Keep It Simple, Keep It Fun...Part 2

         We have ridden across the continent...West to East and South to North...and then some.
Cycling fulfills the need for independence, freedom and saddle-time meditation. Why complicate that? We are such suckers for "advanced" technology and we strive daily to fulfill the popular definitions of "cool" and "clever". The bicycle is an outstanding mode of transport because of it's Simplicity and Efficiency. Gears are good, brakes are excellent and pneumatic tubes make life almost perfect...cyclists haven't always had those conveniences and cycling wouldn't be near as popular without them.
         Complicating that sensation of "almost free" locomotion has fascinated progressives for over 120 years. Put a motor on it, add more gears, construct them with space age materials, electrify, superfly and  mystify the pedestrian bicycle users..."We can make some real money here." We all fall for "gotta-haves". Promotion and glorification of the latest and greatest products has run our economy for decades, but hey...is this really necessary in the realm of simple transport?     Not to the degree that we've witnessed with self-propelled two wheel cycles.
          When pedaling out across the countryside, unwinding from the daily complications of family crisis', workplace worries and world news...you really don't want breakdowns that you can't remedy with tools you are carrying on your cycle or in your back pocket. If you are rolling on tubeless tires, carry a spare tube. If you are depending on electronic shifting, bring an extra battery. If you have an electric motorized ride, make sure it can still be pedaled if you run out of juice...it's called an "electric-assist" bicycle. If you depend on your phone for rescue or directional information, make sure you have a small solar collector stuffed in your bag (or seat tube) to recharge your lifeline.
         If you 'keep it simple' and think ahead about your ride (and what it takes to keep it rolling) you'll re-fall in love with cycling every time you crank beyond the borders of your village.

Keep It Simple, Keep It Fun

        I've been trying to explain where the bicycle world (mainly the bicycle industry) has seriously gone wrong. I keep coming back to the same realization... 'Died in the wool' cyclists are cyclically victims of a "motor mentality"...specifically, direct attacks from the motorcycle "schwabs" who are continually trying to make our sport and livelihood, theirs.
        This began a half century after cyclists had been earning their way on the cobbles and dirt paths around America and Europe. The internal combustion engine was introduced to (and fornicated with) the convenient triangle at the heart of the bicycle frame. Indian, Harley (originally bicycle manufacturers) and others locked us in a fume-filled room, tied us up and extracted some of the valuable secrets concerning two wheel travel that we held close to our souls.
        It took seventy years for the self-propelled cycle-lovers to get our mojo back...thanks to pods of Hippies and College professors on both coasts of North America a new bicycle energy was born in the mid-seventies. We had a new secret code...we were lifting our steads over fences and boulders, we were traversing washouts and exploring the small paths where motorbikers were not capable or welcomed. Their bikes were too heavy and too loud and they were dependent upon petrol...we had none of these limitations.
        During the last couple of decades, however, the motorcycle (and technology) "schwabs" are making inroads again into the simple and sacred world of the bicycle. Battery power, fluid charged brakes, electronic shifting and analytics have attached to the perfect machine like Louisiana leeches on a swamp dog. The bicycles are heavier and complicated with gadgets that are seriously superfluous and limit our ability to enjoy economically the freedom that comes with pedaling the damn bicycle down a country lane.