I always wanted a purple Raleigh Chopper, never got one thoughRaleigh Chopper. Couldn't afford one when a kid so me and my mates use to try and hack our own versions together using long bits of wood and metal piping to make the seat, put smaller wheels on the front, etc. Now I ride around on a carbon bike with super slick gears but still hanker after a Chopper!
No sniggering at the back please!
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I've no interest in carbon or in fast road bikes (or fast anything really), I don't much like the look of most modern bikes.
I'm very much with you good people when it comes to some of today's supersonic offerings....a lot of which are nothing more than an engineers flight of fancy, or winners of in-house design competitions for the most non bike looking bike.....that said I can see where they do play a role, especially in track bikes with all the aerodynamic stuff......but I guess being old school I like the look, feel and grace that comes with an old school bike.Pretty much the same as me. I'm not remotely impressed by at least 90% of the offerings in todays market. The bikes are either ugly, impractical (i.e. no mudguard clearance etc) or they incorporate stupid engineering practices, which are a retrograde step not an improvement.
The two bikes I really wished I could have had as a youngster, would be a Dawes Galaxy and a Raleigh Clubman 12, both really smart classic looking bikes with Reynolds 531 frames. My long-since-closed LBS at the time was a Raleigh dealer, and they had a Clubman prominently displayed in the shop. Lovely machine, but it must have been about 3 times the price I paid for my all-steel 5 speed Raleigh Arena, which was actually a very good tough bike, albeit rather heavy.
So how is your Penny Farthing doing these days?I'm very much with you good people when it comes to some of today's supersonic offerings....a lot of which are nothing more than an engineers flight of fancy, or winners of in-house design competitions for the most non bike looking bike.....that said I can see where they do play a role, especially in track bikes with all the aerodynamic stuff......but I guess being old school I like the look, feel and grace that comes with an old school bike.
I've no real desire to ride carbon....and I've not the money to ride carbon......I'll stick with steel thanks all the same.....!
I've no real desire to ride carbon....and I've not the money to ride carbon......I'll stick with steel thanks all the same.....!
You’re probably right about the 100 times the enjoyment argument, buts the amount of increased enjoyment is impossible to measure and varies considerably between people. Actually, why do you even spend £50, when there are cheaper or even free bikes out there to be had?I could go out and buy a fancy carbon fibre bike today if I wanted, but I just don't see the attraction. The higher up the scale you go, the smaller the bang for your buck gets. No-one is ever going to convince me that a £5k carbon is going to give me 100 times more fun, fitness and useful service than a secondhand steel bike that I've spent a total of £50 on. In fact, I believe that in terms of exercise value, riding a 30+ lb hybrid or MTB is going to make me fitter and achieve more weight loss than a featherweight carbon road bike. The eye-watering aesthetics alone are enough to put me off carbon, not to mention the un-repairability of a crashed frame and the paranoia that would result from the very real risk of theft, especially in a dodgy area. Why spend thousands on a bike you hate the look of, would be a frame write-off if you crashed it, and are frightened to take anywhere in case it gets stolen? Is there any point in having a 16-17 lb bike and needing to ride around with 4 lb or more of ballast on board in the form of serious D-locks to keep hold of it? It sort of defeats the object of going for ultra expensive ultra light machines as your actual running weight is not going to be much less than a far cheaper and somewhat heavier bike that needs less drastic security!
I could go out and buy a fancy carbon fibre bike today if I wanted, but I just don't see the attraction. The higher up the scale you go, the smaller the bang for your buck gets. No-one is ever going to convince me that a £5k carbon is going to give me 100 times more fun, fitness and useful service than a secondhand steel bike that I've spent a total of £50 on. In fact, I believe that in terms of exercise value, riding a 30+ lb hybrid or MTB is going to make me fitter and achieve more weight loss than a featherweight carbon road bike. The eye-watering aesthetics alone are enough to put me off carbon, not to mention the un-repairability of a crashed frame and the paranoia that would result from the very real risk of theft, especially in a dodgy area. Why spend thousands on a bike you hate the look of, would be a frame write-off if you crashed it, and are frightened to take anywhere in case it gets stolen? Is there any point in having a 16-17 lb bike and needing to ride around with 4 lb or more of ballast on board in the form of serious D-locks to keep hold of it? It sort of defeats the object of going for ultra expensive ultra light machines as your actual running weight is not going to be much less than a far cheaper and somewhat heavier bike that needs less drastic security!