I first spotted it some time last Autumn. I was passing through Harvard Square and there it was – a wooden Harris Cyclery crate strapped to the rear rack of a mountain bike-turned-commuter, locked securely to a bike rack. How neat it is to see a Harris crate in the wild, I thought. I’ve always liked these handsome wooden containers.
A couple of weeks later, I passed the same spot and saw the bike with the Harris Cyclery crate again. I figured the owner must work in Harvard Square and this is their regular lock-up spot. It’s not unusual to “claim” regular spots on the bike rack.
Winter came, and it was a particularly bad one this year in Boston. Out on a stroll one frigid day, once again I walked through Harvard Square and saw the bike with the wooden Harris Cyclery crate. Both were now covered with a layer of snow. And when I passed by once more some time later, there was still more snow. It did not look like the bike had been ridden in some time. I started to think most likely it was abandoned. That happens here in the winter. Sad.
The winter lasted a long time. It was cold. It was wet. Snow continued to fall relentlessly through March. On occasion I would spot the wooden crate – at times soaking wet, at times covered in ice, at time filled with snow. I doubted it would survive until Spring; surely the wood would crack or rot.
But Spring came, and the crate emerged unscathed – save for a bit of evidence of a brief avian visit. Indeed, I would hardly have guessed that it had stayed outdoors all winter long.
Just this morning, I walked by the spot where the bike was locked up again. I saw that it was knocked over, now lying on its side. The crate looked as handsome as ever, not a mark on it. I picked up the bike and stood it up against the rack in its usual place. Maybe some day the owner will return for it. In the meantime, the wooden Harris Cyclery crates leave no doubt as to their durability. These are fine bicycle crates.
