Dutchie bikes?

[jackh707]

Just come back from Amsterdam and everyone was riding bicycles there, dedicated lanes, priority over pedestrians and traffic, all very nice.
But the star was the bike, 10 euros per 24hrs: single speed and pedal backwards to brake. Heavy step through frame, rack on the back for shopping, really comfy and fun.

Fancy a cheap one off ebay as a city runabout, but I thought... possibly they were only great because it was so flat, I just wonder how useful it would be in a fairly hilly city, anyone got one?

[anonymous-user]

i think you've answered your own question. loads of similar bikes in Copenhagen but thats flat to, put that sort of bike in front of a hill and they are a nightmare... even very small undulations on a route are pretty unpleasant, flat bar hybrids, single speeds are far more effective.

[Burrow01]

Bloody hard work anywhere there are hills ;-)

I used to live in Holland and brought a couple back for fun

They are great,and maybe you could get away with it in London

[prand]

Burrow01 said:

Bloody hard work anywhere there are hills ;-)

I used to live in Holland and brought a couple back for fun

They are great,and maybe you could get away with it in London

Agree - it also seems that nobody is "dressed" for cyling and just wears normal clothes (so I assume no need to have a shower in the office) - its strange as the climate is very similar to the uk but the use of bikes is so very dfferent.

You can see people really struggle getting up and over the canal bridges which admittedly are pretty steep, so I can understand if faced with a big hill it will be hard but there are a fair fw cities in the UK that are mostly pretty flat (London, Cambridge, NOT Edinburgh or Bath). These dutch bikes usually have very good mudguards and enclosed chains which would keep you pretty clean in most weathers.

[Hugo a Gogo]

I 'commuted' on a dutch shopper for about a year and a half, 3 miles from one village to the next, with one hill (a road bridge)

they are very stable with the kicked out front wheel, enabling all Dutchies to ride with their hands in their pockets, or roll up fags whilst riding

[jackh707]

Hugo a Gogo said:

I 'commuted' on a dutch shopper for about a year and a half, 3 miles from one village to the next, with one hill (a road bridge)

they are very stable with the kicked out front wheel, enabling all Dutchies to ride with their hands in their pockets, or roll up fags whilst riding

Yeah I think this was the best thing, I managed to ride back to the hire shop with a full suitcase in my right hand, wedged against the frame no problems, got back on my road bike today at home and nearly crashed because of the head angle .

Yeah, I live in Liverpool, which is reasonably hilly... well at least my commute route, and they were hideous over mere canal bridges as mentioned, probably not a great idea, still want one though, a battered old one with a motorbike thick chain to lock it would be great for going to the pub and mates when I want to drink.

[anonymous-user]

prand said:

Agree - it also seems that nobody is "dressed" for cyling and just wears normal clothes (so I assume no need to have a shower in the office) - its strange as the climate is very similar to the uk but the use of bikes is so very dfferent.

You can see people really struggle getting up and over the canal bridges which admittedly are pretty steep, so I can understand if faced with a big hill it will be hard but there are a fair fw cities in the UK that are mostly pretty flat (London, Cambridge, NOT Edinburgh or Bath). These dutch bikes usually have very good mudguards and enclosed chains which would keep you pretty clean in most weathers.

Pashley does all of the above but with hub gears. Lycra and funny shoes banned!!

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 22 August 20:54