Who cycles?

XMIT · 15 Apr 2015, 21:25

Stanford's campus has a similar number of bicycles at times.

Khers · 15 Apr 2015, 22:34

Copenhagen is amazing with its multilane cycle highways!

webwit · 15 Apr 2015, 22:56

Madhias wrote: ↑I never saw so many bicycles in one place

That's nothing.

bhtooefr · 15 Apr 2015, 23:55

Really, you need infrastructure to do things the Dutch way, is the problem.

Meanwhile, in 'murrica, you're expected to go as fast as possible to minimize inconvenience to motorists who "actually have somewhere to go".

This is how 'murricans think of cyclists:

(Interestingly, I get far less crap on my recumbent trike than I do on a bicycle. Motorists seem to be unsure whether it's a wheelchair or not, and wheelchairs get a fuckton more respect than bicycles.)

Muirium · 16 Apr 2015, 02:17

It's not too bad in San Diego, actually. California seems to be quite bike friendly. Way more cycle lanes than I'm used to, and parked cars are towed away. Sweet!

bhtooefr · 16 Apr 2015, 03:40

Although California also has a mandatory cycle lane law (which is open to misinterpretation by those that want to ignore the parts that allow one to not use the cycle lane when it's unsafe to do so)...

Madhias · 16 Apr 2015, 08:18

Who reads the Bike Snob NYC? I am reading the blog from time to time, it is funny, I even bought a book from him. An always critical view on the cycling scene.

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.co.at/

webwit wrote: ↑
Madhias wrote: ↑I never saw so many bicycles in one place
That's nothing.

[IMAGE WITH A DISTRUBING AMOUNT OF DUTCHBIKES]

I would HATE it there. I think.

suka · 16 Apr 2015, 10:34

Here's my all year fixed gear minimum maintenance commuter - 18km one way, about half of which is through parks or forest areas and hardly any traffic lights on the remaining city part. Completely flat terrain and a total joy on it. May not look comfortable, but is a hell of a ride...

: Commuter; steamroller.jpg (222.52 KiB) Viewed 5237 times

And here my weekend/holiday mountain bike/cyclocross inbreed. I couldn't live with straight handlebars, and also was not willing to compromise on low maintenance parts like mechanical disk brakes and internal gear hub. It already came with a 11 speed Alfine hub so the ultimate decision to treat myself with a Rohloff is postponed until I manage to break it, but so far it has withstood even the most ferocious mashing in the alps...

: MTB; fortitude.jpg (94.88 KiB) Viewed 5237 times

ramnes · 16 Apr 2015, 11:40

Gimme that hub RIGHT NOW!

Khers · 16 Apr 2015, 11:46

Those are some really nice bikes, suka! The Brooks saddles are a nice touch!

seebart · 16 Apr 2015, 14:06

nice bikes suka, I especially like that cyclocross inbreed of yours.

XMIT · 16 Apr 2015, 16:04

I used to cycle competitively and work as a bicycle mechanic. I've tamed things down in the past few years.

My current commuter is a titanium frame cyclocross bike made by DB Ora in Taiwan (sold under the "Motobecane" name at BikesDirect.com). Getting disc brakes, a trailer hitch, and a rear rack to play nicely together took some interesting design choices. Removing the rear wheel is a giant pain. I tend to break bicycles and this one is surviving well.

The frame has a very short head tube hence the "old man" riser stem.

I took this photo with flash to demonstrate the reflective tape (3m Scotchlite) on the cranks and rims. I removed the decals from the rims and traced one carefully to get a pattern for the reflective tape. This is as I am preparing to depart for work.

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Stabilized · 16 Apr 2015, 16:27

Madhias wrote: ↑Who reads the Bike Snob NYC? I am reading the blog from time to time, it is funny, I even bought a book from him. An always critical view on the cycling scene.

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.co.at/

Love Bike snob, have been reading his blog for years! I love how he cuts through the bullshit of all the new cycle gear that ends up coming out (gravel bikes, bike-related kickstarters, road bike droppers, etc.)
I am only 24 (must have been 20/21 when I started reading), but I really enjoy/relate to his grumpy old man view of the world

XMIT · 16 Apr 2015, 16:50

I've seen Bike Snob in person in San Jose at one of his book things. Good for him, making a living off the blog and the books.

Mal-2 · 16 Apr 2015, 22:22

Madhias wrote: ↑Who reads the Bike Snob NYC? I am reading the blog from time to time, it is funny, I even bought a book from him. An always critical view on the cycling scene.

I read just enough (usually because he reviewed something interesting) to have picked up the use of "crabon" to describe objects inappropriately made of carbon fiber.

PMKFTW · 16 Apr 2015, 22:46

suka wrote: ↑Here's my all year fixed gear minimum maintenance commuter - 18km one way, about half of which is through parks or forest areas and hardly any traffic lights on the remaining city part. Completely flat terrain and a total joy on it. May not look comfortable, but is a hell of a ride...
steamroller.jpg
And here my weekend/holiday mountain bike/cyclocross inbreed. I couldn't live with straight handlebars, and also was not willing to compromise on low maintenance parts like mechanical disk brakes and internal gear hub. It already came with a 11 speed Alfine hub so the ultimate decision to treat myself with a Rohloff is postponed until I manage to break it, but so far it has withstood even the most ferocious mashing in the alps...
fortitude.jpg

How old is your Surley. I have a cross-check, and I love it. They make excellent bikes. Did you buy it as a fixed gear? In any case, very cool!

bhtooefr · 17 Apr 2015, 00:26

I regularly read BSNYC, despite his anti-recumbent bias.

