Coaster Brakes: Yay or Nay?

I love coster brakes on upright city bicycles and for me this feature is pretty much a must. But I am also aware that not everyone feels the same. So when I am asked whether I think a coaster brake is "better", I can respond only by outlining the pros and cons, as I see them. In short, here is my take on the coaster brake:



What is a coaster brake?

A coaster brake is a rear brake on a bicycle that is activated by pedaling backwards. If you want to slow down, simply start to push the pedals backward instead of forward with your feet. The harder you push back, the more braking power is applied. This type of brake is common in upright city bicycles, and it is usually (but not always) supplemented with a front hand-operated brake. The coaster brake is internal and lives in the hub of the rear wheel, rarely requiring maintenance or adjustments.



Why I love coaster brakes:

. I find that coaster brakes deliver softer (no sudden jolts), smoother, and more consistent stopping power in city traffic

. I like to have one hand free in traffic, so that I can signal while braking

. I find it easier to modulate coaster brakes at finer increments without totally losing momentum

. I have problems with the nerves in my hands, and find it painful to use hand-operated brake levers frequently (like in stop-and-go traffic)

. I find coaster brakes intuitive and stress-free to use: it makes sense to both accelerate and slow down with my feet

. I like it that coaster brakes require virtually zero maintenance or adjustments



Why some dislike coaster brakes:

. They find the act of backpedaling confusing or counterintuitive

. They find it inconvenient that with a coaster brake, you cannot bring the pedal back into starting position in the same way as on a non-coaster brake bike

. They feel that a coaster brake does not provide sufficiently strong braking power

. They lack the leg strength to activate the coaster brake (or have problems with their legs or knees that prevent them from doing so)



I should also add that coaster brakes make sense only on upright city bicycles. Using them on a roadbike would be tricky, because of the speed and the leaned-over position (though I do know of some who have tried, just for fun).



If you have never tried a coaster brake, there is no way to know whether it's right for you until you test ride a bicycle fitted with one. When I tell anti-coasterbrakites that I love coaster brakes, their response is usually "Oh, but I bet that's because you got used to riding a bike like that when you were a kid." Not true: The first time I tried a coaster brake bicycle was in April . It was love at first backpedal!



How do you feel about coaster brakes, and why? I am sure all feedback will be useful to those wondering about this braking system.

Wordless Wednesday :: Once Upon a Time

a few years ago...

Old Bridge Across Rio Grande River

This bridge used to be the bridge that vehicle traffic used to get from one side of the Rio Grande River to the other side. It is known as the Alameda Bridge. There are several bridges across the river in the Albuquerque area. The Rio Grande Bridge, and the Bernallio Bridge are the oldest. I know they were there in the 1940's but not sure of exact age. The Rio Bravo Bridge was built during the 1960's and the Alameda Bridge I think. I could be wrong on all of these. Probably could have looked up exact dates but I didn't. And the newest one is the Paseo del Norte Bridge which was build in the early 1990's. Of course all except the Paseo Bridge had been rebuild at some point. That is why we were able to walk out on this bridge. The Alameda Bridge was rebuilt in the early 1990's and someone had the good idea of leaving the old bridge for people to walk across on. People on bicycles, horses, and skates can use it, also. Anotherwords non-motorized traffic.
The first photo is looking west, the second is looking east. The great views of the Rio Grande River is looking north. You can see the new bridge for traffic which is on the south side of the original bridge.
Most of the summer there had been lots of sandbars in the river but on this day there weren't as many. I don't know if the river was up due to more rain north of here or if they had stopped letting so much water into the irrigation ditches since it is now fall. Sometimes when I drive across the bridge I had briefly seen Canadian Geese, and ducks sitting on the sandbars or near the edges of the river, but not this day.

The Great Climb

The mighty Sron Ulladale, Isle of HarrisIt’s great to be able to talk about this now…Nearly three years ago, the BBC attempted to run the ambitious live ‘Great Climb’ live broadcast on Cairngorm, with myself and a team of climbers from all over the world. We planned, rigged and trained for the big day. And then it rained. The washout was a huge disappointment, partially avenged by my ascent of my project on Hell’s Lum cliff a few days later which became the film ‘To Hell and Back’.Ever since, Triple Echo Productions who were behind the Great Climb project have been planning to make another attempt at a big live climbing event for the BBC. This year, the necessary components have aligned and we have a plan:

On 28th August, myself and Tim Emmett are planning to attempt a hard new route on Sron Ulladale, the biggest overhanging piece of rock in the UK (700 feet high, overhanging it’s base by 150 feet or so). As you might imagine, the prospect of this brings feelings of massive excitement, together with a fair dose of intimidation, pressure and anticipation. The correct ingredients for a fine adventure.





