Tech writer Charlotte learned to build wheels back when she viewed gears as unnecessary, favouring one brake and some grippy tyres. Since then she’s come to accept that modern bikes have their uses, and her knees are much happier for it.
Charlotte’s ever-loyal Genesis Datum
An unfaltering workhorse and unfailing companion
Some bikes we buy out of admiration for their beauty, their speed, their finesse. We lust after them for what feels like an eternity before finally laying our hands on them. Then there are bikes like my Genesis.
I came across it while frantically scrolling through Facebook Marketplace, desperate to find a reliable, no-frills commuter. The first ‘proper’ bike I’d ever owned was a Genesis – sadly stolen after only a few months – and I had adored it.
This love was probably more to do with enjoying the perks of a modern road bike, but it had kindled a flame in my heart for the brand and I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to own one again. I had also just become a bike mechanic (my previous life before Cyclist), so despite the Datum seeming pretty humble at first sight – all Shimano Tiagra groupset and budget cup-and-cone bearing wheels – I couldn’t help but look at it and dream of the possibilities.
So it begins
The first thing to go were the wheels. In an inverse approach to learning, I had been taught to build wheels before I fully understood how gears or brakes worked, and had fallen in love with the craft.
