bicycles
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- tkmeister0
i've seen a biker picking up a bike while this bike owner is standing only 5ft away from the bike. he just took it on his back and took off. crazy.
- MLP0
i'm late on this thread, but yes you can get a bui... i got pulled over on my bike twice and the guy warned me saying you can get them. i told him i didn't think that was real
- mrdobolina0
what is the benefit of not having brakes when riding in the city.
just to feel like a badass?
I mean if it is a weight issue, what do brakes weigh, 1 pound?
seems kinda foolish.
- grafholic0
yeah i live in sf and even with the sticker removal, some bike freaks would know it's casati.
i figured its best removing the stickers...
i just realized my head light is missing, so most likely i'll be riding around during the day for a while, which means no bar hopping with my bike, etc.
i'll see how paranoid i get then i may end up buying another bike for 300 or so, an ugly bike just to ride around at night.
3 more days til i get to pick up my bike.
i can't wait!!!
- wasps0
its all about the distance and where you live. cruisers and beemers are wicked if you're in cities (i think actually the bmx is the perfect city bike) but shit if you're hilling it. i guess that goes without saying really..
if you want to get into biking about more, beyond a to b, a flat bar road bike with decent quality gear is the way to go, i reckon.and healthwise, it helps loads - i weaned myself off inhalors cycling regularly. (they make asthma loads worse...)
- MLP0
i don't ride brakes because i don't need them. riding a bike like that makes you pay attention two blocks ahead of yourself, so you slow down when you need to. as for emergencies, you just gotta find out how to get out of the way.
i can barely ride a bike that can coast anymore... it freaks me out because i don't have that precise control over my speed and handling...
- mrdobolina0
I fail to see how having brakes relinquishes any control over your bike.
- grafholic0
some of my friends in sf ride track bikes and it scares the shit out of me.
(and they're bike freaks, they KNOW their bike, and they for the most part ride very well, but at the same time, they have all been hit by a car at least 3 times in the last 8 months or so, and i mean that per person).
no matter how good you are, brake-less bike will get you injured eventually...
- mrdobolina0
exactly, I think it is just the badass aspect of not having brakes. track bikes are exactly that, for riding around a track. not cutting in and out of traffic.
all of the bike messengers I see ride track bikes.
- MLP0
using a brake would basically just let me slow down faster. if i had a brake, i'd probably pay less attention to what's going on around me. if i had it, i wouldn't use it, so its on less thing i have to switch out/take off when i go to the velodrome to race
- MLP0
exactly, I think it is just the badass aspect of not having brakes.
mrdobolina
(Sep 23 05, 09:45)maybe for some people, but its a totally different experience and way of riding. its like some dudes are into bmx and some are into downhill mtb's...
- mrdobolina0
I think nine out of ten people do it because they think they are a bad motherfucker and have never ridden their bike on an actual track, though MLP. Ya know what I mean?
- grafholic0
MLP,
i'm not condemning riding track bikes. for some bike enthusiasts, it is their thing - it's in their blood.
my friends who ride fixed gears ride them because they love the feel of it. and despite numeroud injuries, they still go back to their brake-less bike that they love.
my concern here, however, is the image track bike recently is delivering. all the bike messangers ride them, all these bike freaks ride them - and those new to riding bikes think "that's the way to become cool".
it's like following a fashion trend for them, except that they're really not aware of the fact that there's a danger and serious amount of knowledge of biking associated with riding track bikes.
having iPod won't get you break your bone - but track bikes will.
- tny0
riding..
very....
slooowww.......
- MLP0
yeah def, dobs. a lot of kids are hopping on track bikes because it's the latest hot shit. i've been riding fixed for about 2 years. the initial "cool" spark got me interested in it, but as of now, its giving me the individual competition that i lost when i quit swimming USS after my first year of college...
the bianchi pista is the new i-pod... it's even played out with anyone that's into bikes
- algorithm0
just picked this up to replace my stolen bike. I dig it.
- s_90
No matter how good you are, you're going to injure yourself eventually on any kind of bike you ride. It's a law of averages that if you ride constantly, you're going to fall sometime. It's a good point to note that riding fixed in the city makes you much more aware of what's around you & less likely to pull the riskier moves you'd pull if you've got brakes to stop you. I think it'd be impossible to flip over the handlebars on a track bike....since you can't lock the front wheel. Of course, track bike posers should take pause before buying their pista. It's not like it's easy. I mean, it is easy - now.
- MLP0
i blew out my chain about 6 months ago and went over the handlebars... it wrapped up around my bb shell and cranks and i went flying. it is possible on a fixed!
- travisbarto0
I ride brakeless..But I bmx. I think fixed gear bikes are an idiotic investment if your riding around the city. All my friends have them and they have all been hit at least once. I think kids do it because its the "in" thing.
- s_90
I do it because I'm a mechanical retard, and I don't want to worry about fixing/replacing/cleaning/mainta... my derailleurs & brakes.
And it makes me cool, too.