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A long weekend in the Land of Bikes (long, includes some recumbentcontent)
Spent a long weekend in the Land Of Bikes, mainly being shown to Roos's
pals and family for inspection but we managed to squeeze some general bikeage in too, and that's what this post will concern itself with. Never been to the NL before, except changing planes at Schipol, which doesn't really count... Arriving at the station from Schipol we popped around the corner to the bike hire place. I knew I was in the "City of Bikes" but the scale of the operation here showed I just wasn't prepared for how much a basic part of life they are. There were a few of the new Giant semi-recumbent EZ-Bs about, but almost all of the stock were classic Dutch roadsters. Looking at the blurb sheets, "Manual gears and brakes" were 50% extra, so we got single speeds with coaster brakes. I'd never used a back-pedal brake before, so that was a learning experience... The bikes also had dynamos as standard, full guards, chaincases and racks from the Dreadnought school of design, a built in lock on the back wheel and a lock chain you could tow an oil tanker with. And they also had a big hire bike sign on the front, announcing to everyone "I AM A TOUROID!". Roos rather resented hers, but I rather liked it. My main problem with the cycling (aside from getting the hang of the brake) was rights of way. I had far more than I thought, but even where I know I didn't have RoW people stopped and waved me on. Quite possibly helped by that Mac Bikes disc... But, getting about I was soon struck by a few observations. First, the number of bicycles is *incredible*. Every street I ever used had dozens and dozens parked along it, and the people riding them fitted every description and they're clearly used because they're good utility transport (one of my hosts for dinner on Saturday, an affluent professional, commented "you can drive through Amsterdam if you want, but it would be your fault!"). Almost all were cruisers. There are a few MTBs, but at one point I'd seen more longjohn cargo bikes than MTBs and you'd actually see more MTBs in a day in London, despite orders of magnitude fewer bikes. Practically everyone rides in day to day clothes. I'd seen no helmets at all until Sunday, and all those were on folk in lycra on sports machinery (I think I got up to 12 total count for lids for the 4 days). One of the reasons for the trip was Roos wanted to try out some more recumbents, so by email prior arrangement we went to a Ligfiets specialist. She'd asked to try out the Rainbow Lyner (a 20/26 tourer, AFAIK not available in the UK) and the Nazca Fiero, a semi-low 20/20 also not available here. She decided the Fiero was lower than she was looking for (it did look lower than the pictures) so after a chat with the Darth while I rode it round the square a Challenge Mistral was substituted. Shame, I thought, as on my brief acquaintance the Nazca seemed *very* nice! We set off on a local tour taking in windmills, flat and damp places etc., and both immediately warmed to the Rainbow. Nothing fancy, but did what it said on the tin. The suspension isn't as elaborately executed as on the Streetmachine so pogoed a little more, and it would be good to have a hill to try it up, but a good, straightforward bike that soaked up the miles in comfort. We were both rather underwhelmed with the Challenge. Seat wasn't quite to my liking and with no front suspension the block paved streets that account for quite a few of the ones we were on meant quite bad vibration. I didn't really have an issue with the rear sus, but Roos found that not to her liking either. Hey ho, the brakes were good (Magura hydraulic rim brakes)... On paper it's not a million miles from the Grasshopper (which is only on paper at this point in time, of course) so with that as the #1 paper contender, things were looking like being rethought, quite possibly along Rainbow lines. Back at the Ligfiets shop we talked about the bikes, thanked the Darth and were about to go when Roos asked if I wanted to try anything else while I was there. I replied by asking her if she's actually tried the Nazca? No, it looked a bit too low for what she was interested in. I suggested a quick trip round the square wouldn't hurt, so she did that... .... and coming back to the shop with a grin that said "I want my red lightsabre *NOW!*" it was clear more re-thinking was necessary. It is a lovely piece of kit, very comfortable and with the underseat steering still easy to get on and off and manoeuvre without twitches. So, at the end of the day we were at "more research required", and the conclusion was we'd have to go back to try out more and assess how well the Fiero might tour. And when the Grasshopper appears next month it might well change the ground again, but we won't know until we try. Our experience with the Challenge showed quite well how paper statistics aren't all there is to it when comparing 'bents: you really should give the model you're interested in a try. After that, back on a slightly different Batavus cruiser. I'd got the hang of the coaster brake and it was the easiest bike to ride no-hands I'd ever ridden. Did block paved streets better than a Mistral too, just a shame my cycling sojourn was ended not so much by the puncture fairy as the blowout and shredded back tyre hobgoblin... The hire company should have reclaimed it from Roos's dad by now, I hope! Pete. -- Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ |
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#2