Harris landscapeI’d love to tell you exactly which part of the mighty Sron we will try to climb, but last week on our recce, close inspection of the cliff was out of the question due to the golden eagles, nesting on the main part of the face once again. If the eagles hatch chicks (best of luck to them!) we won’t be able to look closely at the lines until August. So until then, it’s training and waiting. Naturally, our plan is to climb the hardest possible route that imagination and finger strength allows.





Colin Wells standing at the foot of Sron Ulladale. The rock in shot above him is roughly the first fifth of the cliff height (!).However, we have something else up our sleeves for the meantime. We’ll be doing another challenge to feature in the 6 hour live broadcast. We’ll try a triple five challenge of five new climbs on five hebridean islands in five days. Last week Donald took us around many a far flung corner of the Western Isles, showing us many a gobsmacking unclimbed cliff, geo or stack. After serial protracted deliberations in Hotel Hebrides we shortlisted the many amazing cliffs into five objectives, which we will travel between by boat, sleeping below deck, in camps or under boulders.





I’ll have a lot more to say about this as more plans emerge in the coming weeks. Right now I have to go back to training for it. More on the BBC site here.

Kings Cliffe - Apethorpe - Blatherwycke - Kings Cliffe

A last minute route, led by me, with Maureen and Gordon. Just over 8 miles, Dry, windy, some sun.





We set off from Kings Cliffe church, following the road down to the crossing of Willow Brook, where it became a path shortly after an open area where an old lorry has found a home. The path leads rapidly to a track (Morehay Lane. We turned right and very soon left the track for a path to the left. This leads up and then past some clay pits, through fields. You can see Apethorpe church in the trees ahead. We didn't go right into the village, but when we arrived at a threeway junction took the road signposted Lodge Farm and Spa Farm. After a fair walk we met a turn to the left 'Private Road - Lodge Farm only' . This told us that we'd not taken the track we expected to take, so a bit of map-thinking was needed.

Quick change of plan, and we continued towards Spa Farm Cottages, and Spa Farm itself.

The path carried on in the same direction (S.W - ish) and just after a hedge, we found a trig point 85 metres above sea level according to the map.



On along the clear path through the cornfield, touching the corner of Briary Wood.

A slight change of direction to our left ( more to the south now) took us past the corner of Hostage Wood and in the direction of an abandoned building.

Nice place - how do I get the furniture in though?

We didn't cross the stream, but continued round the edge of the field, turning sharp right.

We were slightly off track, as we follwed the stream rather than the edge of Bushey Wood, but there is a gravel track which led us up to Hostage Wood again. We kept the wood to our right and followed the path slightly up hill, until we turned a corner and found a convenient bench for a snack break.





Straight along the path still, in the middle of trees forming the field boundaries, past Keeper's Cottage, with its crowing cockerel and barking dogs, and down to the road into Blatherwycke. A hundred yards or so along this road, past the alpacas in the field, and on the corner we followed the footpath off to the right.

Cool haircut

Wistful thinking?

The path passes Blatherwycke church and a large building where a lot of work is being done. We saw the statue on the skyline to the right.

Apollo Belvedere

I found this picture I took in Feb , with my comments:



" I wonder who he is, with his cloak,and

fig-leaf. His right arm is leaningon a

tree trunk with a snake coiledround it.

He stands on a hefty plinthwith carvings.

He probably belonged toBlatherwycke Hall,

which was demolished in 1948.

The Hall was used by troops in

World War 2, and was in a poor state."

My thanks to Barry for pointing me to thisinformationon East Northants website):

Sir Humphrey Stafford and his wife built Blatherwycke Hall in 1713, but it was pulled down in 1948 after irreparable damage by troops billeted there in WW2. The only remaining remnant of the estate is a statue of The Apollo Belvedere in an adjacent field.

