigslist ad. Bike Snob NYC was born.
I say Bike Snob NYC was a mistake because I didn’t really think it through. First of all, I wouldn’t have called myself “Bike Snob.” The name has always kind of made me cringe, which is why over the years I’ve adopted other monikers and alter egos: RTMS; Tan Tenovo; and, when I’m booking a hotel room or a dinner reservation or simply stalking the night in my brilliant white polyester leisure suit, Carl LaFong.
The other reason Bike Snob NYC was a mistake was because I didn’t know what I was doing. I mean I still don’t know what I’m doing, but back then I really didn’t know. Basically, I made a series of mistakes, one after the other. I created the Bike Snob NYC email account with Yahoo. Yahoo. I bought the bikesnobnyc.com URL as well as a couple other variations, but then I could never figure out how to link them to the Blogger account I created (Blogger, another mistake), and so they just sat there.
The mistakes compounded. I wanted to sell t-shirts and stickers and stuff but it turned out there was some guy who had already trademarked “Bike Snob” and when my first book came out he threatened to sue me. I revealed my identity in a Rupert Murdoch periodical and the world recoiled at my visage. I consistently failed to upgrade my web presence, foster my “brand,” or focus on monetization, instead remaining steadfastly and stupidly confident that an attitude of aloof snobbery and unassailable integrity would be sufficient see me through.
In short, I stand here a victim of the influence of Emmanuel Goldstein.
I’m glad I was caught, I was mentally deranged. Now I am cured.
Anyway, welcome to a new incarnation of the Bike Snob NYC blog. I hesitate to call it “Bike Snob 2.0” as that’s far too ambitious. “Bike Snob 1.5” is more like it. While it may not right the aforementioned wrongs, it’s at least a half-step in the right direction.
Thanks for reading. Here’s to the next 13 years. *Gulps alcoholic beverage.*
–Tan Tenovo
