| Re: Needed new bike design
On Jan 24, 1:30 am, Werehatrack <raul...@earthWEEDSlink.net> wrote:
> On 23 Jan 2007 09:44:58 -0800, "cmcanulty" <cmcanu...@gmail.com> may
> have said:
>
> >I think the thing needed for practical winter riding where snow and
> >salt are the norm is a fully enclosed drivetrain and brake system. Why
> >has no one come up with this? It would also greatly ease cleaning and
> >maintenance chores for everyone.Huh? I have a bike like that here. It's about 30 years old, and ones
> like it were (and probably still are) as common in parts of Europe as
> pickup trucks are in Texas. Fully enclosed chain, gearhub, drum
> brakes; all of these things have been around since before WWII. The
> reason that you don't see them in the US very often is that most
> Americans are wimps when it comes to going places, particularly in bad
> weather; they drive *everywhere*, even to a store two blocks from
> where they live. Even a lot of otherwise avid cyclists won't ride in
> rain...and even fewer in snow.
The bravery of the American casual cyclist is certainly lacking (My
neighbors were amazed that I rode errands in a drizzle yesterday), but
that's not the reason we don't have full chain case bikes. It had very
much to do with the weight of imported bikes and the law (duty I
believe). A full chaincase put a lot of bikes right over the limit.
That's the reason my rod brake Raleigh Tourist has a hockey stick
chainguard and not a case.
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