For a rider like Idle, I would dare to say that the best chain is the one you don’t see at all. Black, oily, functional, whatever – enclosed in a good chainguard, hidden from sight (and fancy trousers and whatever) for all the time the rider doesn’t really care about it, which, for certatin riders, is all the time it works.
Similar with cars – I know many drivers who are perfectly fine with the modern cars, where you open the hood and almost can’t see the
engine – and first of all can-t do much of anything, because everything is enclosed, covered etc. – just all right, as for most drivers, a modern engine is too complex to fiddle with anyway. At the same time, I know many drivers who despise this fact about modern engines…
I wonder if Yehuda might be best to get her one of thise Dutch bikes where everything is protected from the weather etc – the ones that run for years without maintenance as the components are so reliable?
No, Idle sounds like one of those people who are riding a fixie now because someone has decided that it’s trendy and hip….note the reference to a colored chain? If the next trend was to dress like Charlie Chaplin, she’d be one of the first people out there with a baggy suit, a cane, and a mustache.
I stand corrected. If Rick likes your comment, that must have been what he meant. (grin)
In my defense, I don’t let my chains get rusty, so I know not of this “iron oxide of neglect” of which you speak.
I was at a friend’s house last week and one of his neighbor’s kids had left a bike lying in in his yard. (Apparently this kid does this on a regular basis.) The chain was dry as a desert and a uniform bright orange with rust. I was surprised that it was rideable–the chain looked so stiff that I couldn’t see how it could stay on the sprockets–but when I pointed it out to my friend, he shrugged and said, “It still works.”
A disability advocate at my highschool once gave me the best advice I ever took. Don’t help anyone without getting their permission first. Nevermind why, just ask if they want help and accept the answer graciously. Idle would have said “no thank you” to having her bike messed with.
Ah, so it begins. Being supportive is giving someone something they need. Giving a present is giving someone something they want. At least if you want the recipient to think it’s a present.
Gates Belt Drive!
I’m struggling with the stable. We each have 4 bikes (I just added a 5th) and we ride all of them occasionally. Hoewever we have an old one-car garage and there is only room to hang 4 bikes so the rest are taking up floor space. How do we consolidate at least some of the joys of the Road bike, MTB, Cross bike, and the simplicity of the SS?
The sub-15# road bikes are an absolute joy to take on long fast outings.
The MtBs are the only way to play in the dirt.
We use the Cross bikes as touring and trailer=-pulling errand bikes.
The SS are the choice for trips to the library, quick store trips, and riding out to dinner.
It seems that one of the new belt-drive 8-11 speed internal hubbed bikes might be able to merge the Cross and SS bennies, but at what price!!! Not to mention that nothing I’ve found approaches the sub-25# weight of our Cross bikes, even with racks and trailer hitches. Maybe someday, until then I guess we’ll keep adding to the stable.
Should have taken a cue from Thistle’s husband and got her a shiny new bell instead.
For a rider like Idle, I would dare to say that the best chain is the one you don’t see at all. Black, oily, functional, whatever – enclosed in a good chainguard, hidden from sight (and fancy trousers and whatever) for all the time the rider doesn’t really care about it, which, for certatin riders, is all the time it works.
Similar with cars – I know many drivers who are perfectly fine with the modern cars, where you open the hood and almost can’t see the
engine – and first of all can-t do much of anything, because everything is enclosed, covered etc. – just all right, as for most drivers, a modern engine is too complex to fiddle with anyway. At the same time, I know many drivers who despise this fact about modern engines…
I wonder if Yehuda might be best to get her one of thise Dutch bikes where everything is protected from the weather etc – the ones that run for years without maintenance as the components are so reliable?
No, Idle sounds like one of those people who are riding a fixie now because someone has decided that it’s trendy and hip….note the reference to a colored chain? If the next trend was to dress like Charlie Chaplin, she’d be one of the first people out there with a baggy suit, a cane, and a mustache.
I think the pretty orange colour is not the brightness of trendiness but the iron oxide of neglect….
I stand corrected. If Rick likes your comment, that must have been what he meant. (grin)
In my defense, I don’t let my chains get rusty, so I know not of this “iron oxide of neglect” of which you speak.
I was at a friend’s house last week and one of his neighbor’s kids had left a bike lying in in his yard. (Apparently this kid does this on a regular basis.) The chain was dry as a desert and a uniform bright orange with rust. I was surprised that it was rideable–the chain looked so stiff that I couldn’t see how it could stay on the sprockets–but when I pointed it out to my friend, he shrugged and said, “It still works.”
@ Bill: Have a (blinding) look at one: http://malenki.ch/Bilder/Fahrrad/dscf_F30-2_008238_rostiger_Antrieb_small.jpg
(see also the previous two images in that folder)
OMG… WHERE IS KEVIN LOVE???
I think he has lost Internet, I haven’t seen a comment from him at the Star (Toronto) in about a year now.
There are two ways of arguing with women.
…
Neither one works.
Men always get the last two words in any argument…
“Yes Dear”
my wife is of the opinion that “yes dear” means the same thing as “@#$k you” hence not a phrase that I use….ever
A disability advocate at my highschool once gave me the best advice I ever took. Don’t help anyone without getting their permission first. Nevermind why, just ask if they want help and accept the answer graciously. Idle would have said “no thank you” to having her bike messed with.
Ah, so it begins. Being supportive is giving someone something they need. Giving a present is giving someone something they want. At least if you want the recipient to think it’s a present.
Gates Belt Drive!
I’m struggling with the stable. We each have 4 bikes (I just added a 5th) and we ride all of them occasionally. Hoewever we have an old one-car garage and there is only room to hang 4 bikes so the rest are taking up floor space. How do we consolidate at least some of the joys of the Road bike, MTB, Cross bike, and the simplicity of the SS?
The sub-15# road bikes are an absolute joy to take on long fast outings.
The MtBs are the only way to play in the dirt.
We use the Cross bikes as touring and trailer=-pulling errand bikes.
The SS are the choice for trips to the library, quick store trips, and riding out to dinner.
It seems that one of the new belt-drive 8-11 speed internal hubbed bikes might be able to merge the Cross and SS bennies, but at what price!!! Not to mention that nothing I’ve found approaches the sub-25# weight of our Cross bikes, even with racks and trailer hitches. Maybe someday, until then I guess we’ll keep adding to the stable.
Oh, I’ve been down this road before…