“Necessity is the mother of invention”~Mum
I was reminded by something I saw yesterday, that some things can’t be improved upon, like traditional bicycle design for utility or long-distance cycling. When it comes to these, I happily fall into the “retro-grouch” camp.
Aside from recumbents, and other alternative-design human-powered vehicles (HPVs), we’re still tinkering with the same “safety-bicycle” that made its appearance once the public tired of performing headers over the big “penny” of the penny-farthing bike.
John Kemp Starley’s 1885 refinement set the stage for everything that’s come since.
For me, there’s something comforting about technology that doesn’t need to be reinvented every business cycle (though there are designers who’d be obliged if you’d buy their new electronic-shifting system).
The fast-changing digital world that has grown up around us compels with its latest developments—and I’m as taken with them as any geek, but only insomuch as the medium allows me to create and communicate my work.
In that sense, it’s the same way I approach bicycles. As hard as it may be to believe, I’m not a bike geek. The two-wheeled wonder of the velocipede is its simplicity and, most importantly, its enlivening effect on our senses.
Of course, bikes were the bane of pedestrian and equestrian in 1880, so maybe I’m not so much of a Luddite as I think. Then again, perhaps I’d have been one of those horsemen bemoaning the cyclist invasion.
As return visitors will know, I’ve spent the last week or two wrestling the old website into this new system, fully integrating content into a much more navigation-friendly and unified social-media environment.
In the same way that I’m a reluctant bicycle mechanic, I’m a web designer by default. I’d farm out both jobs if I could afford the luxury. The upside, as any control freak will attest, is you know all the nuts and bolts are tightened properly.
If they’re not, there’s no one else to blame.
Believe me, I’d have rather spent my time creating content than flogging brain cells over PHP code, hooks and .htaccess rewrites. But I think—and I hope you’ll agree—that my adoption of this new technology has been a worthwhile improvement. The reason for embracing the new content management system—simplifying publishing—will be my reward.
Meanwhile, here’s some more details of an old design that more bicycle manufacturers might do well to copy.
A couple of notes:
An unfortunate and unavoidable result of the move is the loss of comments from the old VeloWeb pages (since restored) and all numerical records of Facebook “likes” and social media shares. I may try to import the comments, but don’t be afraid to replace these features 🙂
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It would seem that the bicycle component manufacturers are attempting to go the way of the car industry, with the introduction of built-in obsolescence. Computerised shifting, wheels with special spokes which are only available from the manufacturer, disc brakes and integrated shifters and brake levers. In short bicycle parts that cannot be repaired.
For example, when I started racing in 1984 you had downtube shifters and brake levers, if you crashed and broke a brake lever you could still race–the gears still worked. A common occurrence back then was pedals breaking spokes (we had quill pedals with toe clips and straps back then). When this happened you just replaced the spokes after the race.
A prime example of the modern system is the bike I used for the bike trip in 1994 (when I met Raymond). The Shimano Representative for Ireland told me my bike would not move due the mix of parts in the drive train (Suntour Micro-Drive crankset, Shimano thumbshifters, Maillard 7 speed freewheel, Sedis chain, Shimano front derailleur and Suntour rear derailleur on a Mavic hub and rim). Amazingly the whole thing moved for 10,500 miles and lasted a few more years. My logic was that if anything broke I could fix it at the side of the road, which I had to do once or twice.
I may be considered a bit of a Luddite for my attitude to the way I put my bikes together, but they have never let me down to point where I could not get a temporary repair that would take me home without any troubles (cables ties holding a broken freewheel to the spokes). The most important thing about a touring bike is that it should be easily repairable in the field with the minimum of fuss and tools.
I remember your eclectic drivetrain (also doubting its efficacy at first) but remember how smoothly it functioned as we blasted across the Yellowhead.
Indeed, with few exceptions, we are losing what was once the economical and utilitarian essence of the bicycle to the obsolescence planners.
Where we once had robust components that, if maintained, would last for decades and could be rebuilt, we now have throwaway plastic toys.
It is heartening, however, to see some small companies–like Grand Bois and Velo Orange–springing up to fill the void left by the big manufacturers. May they prosper.
One good piece of technology is the electric bike. My wife work with a guy who was an amputee and used the electric bike for transport, it gave him independence, so who can argue with that bit of technology. Anything that gets people out on bikes, who normally would be unable to, is a good thing.
Agreed. When I worked in the bike biz, I set up more than a few people on BionX-assisted bikes, which I believe to be the best of the systems. It’s adaptable and reliable.
It works very well with trikes–like Catrike HPVs–for people with a variety of physical challenges.
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