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A long weekend in the Land of Bikes (long, includes some recumbent content)
Peter Clinch writes:
so we got single speeds with coaster brakes. I'd never used a back-pedal brake before, so that was a learning experience... The bikes I did get a bit worried when the 'learning experience' involved fidgeting about while standing on the tram rails.... also had dynamos as standard, full guards, chaincases and racks from the Dreadnought school of design, a built in lock on the back wheel and a These were actually fairly modern compared to what you'd got a couple of years ago! One of the reasons for the trip was Roos wanted to try out some more recumbents, so by email prior arrangement we went to a Ligfiets specialist. She'd asked to try out the Rainbow Lyner (a 20/26 tourer, AFAIK not available in the UK) and the Nazca Fiero, a semi-low 20/20 also not available here. She decided the Fiero was lower than she was looking for (it did look lower than the pictures) so after a chat with the Darth while I rode it round the square a Challenge Mistral was substituted. Shame, I thought, as on my brief acquaintance the Nazca seemed *very* nice! I had actually arranged to get an Optima Dolphin instead of the Lyner, as it has specs very close to the Grasshopper (on paper), but it turned out that it was a model for short poeple and the beam couldn't extend enough. My next choice was the Optima Lynx, same specs but longer wheelbase but he didn't have it in stock, and based on my expected use of the bike he suggested the Lyner. I had chosen the Fiero because it had a very high drool factor from the first time I read about it, but I knew I was unlikely to buy something like that so I convinced myself to be Sensible and try another bike that fitted my intended use. We set off on a local tour taking in windmills, flat and damp places etc., and both immediately warmed to the Rainbow. Nothing fancy, but did what it said on the tin. The suspension isn't as elaborately executed as on the Streetmachine so pogoed a little more, and it would be good to have a hill to try it up, but a good, straightforward bike that soaked up the miles in comfort. It worked better than I had axpected from the pictures. It doesn't look very sexy, with a long straight beam instead of trendy curved, but that also means that the chain is almost straight and runs very smoothly. A bit lower than the Streetmachine, capable of taking a lot of luggage, but still quite fast. suggested a quick trip round the square wouldn't hurt, so she did that... ... and coming back to the shop with a grin that said "I want my red lightsabre *NOW!*" it was clear more re-thinking was necessary. It is a lovely piece of kit, very comfortable and with the underseat steering still easy to get on and off and manoeuvre without twitches. So, at the The Fiero is comparable to the Speedmachine on paper, and I wasn't particularly impressed with that one, but with the Fiero everything just felt right. I am not convinced it is the best bike for the touring and camping I am likely to do. The Lyner, or something like it, would be the Sensible Choice. A nice friendship that becomes a bit more warm and fuzzy over time. Ideal son in law. The Fiero is more the sort of love affair where you have to wait and see what comes out after the initial rush. Not the sort of boy to introduce to your parents :-) end of the day we were at "more research required", and the conclusion was we'd have to go back to try out more and assess how well the Fiero might tour. And when the Grasshopper appears next month it might well change the ground again, but we won't know until we try. Our experience with the Challenge showed quite well how paper statistics aren't all there is to it when comparing 'bents: you really should give the model you're interested in a try. It surprised me how different bikes are that are sort of similar on paper. And seats you can only judge by sitting on them for a couple of hours (though I knew the Mistral wasn't for me after a few minutes around the square). And interesting to speak to another shopowner, this one has very different preferences and priorities than Ben. I just found out that the 'bent shop in Den Haag is around the corner from my brother so the next trip will be planned Soon. Roos (who usually doesn't make Sensible Choices :-) |
#3
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A long weekend in the Land of Bikes (long, includes some recumbent content)
Roos Eisma writes:
end of the day we were at "more research required", and the conclusion was we'd have to go back to try out more and assess how well the Fiero might tour. And when the Grasshopper appears next month it might well change the ground again, but we won't know until we try. Our experience with the Challenge showed quite well how paper statistics aren't all there is to it when comparing 'bents: you really should give the model you're interested in a try. It surprised me how different bikes are that are sort of similar on paper. And seats you can only judge by sitting on them for a couple of hours (though I knew the Mistral wasn't for me after a few minutes around the square). And interesting to speak to another shopowner, this one has very different preferences and priorities than Ben. And something else that you can't see on paper: Both the Nazca and Rainbow bikes were very nicely finished, while the Challenge one wasn't as convincing. And the Shopowner said he had good experiences with Nazca and Rainbow, they're both small companies with good customer service. Roos |
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