What’s up with Goose?

If you’re reading this blog, you are the smartest person in the world. Okay, not likely, but I’m hoping that you’re at least of average intelligence. You may have noticed that I talked about washing Goose a few days ago. I’m guessing that you’re smart enough to figure out that my bike is named Goose. Why, you might ask? Well, every bike should have a name; that’s just the rules, man. Lunchbox calls his bike, “Clark,” in reference to his favorite comic book character(plus the fact that it’s blue and loaded with stickers that symbolize that certain character.) My old bike’s name was Slug, simply because its rider pedaled it slowly during races. I didn’t think that moniker should be passed on to the new Diamondback Sortie 3 I got a while back, since I had become a little faster with a season of racing under my belt. In my quest to name my new machine, I recalled an ad I saw in one of the monthly bike mags:

Introducing the all new Sortie four-inch travel trail bike – developed specifically for fast attacks on your favorite trails and to be your wingman in the woods. The Sortie series includes three different models, all built on the same platform employing the mission-proven low center of gravity Knuckle Box suspension design and Rapid Response geometry, allowing for unsurpassed agility and performance. From the custom butted / formed tubes and sealed-bearing pivots that make up the Sortie frame to the components that finish out each Sortie model, we put an immense amount of attention into each detail so the only thing you’d have to pay attention to is the trail and enjoying the ride.

Ummm, what the hell is a Knuckle Box?


Your wingman in the woods, huh? Well, all I could think of was the movie Top Gun, but there was no way I was using “Maverick.” That would imply that I take my racing way too seriously. Immediately the beloved “Goose” character popped in my head. Yep, that describes my Sortie and my racing style perfectly. Now I just gotta get that song out of my head.


Hopefully I don’t hit my noggin and die when I eject from the cockpit.