“cry for attention”.
(Photo: Jonathan Maus)
This week’s edition of the Willamette Week is all real wank-fest. They rant away on all sorts of stuff, including bikes.
Here are the bike-related things that made it into their “kvetchfest” issue (emphasis is mine):
-
Double-Tall Bikes
They may be channeling absurdist Parisian street performers—ahem, Alberta Street Clown House—but riding a double-tall bike is just impractical. Is dismounting an excuse to show off your tumbling skills? We’re all impressed by your creativity with a welding torch, but commuting on a 9-foot-tall Schwinn is a cry for attention.
Cyclists on Busy Streets
If cyclists want to cruise down Southeast 39th Avenue at rush hour, they have the right. Even if just two blocks east runs a nearly traffic-free designated bike route down 41st Avenue (most busy thruways do have nearby parallel bike routes). But a philosophical argument about right-to-the-road won’t be much consolation when an ER doc is stapling your face back onto your skull. Drivers ought to watch for bikers, but they often don’t. And even in Portland—America’s most bike-friendly city—plenty of drivers resent anyone without a motor. For instance, everyone’s grandpa.
Fixies without Handbrakes
We’ll probably get shot for saying this. Fixed-gear bikes have a sleek, minimalist appeal that’s made them the steed of choice for Portland’s cool kids. Unfortunately, the price for their simple elegance is impending death. They’re called “track bikes” because they are meant for the track. As in a controlled, traffic-free environment that goes on in one theoretically endless circle. Hence, no need for separate brakes. There may be a handful of street riders who can actually safely handle a fixie in your modern urban environment. But our completely unscientific survey reveals that 8.14 out of 10 fixie riders are in it for the image (think about Portland’s low helmet-to-biker ratio) and don’t really know how to ride them. A handbrake might hurt your bike’s clean lines, but can you really count on those spindly, vegan legs to do your braking in a pinch?
I realize this was partly done just to stir up emotions and get people talking. But what do you think? Are WWeek staffers just trying to get attention, or are these legitimate beefs?
[Given what happened on Friday, I found the reference to riding on low-traffic streets tragically ironic.]