Today we carried on along the path, past the recently planted trees and views of the lake and a house by the water. At one point we had to turn slightly to the left through a hedge, to keep on the path towards Alders Farm. The path is clearly marked from here - some small trees have been cut down since I was here last.





On through fields, keeping the brook to our left, over stiles or through gates, over the brook by the footbridge. We went through a field of cows, and another grassy field, along at the bottom of the allotments, and followed the road/track through the back end of the village until we reached the church.

There's something about allotments.

Upside Down!

Fate has been kind to Marianne! Rather than being torn apart for donor components, she has been spared, and fitted with new handlebars.

What you see here are upside down Nitto Albatross Bars (Nitto's version of "North Roads").

Ever since seeing pictures of vintage path-racers, it has been a fantasy of mine to have this handlebar set-up on one of my bikes. My concern was that it would be too aggressive for me to handle. But since Marianne's Milan bars were becoming increasingly uncomfortable on longer rides, I thought it might be time to revisit the possibility.

Harris Cyclery had some Albatross bars in stock, and the nice mechanic Jim Ammirato talked to me about installing them upside down. It is so difficult to tell what will feel "too aggressive" to one person versus "comfortable" to another. But luckily one of Jim's own bikes - a gorgeous bordeaux A.N.T. path-racer that deserves its own feature - had this exact set-up. I tried the handlebar position on the A.N.T., and to my amazement it felt wonderful. And so the installation proceeded!

As you can see in the pictures here, installing North Road style handlebars upside down places the hand gripping areas considerably below the level of the stem, while at the same time bringing them closer towards the rider than drop bars. You can control just how far down the gripping areas are by tilting the bar. We made mine on the tamer side to start with, but when I feel ready for a more aggressive posture I will tilt them down further.

North Roads are famously comfortable, because their gripping areas place the rider's hands in a naturally-occurring position: parallel to the body with an ever so slight outward flare. This is in direct contrast to flat handlebar styles (which includes the flat upper part of the drop bars, where most cyclists really spend most of their time). They position they offer is not a naturally occurring and places stress on the wrists if maintained for long intervals.

So the cool thing about upside-down North Roads, is that the aggressiveness of the posture is dampened by the comfort of the hand position. If you own an English Roadster or a Dutch bicycle, imagine holding your hands just as you currently hold them, only lower. Not so scary at all.

Perhaps this explains how it is that with the upside-down Albatross bars I am both more leaned over and more comfortable than with my previous Milan bars. I have ridden 13 miles with the new set-up so far, and it's been exhilarating. Of course a longer trip will allow me to give the final verdict.

Since these pictures were taken, I have treated the cork grips with wood stain in an attempt to darken them without the slippery finish of shellac. I am still waiting for them to dry and will let you know how this project works out.

The Deer's View

Later, after the deer had gone - where ever they go - I wondered up to where they had been and took a photo of their view. You can see it was a long way from the house which is alm ost hid behind trees and a grape view. To the right is an old barn that has been converted to a garage, and to the left is Jim's workshop.

Gilman Bridge

these are views from the Gilman Bridge just off the main road going to Jemez Springs. Gilman is an even smaller village. The Jemez Creek flows under the bridge. We stopped to see how well the water was flowing in this time of drought and found it doing ok on this day. I expect it will be really down in a few weeks if we don't get some rain. This water is probably the last of the spring snow melt water.

Soggy and Squeaky

Since Linda began a new life as an outdoor bike, ithas been raining heavily and continuously. I considered bringing the poor bike back inside, but resisted. In her 15 years of life she has probably seen worse. So I left her outdoors as it poured day after day.

So what's the damage to a Dutch transport bike after two weeks of being left out in the rain? Well, the main thing is that the front brake has developed a shrill squeal. I didn't know that could happen to hub brakes, but apparently it can. The stopping power is the same as before, only now it sounds like a hysterical piglet. The rear coaster brake makes no noise. Should I somehow lubricate the front hub? We are scaring people at intersections![Update: The front brake squeal stopped on its own as soon as the rains stopped. Works as well as before and just as silently.]

