Ikea launcing flat pack pike with belt drive and auto gears: this isthe revolution cyclists have waited for

On Friday, April 22, 2016 at 5:55:06 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 22, 2016 at 6:02:57 PM UTC+1, jbeattie wrote:
On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 3:06:13 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:34:00 PM UTC+1, Andre Jute wrote:
Flatpack furniture innovators Ikea are launching a bicycle: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

It's the one which, when you've assembled it, you have several components left over, but it still works.

Jokes aside: Belt drive, automatic "Bioshift" gears are notable. This clearly isn't just a BSO (bike shaped object) as sold by supermarkets: the belt drive is guaranteed for 15,000km which is near enought 10K miles.

This is the democratization of the bicycle cylists have been waiting for. Strangely, it seems much more like the bicycle I've spent years promoting (except Ikea's is a fraction of the price of mine, but that's the point) than anything either the roadies or the vehicular cyclists (I can hardly say it without choking up with laughter) have envisaged.

Andre Jute
We have seen the future and it isn't you

The strapline below my sig appears to require some explanation.

Clearly, the Ikea bike fits the European model of mass bicycle transit at 15kph by disciplined, well-mannered Europeans better than the American ideal of 25mph on a roadbike weaving in and out of automobile traffic.

Since when did you become the arbiter of the American ideal?

Why should anyone want to arbitrate for people so self-lacerating, so tendentious, so argumentative that they need one out of every 400 citizens to be an attorney? Compare to one out of 10,000 in Japan.

Hey, we kicked your ass! O.K., we kicked the asses of the people who kicked your ass. We kicked Japanese ass, too. We kick ass. Love us.


And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big place.

Why not start in Portland, where you already are? And where you've often told us the slow-coaches on their mountain bikes on your commuter routes irritate the hell out of you?

Yes, but that's just me and not typical of the cycling population of the United States of America -- and I do know all the cyclist in the United States. We are quite close. My Christmas card list is burdensome to say the least.

-- Jay Beattie.

And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big
place.

http://www.mappery.com/maps/A-View-o...Avenue-Map.jpg

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 6:26:51 PM UTC+1, Bertrand wrote:
And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big
place.

http://www.mappery.com/maps/A-View-o...Avenue-Map.jpg

Heh-heh. I never ceased to be surprised at how indigenous Americans who had never been further from Park Ave than Wall St would sit in Madison Ave offices and pontificate authoritatively on "America". I knew how they arrived the I sat next to them in class while the best teachers that money could buy told us we were the normative case. The difference is that they believed our teachers while I thought they were full of myopic ****. Instead I went to look at America, spending six months on the Greyhaound buses, talking to people. I discovered that, whatever E Pluribus Unum may have been intended to achieve, the effect doesn't work by homogenizing, levelling down. I love American elections because I never stop rolling on the carpet laughing at the confident, always wrong, predictions of the Establishment. That cover perfectly illustrates the Establishment view of America. Thanks for the giggle, Bertrand.

Andre Jute
Any intellectual who isn't a permanent outsider has sold out

On Friday, April 22, 2016 at 8:55:06 PM UTC-4, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 22, 2016 at 6:02:57 PM UTC+1, jbeattie wrote:
On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 3:06:13 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:34:00 PM UTC+1, Andre Jute wrote:
Flatpack furniture innovators Ikea are launching a bicycle: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

It's the one which, when you've assembled it, you have several components left over, but it still works.

Jokes aside: Belt drive, automatic "Bioshift" gears are notable. This clearly isn't just a BSO (bike shaped object) as sold by supermarkets: the belt drive is guaranteed for 15,000km which is near enought 10K miles.

This is the democratization of the bicycle cylists have been waiting for. Strangely, it seems much more like the bicycle I've spent years promoting (except Ikea's is a fraction of the price of mine, but that's the point) than anything either the roadies or the vehicular cyclists (I can hardly say it without choking up with laughter) have envisaged.

Andre Jute
We have seen the future and it isn't you

The strapline below my sig appears to require some explanation.

Clearly, the Ikea bike fits the European model of mass bicycle transit at 15kph by disciplined, well-mannered Europeans better than the American ideal of 25mph on a roadbike weaving in and out of automobile traffic.

Since when did you become the arbiter of the American ideal?

Why should anyone want to arbitrate for people so self-lacerating, so tendentious, so argumentative that they need one out of every 400 citizens to be an attorney? Compare to one out of 10,000 in Japan.

And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big place.

Why not start in Portland, where you already are? And where you've often told us the slow-coaches on their mountain bikes on your commuter routes irritate the hell out of you?

My serious point is that before you ask the rest of the world, a good part of which has made bicycles work as mass transport, to compromise with Americans, Americans must learn to compromise with each other.

Normal service resumes.

It is often the case that something other than a Gazelle is the right choice for a "commuter."

Yes, that was one of my points. That the Ikea bike isn't quite universal, that it may require attitudinal change among the recalcitrant roadies, not to mention a spot of road levelling, before it will be "universal".

