Those bicycle builders big mistake!

wrote in message
...
In rec.bicycles.misc psycholist wrote:

: The nonsensical things in this story began far before that remark. "In
the
: history of mankind, I cannot think of a single case of a bicycle doing
: anyone harm ... " Of course you can't. It's an object. So is an
airplane.
: On their own, neither the bicycle, nor the airplane are capable of doing
: anyone harm. The problem is with mankind, not with the machine. But
it's
: typical that someone would project the sinister deeds of man IN a plane
onto
: the plane.

Yup, it's obviously just liberal nonsense. Easily countered with a
rational NRA-style argument.

FWIW the bicycle is also used by the military.

--
Risto Varanka | http://www.helsinki.fi/~rvaranka/


Funny you mention it. I had another paragraph in that post where I likened
blaming planes for bombings to people suing gun manufacturers, etc. I
deleted it 'cuz I didn't want my post to sound like an NRA-style argument.

And yes, you're right. Bicycles were used in the military. There's a
display about it at Fort Benning, GA. I believe the Chinese and the
Vietnamese have also made significant military use of the bicycle.

Bob C.

"Jym Dyer" wrote in message
...
With the exception of musical instruments, the bicycle may
be the most human machine ever invented. The airplane is one
of the most inhuman. The scale of the disasters the airplane
made possible shows we would be better off without it.

=v= I can vouch for this. There was a bicycle show at the
World Trade Center in Spring, 2001. People rode bikes around,
some clumsily. I personally collided with the building, and
it didn't fall down.
_Jym_

This post is sick and twisted. Your computer is an evil, infernal
contraption for facilitating such a post! Clearly, the adding machine is a
better machine because it wouldn't have allowed you to express such a
thought.

Bob C.

"Carl Fogel" wrote


Here's a fixed-gear rider showing
how to ride no-hands by trying to
get his center of gravity ahead of
his front tire's contact patch:

http://www.oldskooltrack.com/files/skids.frame.html


If you look really closely, you can see how much the front wheel is loaded
by the difference in contact patch size.

Pete

On Wed, 17 Dec 2003 02:47:44 +0000 Garrison Hilliard
wrote:

Last modified Saturday, December 13, 2003 8:18 PM PST

Wilbur and Orville Wright's great mistake

By: ROBERT KAHN - Staff Writer

One hundred years ago, on Dec. 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright made a big
mistake. They got out of the bicycle business and into airplanes.

I appreciate the sentiment, but there are some rather huge mistakes of
fact here. Others may have pointed out differences of opinion, too.

I will spare you a detailed recitation of what came next:
the high-wheeler, the safety bicycle, the addition of the chain or drive shaft,
pneumatic tires and derailleurs. But all these improvements came at a human pace
---- years apart, and for no other purpose than to make the bicycle more fun to
ride.

This ignores the fact that the bicycle is a major source of pragmatic
transportation for people and goods for a majority of the people of
the world. It is only in the 1st world countries where the bicycle is
seen as only a recreational product.

The most interesting scientific fact about the bicycle is that when you get up a
head of steam its center of gravity is actually in front of the place where the
front tire meets the road. The greater the angle of the front fork, the farther
forward the center of gravity is. That's why you can ride a bike with no hands
---- because it keeps falling forward toward its center of gravity. As you slow
down, the center of gravity comes back, and when it's behind the place where the
front tire meets the road, you fall over. Or put a foot down.

Pure BS. I can't imagine where anyone would come up with such a
rediculous statement and then think to refer to it as "scientific
fact."

-
-----------------------------------------------
Jim Adney
Madison, WI 53711 USA
-----------------------------------------------

psycholist wrote:

: And yes, you're right. Bicycles were used in the military. There's a
: display about it at Fort Benning, GA. I believe the Chinese and the
: Vietnamese have also made significant military use of the bicycle.

I recall there recently was a link to some full-suspension easily
packable MTB designed to be used by US Rangers. The bikes that .fi
military uses are quite different from that...

--
Risto Varanka | http://www.helsinki.fi/~rvaranka/

In article ,
"Pete" writes:

What an utter and complete crock!

Along with a few other of the writers comments.

At least this Robert Kahn guy talked nice about bikes,
instead of railing about how they should stop blocking
traffic and get off the road.


cheers,
Tom

--
-- Powered by FreeBSD
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

wrote in message
...
psycholist wrote:

: And yes, you're right. Bicycles were used in the military. There's a
: display about it at Fort Benning, GA. I believe the Chinese and the
: Vietnamese have also made significant military use of the bicycle.

I recall there recently was a link to some full-suspension easily
packable MTB designed to be used by US Rangers.

I believe that's by a company that *would like* the US military to use their
bikes. Evidently, no interest yet.

Pete

Wed, 17 Dec 2003 22:31:31 -0600,
, Jim Adney
wrote:

It is only in the 1st world countries where the bicycle is
seen as only a recreational product.

The Wright's stated purpose of flight was for "sport".
They almost got into cars but cycling had already whetted their taste
for freedom. It was mostly the train guys who turned to cars while the
bike guys went into aircraft and motorcycles.
--
zk

"Tom Keats" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Pete" writes:

What an utter and complete crock!

Along with a few other of the writers comments.

At least this Robert Kahn guy talked nice about bikes,
instead of railing about how they should stop blocking
traffic and get off the road.


Talking nice about bikes does not make up for other idiocy.

Pete

"psycholist" wrote in message
...

"Jym Dyer" wrote in message
...
With the exception of musical instruments, the bicycle may
be the most human machine ever invented. The airplane is one
of the most inhuman. The scale of the disasters the airplane
made possible shows we would be better off without it.

=v= I can vouch for this. There was a bicycle show at the
World Trade Center in Spring, 2001. People rode bikes around,
some clumsily. I personally collided with the building, and
it didn't fall down.
_Jym_

This post is sick and twisted. Your computer is an evil, infernal
contraption for facilitating such a post! Clearly, the adding machine is
a
better machine because it wouldn't have allowed you to express such a
thought.


There's just no 'accounting' for some people. ;^D

Mike