The other thing is that the leather grips are now completely soggy, since, unlike the saddle, I made no provisions to cover them. I installed these gripsin Octoberand they've been rained and snowed on many times with no adverse consequences, so I didn't think it would be a big deal to just leave them uncovered. But of course when it rains non-stop for so many days, it's a different story. Not sure what to do now other than just wait for the sun and let them dry out naturally. But in the future I should try Bobbin and Sprocket's smart solution.



Otherwise, nothing on the bike seems any worse for wear. I am especially pleased that my silver lug-lining (done with a Sharpie!)has held up and that the bottle dynamo isunaffected. Now if only it would stop raining!

Wordless Wednesday :: It's not a sunset...

Cumberland Island National Seashore, St. Marys, Georgia
December 27, ..

The 'Backlash': Why Are We Surprised?

[image via nytimes]

For the past couple of weeks, cycling blogs have been abuzz with news of a backlash in New York City against bicyclists and bicycle infrastructure. Police are overzealously handing out traffic tickets to cyclists. Members of the community are demanding the removal of bike lanes. Protests are underway. Anti-cycling op-ed pieces are appearing in respectable publications. Alarmed and disappointed, cyclists all over the country are wondering what the heck is going on.



But what I'm wondering is: Why are we surprised?



Think about it objectively. Since when has society embraced sudden change? Since when have the values of a minority been unquestioningly accepted by the majority? Since when have people welcomed ideas that they believe threaten their own lifestyles? Since never. That's not how things work. And cycling - a fringe activity that over the past couple of years has attempted to torpedo itself into the North American mainstream - is no exception. The "cycling culture" is not so special as to be immune to the laws of social psychology. Ingroup-outgroup bias, prejudice, stereotyping, and all that good stuff, apply to the interactions between non-cyclists and cyclists just as they do to interactions between other social groups with conflicting goals and value systems. It was naive on our part to believe that sweeping changes could be imposed on our neighbourhoods - both in the form of bicycle infrastructure and even just in the form of increasing numbers of cyclists on the roads - without non-cyclists feeling threatened.



The incident that took place in Boston several months back illustrated this point perfectly. Just weeks after bicycle lanes were installed in Charlestown, the local residents had a Council meeting, voted to have them removed, and swiftly did so. Many cyclists were outraged by the events, and in a way so was I - The waste of government funds this battle of wills involved was unacceptable. But the reaction of the Charlestown community in of itself was understandable to me. Adequate research was not done to determine whether neighbourhoods through which bike lanes were planned wanted them or not in order to gauge possible resistance or hostility. No effort was made to establish good will with the neighbourhoods, and so there was no good will. The community felt that something strange, foreign and dangerous was being shoved down its throat by the big city planners, and they wanted none of it.



I think that we, as cyclists, need to be aware (1) that we are in the minority, (2) that cycling is perceived as weird and dangerous by the majority, which means resistance to it will be high, and (3) that we live in a democratic society where we cannot impose our beliefs on others no matter how right we think we are. There needs to be sincere and open dialogue (as in two-way conversation) with the non-cycling community, free of smugness, slogans and arrogance. It is not productive to tell people that "Everyone can cycle," that "You too can live without a car if you tried," or even that "Cycling is good for you." Rather than encouraging, those messages are perceived as threatening, making people feel as if they are being told that their way of life is inferior and that some bizarre social engineering project is unfolding against their will. I don't think that most cycling activists even realise that, because those are the only types of messages I see when attempts are made to reach out to the public.



What I suggest instead is sending messages that don't just focus on ourselves and our point of view, but on the community at large - and especially on those who don't ride a bike and don't plan to. Why not spread information that bike lanes make neighbourhoods safer? That bike lanes help small businesses? That bike lanes help motorists? Imagine a public service announcement commercial that goes something like this:

A man gets out of his sedan in front of an office building. He looks at his watch, then faces the camera with a smile. "Finally got to work on time!" The camera pans out to show the road with freely moving car traffic, and a bike lane with lots of bikes. "With the new Main Street bike lane, more people are choosing to ride their bikes, leaving the roads clear for those who prefer driving. No more traffic jams, that's for sure." And a caption underneath reads "Traffic congestion in Neighbourhood A has decreased X% since bike lanes were installed."

Sure it's simplistic, but so was "Got milk." To avoid a backlash, we need to show that cycling is good for everyone.