July 15, 2013

In VS Out – Urban Riding Trends

In our first In VS Out list we rate urban riding trends and terminology that are gaining momentum on the street.

Written by: Guest

Each day, new riders are experiencing the joy and simplicity of city riding. With this growing popularity we are noticing changes that will benefit riders new and old. In our first In VS Out list we rate urban riding trends and terminology that are gaining momentum on the street.

Make your own In VS Out suggestions in the comments below.

6 Comments

Geoff Hazel
August 16, 2013
Protected bike lanes can be useful if IF they are engineered properly. They are very troublesome to the point of lethal at intersections with roads. And since they are limited in where they go, to be useful and used the cyclists will need to get onto public streets to get where they want to go. Managing those transitions in a sensible safe and predictable manner is quite difficult
Dave Krentz
August 1, 2013
Amen to that, Cort. We all spin pedals, so why put down someone else’s style or preference? I don’t care how you dress or what you ride — just ride.
lagatta à montréal
July 28, 2013
There are many Dutchpersons among top-level sport cyclists, and especially among the women. Marianne Vos, an Olympian and champion of many other events, is among those launching a petition for a women’s Tour de France. Almost no Dutch people wear helmets or “kit” using bicycles as everyday transport, but many Dutchies love to ride fast too, on the weekends, for fitness and sport. These are not contradictory.
I’m not an athlete at all, but we can support practical cycling and enjoy the prowess of talented athletes.
Rose Lee
July 18, 2013
Everday riders logging 100 cumulative daily minutes is the new urban century-ride. How many centuries did you do this week?
John Harshbarger
July 15, 2013
Till we change the way we look at bicycling and bikes themselves, the bicycle will always remain almost a non-factor in commuting. Every country with a respectable level of cycling uses mostly European style city bikes. Sports cycling is almost non existent in those countries. Then there is “safety promotion” or lack there of. Countries with high levels of cycling don’t push safety equipment and have low, to near no use of helmets. Countries that do push, and even worse mandate helmets, have dismal levels of cycling.
I ride the way cycling was meant to be, simply and freely. The way it originally was and the way it will be again some day.
- Cort Percer, Memphis, TN
  July 21, 2013
  Every July in France they hold this little competition called the Tour de France. Maybe you’ve heard of it. Professional cyclists don’t get to be professionals without first being amateurs and juniors. That means they are out on city streets and country roads training, day in and out on racing bikes. And Le Tour is only 1 race. There are a myriad of other European races: road, cyclocross, & mountain that fill the calendar. Europe is the home of “Sports cycling.” And it is this love of “Sports cycling” that drives every direction of the bike industry, right down to the hydraulic disc brakes on a bakfiets. While it’s great to love a particular style of bike, it is the entire cycling culture that needs to be promoted. I know I would rather ride my 10 mile daily commute on a cyclocross bike than an European style city bike.