[File photo] Northeast Portland native Jamie Nichols “totally flipped” when he saw his first Dutch bakfiets cargo bike. He sees them as the perfect way to replace the family car for short neighborhood trips and even sees them as an answer for what he calls “a looming fuel crisis”.
Well I had my doubts whether or not it would ever happen, but after some ads popped up recently it was just a matter of time… And now it’s official, the Batavus “Old Dutch” bikes have landed in America.
Scott Mizee aboard a bakfiets.File photo The Oregonian’s inPortland secion has a nice story today that will give a big boost to Portland’s awareness of and interest in bakfietsen (Dutch for “box bikes”). The story focuses on how great the bikes are for kids and families, and even mentions a woman who uses one as … Read more
John Climaldi and his first shipment of Extrawheels.Photo: John Climaldi Local recumbent enthusiast and general bike nut John Climaldi was looking through VeloVision Magazine one day when he came across something that was “so cool” he just had to know more. The product was the Extrawheel, a Poland-made bicycle trailer that wasn’t available in the … Read more
Can you spot the bakfiets?Photo: Clever Cycles on Flickr Clever Cycles, Portland’s soon-to-be-opening retail shop that will carry bakfiets cargo bikes and “a complete line of resoundingly practical biking gear” is showing signs of life at their location on SE 9th Ave., just south of Hawthorne Blvd. Part of a Dutch bike invasion sweeping North … Read more
I first brought you the news about original, Dutch Batavus bikes potentially coming to the U.S. market back in October. I had received spy photos of them from my correspondents at the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas.
The Community Cycling Center has gone global. Thanks to staff mechanic Rich Walker, the venerable, Northeast Portland-based non-profit is now offering select parts and accessories on eBay. Check it out via their new website.
[This is the third installment of my “In the shop” series. Check out the first two on Joseph Ahearne and Tony Pereira.] Brett Flemming At the end of a cul-de-sac in a non-descript, Vancouver Washington subdivision, is the home and shop of Brett Flemming, an extraordinary machinist, inventor, and head mechanic for one of the … Read more
The bike for the other 161 million? Yesterday I got my first, hands-on look at the fruits of Shimano’s new Coasting product initiative. Only three manufacturers (Raleigh, Trek and Giant) are licensed to make bikes with Coasting and I gave Trek’s offering, the “Lime Light” a closer look.
A cheesy self-portrait in front of the Lincoln monument. Saturday was my last day in Washington D.C. and I spent it on a bike. When I arrived, it was 70 degrees, nearly perfect riding weather. Unfortunately things got worse as the week wore on. By the time Saturday rolled around, we’d seen rain, sleet, and … Read more
Shannon Bryant ofShimano Marketing At the closing ceremony of the National Bike Summit, the Shimano marketing duo of Shannon Bryant and David Lawrence hit the stage to tell the story of Coasting. Shimano embarked on this initiative five years ago when they teamed up with premier product design group IDEO. That was the start of … Read more
[The Vanilla Bicycles booth at the Handmade Bicycle Show.]