[TheThinkTank] low end bikes, Invisible riders

[ronald ferrucci]

But most of them effectively ride single speed anyway. Karlin
mentioned in the slc bike collective list that she suffers from "gear
confusion." I know a lot of people for which fixed gears make sense
because they do not understand gears. I guess for more people,
single-speeds (not fixed) make more sense because they can coast. Most
of these people will probably not learn to switch gears, and most will
not need to, so if getting rid of one crappy component  makes their
bikes effective, do it. Also, I think most of use learned on
singles-speeds. I know I did. I ride a geared bike (hides head in
shame) because I understand them, I know when to shift  into what
gears. But most people will not be doing to riding I do (30 miles or
so into the italian countyside, sometimes flat, sometimes windy), so a
single speed with an appropriate gearing will be fine. If they get to
the point where they need and understand the gears, I think they will
realize it is time to upgrade to a real bike.

On Thu, May 29, 2008 at 7:52 PM, Michael Wolfe <gzuphoesdown at gmail.com> wrote:
> the only "crime" i see here is converting a bike into a single speed.  While
> such a ridiculous notion might be fine for bike messengers of days past
> who did see the benefit of it being cheap and stupid such that no one would
> ever consider stealing one, it's out of place for ordinary civilians.  Isn't
> the point to get bikes to ordinary people?  Most people, as children learned
> to ride bikes with gears which begs that even a child can see the benefit.
> Even as this discussion was going on yesterday a neighbor pulled up to his
> home with a 30 pack on the top tube of his Magna and then proceeded to
> shuttle a child off to another destination in the same manner.  The notion
> of a one gear bike to suffice for his daily activities would seem ludicrous
> to him for sure.   The bikes they have stay outside all night and never seem
> to disappear which seems to support the theory suggested yesterday.  hmmmf.
>
>
>
> On 5/29/08, kyle mckinley <bicirider at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> the biggest problems with the walmart bikes seem to be related to (a)
>> shifting and (b) weight. both of these are mitigated by turning the bike
>> into a single speed. The safest way to do this on the cheap is to take apart
>> the freewheel and only leave one gear (so that it won't shift up and break
>> the axel) and use just the middle chainring in front.
>> The shocks on magnas and the like usually don't have much travel, so it
>> seems to work pretty well to pull it off and replace it with an old rigid
>> fork from the boneyard (as opposed to "real" modern mountain bikes that
>> require a problemsolver rigid fork to not result in a dangerously steep
>> headtube angle).
>> I agree that it is a good idea to rehad these bikes. The problem for a lot
>> of orgs is that there isn't the room to store both the walmart bikes and the
>> older, nicer, communters and mountain bikes. And those old bikes are better
>> for the rider, and less of a nightmare to fix up.
>> Moreover, regarding this whole thread; I can appreciate the general sense
>> that it is important to help everyone feel good about zer bike--even if it
>> is from walmart--but I would still contend that by purposefully
>> manufacturing bikes that break immediately, and are super difficult to fix
>> when they break, these companies are perpetuating a crime against the
>> bicycle... a crime so vast that the only point of comparison is the
>> dasterdly deed of "carbon fiber".
>> Surely there is a way that we can learn to articulate a rejection of the
>> continued manufacture of these bikes (most of which, despite our best
>> efforts, head quickly to the landfill) without blaming our patrons for
>> buying them. How exactly we do that depends on the individual
>> interaction--and how busted the roadmaster actually is.
>> thanks-
>> kyle
>> On Wed, May 28, 2008 at 1:38 PM, james blesdoe <jamesbleds0e at yahoo.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> At the Bicycle Kitchen we have started making the Wall Mart bikes work
>>> and placing them on the street.  We use we  them for training our
>>> volunteers  and even though they are only fact similes of a real  bicycle i
>>> use a Murry for polo.
>>>
>>> One poor fellow, who's bike feel off the bus bike rack and front wheel
>>> mangled dragged his single speed coaster brake pin striped be-fendered Huffy
>>> to  our shop.  He said, "i have had (when offered a modern bike) those and
>>> they get stolen. I ride this everywhere. I have never had problems with it.
>>> i like it  and just want to keep it."  he lost the front fender and we found
>>> a new front wheel. cost him twenty bucks and he is back on the road.
>>>
>>>
>>> Happy rollin
>>>
>>>
>>> Jim
>>>
>>> Michael Wolfe <gzuphoesdown at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> I like where the discussion is going on Low End Walmart bikes. To provide
>>> an interesting prospective, check out this article in Bicycling Magazine. It
>>> highlights a part of the cycling population that we not only fail to
>>> recognize, but often are oblivious to.  It's kind of long but a worthy read.
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.bicycling.com/article/1,6610,s1-3-12-13639-1-P,00.html
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> If an Easyrider rides easy, then a bicirider rides bicis
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