My commute home yesterday had more than a thousand feet of climbing in just the first few miles from my office. http://tinyurl.com/z9odhwc The white building behind the Bonsai is my office.

A bit of lateral thinking seems to be required. On your way to work ride along the ridge in the photo. Then sllng a gangplank across the void to the top of the building and ride onto the roof of your office. Take the elevator to your office. Leave the gangplank up. At knocking-off time, take the elevator upwards, ride onto the ridge over the gangplank, cruise home the easy way.

It keeps going up. Not Gazelle territory.

Not if you put your mind in gear, as I've just demonstrated. I dunno what your problem with Gazelle is. They're just Dutch Raleighs, though much better made than their British cousins. I have one, and it turned into a relatively good bike after I fixed the carelessly built wheels, about what you can expect for that kind of money in Europe. A good-looking bike though:
http://coolmainpress.com/BICYCLINGgazelletoulouse.html
Gazelle also makes good road bikes, though Lou will know more about that than I do.

-- Jay Beattie.

Andre Jute
A little, a very little thought will suffice -- John Maynard Keynes

this is you

http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar-n...ines-penalties

fewdahl

when's the next war Andre ?

re map

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Yankees

the US was once a grain elevator and the NYC Metro East Coast area.

Grant to Edison to RCA/Bell Labs to Wall Street n Hartford.

On 4/22/2016 10:02 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 3:06:13 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:34:00 PM UTC+1, Andre Jute wrote:
Flatpack furniture innovators Ikea are launching a bicycle: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

It's the one which, when you've assembled it, you have several components left over, but it still works.

Jokes aside: Belt drive, automatic "Bioshift" gears are notable. This clearly isn't just a BSO (bike shaped object) as sold by supermarkets: the belt drive is guaranteed for 15,000km which is near enought 10K miles.

This is the democratization of the bicycle cylists have been waiting for. Strangely, it seems much more like the bicycle I've spent years promoting (except Ikea's is a fraction of the price of mine, but that's the point) than anything either the roadies or the vehicular cyclists (I can hardly say it without choking up with laughter) have envisaged.

Andre Jute
We have seen the future and it isn't you

The strapline below my sig appears to require some explanation.

Clearly, the Ikea bike fits the European model of mass bicycle transit at 15kph by disciplined, well-mannered Europeans better than the American ideal of 25mph on a roadbike weaving in and out of automobile traffic.

Since when did you become the arbiter of the American ideal? And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big place. It is often the case that something other than a Gazelle is the right choice for a "commuter." My commute home yesterday had more than a thousand feet of climbing in just the first few miles from my office. http://tinyurl.com/z9odhwc The white building behind the Bonsai is my office. It keeps going up. Not Gazelle territory.

Two towns where I spend a lot of time are chock full of slow
transportational bikes like the one Ikea is planning. Google and Apple
have huge fleets of such bikes which are routinely abandoned at stores
and restaurants. The elderly immigrants from China, that are living with
their kids, ride such bikes around my city but they're bikes that
they've cobbled together.

Republic Bikes makes the Google fleet bicycles. Public Bikes makes the
Apple fleet bicycles.

The fact that such a bicycle, in the U.S., has become something that you
can't just buy from a major manufacturer and that you have to order from
a niche manufacturer at a relatively high price, is too bad.

"Yeah, but all you gotta do is buy a women's hybrid, or a Mixte, add a
rear rack, add a front basket, add a chain guard, add a kickstand, add a
bell, add lights, and you're done." That's great for those that want a
project instead of a product. And of course you're paying retail, with
Keystone margins, for every piece you add.

I think the Ikea bike will have some success among those that want a
practical city bike, to ride in flat areas, and that want something
better than what is sold at Target or Walmart. And that don't know about
Breezer bikes.

Breezer keeps being mentioned. For those who don't know, they're an American manufacturer who makes a commuter bike similar to the Dutch style and sell it for (last time I looked) under a thousand dollars, near enough the same price for which you can import a middle-ranking Gazelle. There was a fellow from Chicago here on RBT a few years ago who carefully considered all the commuting options and then bought a Breezer. He was pretty satisfied with it. But the Breezer isn't quite the same as the Ikea bike in either conception, style or utility. .

You can compare them starting at these links:

IKEA: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

BREEZER: http://breezerbikes.com/home

Andre Jute
The facts are always a good place to start

On Sunday, April 24, 2016 at 4:36:38 PM UTC+1, sms wrote:
On 4/22/2016 10:02 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 3:06:13 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:34:00 PM UTC+1, Andre Jute wrote:
Flatpack furniture innovators Ikea are launching a bicycle: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

It's the one which, when you've assembled it, you have several components left over, but it still works.

Jokes aside: Belt drive, automatic "Bioshift" gears are notable. This clearly isn't just a BSO (bike shaped object) as sold by supermarkets: the belt drive is guaranteed for 15,000km which is near enought 10K miles.