(Oh, wait, I forgot about recumbabe.)

Muirium · 17 Apr 2015, 01:23

I don't like recumbents either. Though I don't know why. I mean, I do like Christopher Walken…

webwit · 17 Apr 2015, 02:09

Where I live the hate goes to these two types of bikers:

The bakfietsmoeder. They are evil, they are everywhere, they make their own laws, they own the road. It's like Mad Max, but then worse.

Second, the bierfiets. Drunk tourists cycling while drinking beer. What can possibly go wrong?

bhtooefr · 17 Apr 2015, 02:16

webwit wrote: ↑The bakfietsmoeder. They are evil, they are everywhere, they make their own laws, they own the road. It's like Mad Max, but then worse.

Could be worse.

They could be driving these instead, and doing the same things, like they do in 'murrica:

(OK, they're USUALLY not that big, but...)

Muirium · 17 Apr 2015, 02:20

I like the big vehicles over here in California, by the way. They're so much quieter (especially at speed) than the whiny crap we drive in Scotland; even when heading right on up the hills. Compared to what I'm used to back home, the drivers are generally more courteous over here too, more situationally aware (seem to be aware of "mirrors") and give way more space around bikes. Not that this is difficult:

bhtooefr · 17 Apr 2015, 03:46

And the "whiny crap" probably uses 1/3 the fuel of the big vehicles. And, it's nothing that a few pounds of sound insulation can't fix.

Surprising that the drivers are that much worse in Scotland, though.

scottc · 17 Apr 2015, 03:53

A few £ or a few lbs?

Muirium · 17 Apr 2015, 04:14

A few Labradors. Chocolate preferred, but golden retriever will do.

There's really quite a lot of electric cars in California now. My brother drives one, and his engineer pals do too. Management drives Teslas. He aspires to one his mortgage is paid. There's free electricity for them here, and reserved spaces at work.

The key to why Scots (and to be fair to our dear neighbours: English) are all vicious arseholes on the road. Anger management. Our culture keeps everyone bottled up like a pressure cooker until the bars open. And then the poor bastards can't even drink drive home! The worst drivers here are the stone silent ones. They're assassins.

The closest incidents I've ever had to getting killed on the road were both with buses, by the way. Full of irritating school kids, and driven by quietly suffering lunatics who will literally throw you off the road the moment they overtake.

Plus: so loud. Diesel engines in Britain are a disgrace.

bhtooefr · 17 Apr 2015, 04:59

The funny thing is that I'm an American, and own a (very end of the) 90s diesel Golf and a MX-5 (which is, well, geared short for acceleration, so it's doing high revs on the highway, and therefore actually isn't THAT efficient).

bpiphany · 17 Apr 2015, 09:44

webwit wrote: ↑ The bakfietsmoeder. They are evil, they are everywhere, they make their own laws, they own the road. It's like Mad Max, but then worse.

I'm one of them... No, I'm generally respectful in traffic. I run red lights, but only when intersections are clear or crosswalks empty. I go against traffic, but only short distances, at low speed, and well over to the side. I'm sure many people get mad over it, but if you want to get anywhere at any rate cycling, you just need to round a few corners..

The general problem here in Stockholm is that the infrastructure is poorly planned for cycling, like in many other places I believe. The rules and laws also seem fuzzier than in the case of motorized traffic. Sometimes I wonder if infrastructure solutions are even built to make it possible to follow the rules that are. I think cycling on the scale today is a relatively new phenomenon, and infrastructure/laws just have a hard time keeping up.

Last year I bought my "daily" commuter for the 20km I have to work. Winter is wet, cold and dark here. I'm a sunshine cyclist =) Belt drive, disc brakes and internal gears. Working good so far.

Obviously a product photo, my bike has a crank on the left side as well.

: 2014_Scott_Sub_10.jpg (142.71 KiB) Viewed 5077 times

I also own a custom built titanium cyclocross frame with a single speed hub and disc brakes. It's lighter, snappier, tougher than the Scott. No fenders, no gears, and less comfort makes it more of a fun bike than a commuter. I imagine it is a bit like a race car in comparison. You get a bit beat up riding it, but it's a lot of fun =)

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Madhias · 17 Apr 2015, 11:18

Sometimes I will buy a titanium frame!

webwit · 17 Apr 2015, 12:45

More silly bikes which you can only mount in a racing position!

bhtooefr · 17 Apr 2015, 13:18

And one problem with Dutch bikes is that they ain't fast, but apparently the infrastructure helps by reducing stops for cyclists (where, in the US, motorists would raise hell if cyclists got priority in light timing), and a bunch of factors (segregation, social attitudes towards cycling) mean that bicycle/motorist interactions are minimized and will be better than somewhere like the US or UK.

So, in areas where there's no or very poor infrastructure, speed reduces conflict, and therefore every commute becomes a bike race. That's why bikes that aren't dissimilar from racing bikes are used for commuting in less enlightened countries. (This is also part of why some cyclists do violate some traffic laws, because those laws aren't really designed around cyclists. That said, the meme that "cyclists always run red lights, they should have some penalty applied to them/be removed from the road entirely" is sampling bias - cyclists are an other (and one that is visibly slowing down motorists when there's no infrastructure), whereas when motorists do something illegal, they're the same group as the people make those generalizations.)

Another factor in some areas of the US is that murder is legal, your victim just has to be riding a bicycle (especially if they're not wearing a helmet, because then they were clearly asking to die

), and you have to make it look like an accident. You may even not get a ticket for it! Speed is even more important in those situations.

webwit · 17 Apr 2015, 13:20

My back hurts by only looking at those bikes.