On 8/19/2014 10:16 AM, jbeattie wrote:
For those who ca http://www.bicycleretailer.com/produ...n#.U_NZEfldXSg

The PDX bike is pretty straight-forward. We lost to Seattle (sniff, sniff): http://www.opb.org/news/blog/newsblo...n-competition/

http://oregonmanifest.com/and-the-winner-isdenny/

The Seattle bike clearly gets the nod for bells and whistles. I could have used the electric assist last night for the commute/drag race home over the hills.

-- Jay Beattie.


Those contests seem pretty challenging. At this point in history,
significantly improving the bicycle is a lot like trying to
significantly improve the pocketknife.

Leatherman and Wenger improved the pocketknife by attaching lots of
built-in stuff you'd otherwise carry separately if you chose to -
pliers, scissors, toothpick, screwdriver etc.

These guys seem to be doing the same, attaching built-in locks, racks,
lights, fenders (or water scrapers? What's with that??). Or at least
providing easy attachments for their proprietary accessories. Not a bad
idea if the built-in stuff works well, I guess; but a bit risky for the
consumer, who has to hope proprietary stuff will remain available.

I'm a bit skeptical of the trendy electronics, though. My bikes last
for decades. My electronic stuff is outmoded in two years. What
happens when Micros**t no longer supplies updates for my bike? Will
hackers force me to ride to Chinatown, whether I want to or not?

--
- Frank Krygowski