This is the democratization of the bicycle cylists have been waiting for. Strangely, it seems much more like the bicycle I've spent years promoting (except Ikea's is a fraction of the price of mine, but that's the point) than anything either the roadies or the vehicular cyclists (I can hardly say it without choking up with laughter) have envisaged.

Andre Jute
We have seen the future and it isn't you

The strapline below my sig appears to require some explanation.

Clearly, the Ikea bike fits the European model of mass bicycle transit at 15kph by disciplined, well-mannered Europeans better than the American ideal of 25mph on a roadbike weaving in and out of automobile traffic.

Since when did you become the arbiter of the American ideal? And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big place. It is often the case that something other than a Gazelle is the right choice for a "commuter." My commute home yesterday had more than a thousand feet of climbing in just the first few miles from my office. http://tinyurl.com/z9odhwc The white building behind the Bonsai is my office. It keeps going up. Not Gazelle territory.

Two towns where I spend a lot of time are chock full of slow
transportational bikes like the one Ikea is planning. Google and Apple
have huge fleets of such bikes which are routinely abandoned at stores
and restaurants. The elderly immigrants from China, that are living with
their kids, ride such bikes around my city but they're bikes that
they've cobbled together.

Republic Bikes makes the Google fleet bicycles. Public Bikes makes the
Apple fleet bicycles.

The fact that such a bicycle, in the U.S., has become something that you
can't just buy from a major manufacturer and that you have to order from
a niche manufacturer at a relatively high price, is too bad.

"Yeah, but all you gotta do is buy a women's hybrid, or a Mixte, add a
rear rack, add a front basket, add a chain guard, add a kickstand, add a
bell, add lights, and you're done." That's great for those that want a
project instead of a product. And of course you're paying retail, with
Keystone margins, for every piece you add.

I think the Ikea bike will have some success among those that want a
practical city bike, to ride in flat areas, and that want something
better than what is sold at Target or Walmart. And that don't know about
Breezer bikes.

On Sun, 24 Apr 2016 08:36:33 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 4/22/2016 10:02 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 3:06:13 PM UTC-7, Andre Jute wrote:
On Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:34:00 PM UTC+1, Andre Jute wrote:
Flatpack furniture innovators Ikea are launching a bicycle: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/recre...its-flat-pack/

It's the one which, when you've assembled it, you have several components left over, but it still works.

Jokes aside: Belt drive, automatic "Bioshift" gears are notable. This clearly isn't just a BSO (bike shaped object) as sold by supermarkets: the belt drive is guaranteed for 15,000km which is near enought 10K miles.

This is the democratization of the bicycle cylists have been waiting for. Strangely, it seems much more like the bicycle I've spent years promoting (except Ikea's is a fraction of the price of mine, but that's the point) than anything either the roadies or the vehicular cyclists (I can hardly say it without choking up with laughter) have envisaged.

Andre Jute
We have seen the future and it isn't you

The strapline below my sig appears to require some explanation.

Clearly, the Ikea bike fits the European model of mass bicycle transit at 15kph by disciplined, well-mannered Europeans better than the American ideal of 25mph on a roadbike weaving in and out of automobile traffic.

Since when did you become the arbiter of the American ideal? And, by the way, where is America -- Omaha? Portland? America is a big place. It is often the case that something other than a Gazelle is the right choice for a "commuter." My commute home yesterday had more than a thousand feet of climbing in just the first few miles from my office. http://tinyurl.com/z9odhwc The white building behind the Bonsai is my office. It keeps going up. Not Gazelle territory.

Two towns where I spend a lot of time are chock full of slow
transportational bikes like the one Ikea is planning. Google and Apple
have huge fleets of such bikes which are routinely abandoned at stores
and restaurants. The elderly immigrants from China, that are living with
their kids, ride such bikes around my city but they're bikes that
they've cobbled together.

Republic Bikes makes the Google fleet bicycles. Public Bikes makes the
Apple fleet bicycles.

The fact that such a bicycle, in the U.S., has become something that you
can't just buy from a major manufacturer and that you have to order from
a niche manufacturer at a relatively high price, is too bad.

"Yeah, but all you gotta do is buy a women's hybrid, or a Mixte, add a
rear rack, add a front basket, add a chain guard, add a kickstand, add a
bell, add lights, and you're done." That's great for those that want a
project instead of a product. And of course you're paying retail, with
Keystone margins, for every piece you add.

I think the Ikea bike will have some success among those that want a
practical city bike, to ride in flat areas, and that want something
better than what is sold at Target or Walmart. And that don't know about
Breezer bikes.

Apparently you are in some sort of "backward" or "primitive" country.
Over here we have a multitude of outlets selling, for very cheap
prices, uni-sex bicycles (suitable for all members of the family)
complete with rear carrier and front basket. I even saw a folder with
a permanently mounted (welded on) child's saddle and faux handlebars
so the little tike could be safely transported.
--

Cheers,

John B.