Upon some reflection though… I wonder if the low tech single speed might merit some thought? I wish I could remember the story….
At the turn of the last century, when the North was an untamed frontier… one of the Klondikers up in Alaska had to get down south, fast. By dogsled it was two or three weeks. So he got the hare brained idea that the river froze up nice and flat, with a nice crispy layer of snow - just enough to give a cyclist traction. So he went to the store and bought an old school Schwinn or something…along with an extra chain. He loaded up a back pack, got on the river and set off. Nobody in town ever saw him again and figured he was dead.
But it turned out that he made the trip in less than a week. No frostbite, perfect health. He got into town, sold the bike or gave it away … and then bought a ticket on a boat and went back to the lower 48.
I’m not against tech on a bike… but…for a bug out…? It just might make sense…
Off topic; Did ya deep 6 your GAB?
ReplyDeleteChutes Magoo
No I still poost on it but very seldom. I use it only when green hairs, the nose rings, and the kiddy diddling censors at Blooger are hassling me…
DeleteSingle-speeds work fine on more or less level ground, Glen. We call them "beach cruisers" here in CA. Get 'em into even gentle hills though, and they become a millstone around your neck. I'm still using an 18-speed Specialized Rockhopper I bought at a yard sale 20-some-odd years ago for $50.00 US, and I've done some EVIL things to that bike in the California desert outback! I have NEVER had an issue with the gears. EVER. A can of 3-In-1 oil will keep that system right for DECADES. The bike has an old-school "Rock Shox" front suspension and a "hard" tail. In a bug-out bike, I'd nix the suspension. Those DO fail. The weak link is ALWAYS the tires. Spend the "suspension" money on a good set of Kevlar-ply tires and thorn-resistant tubes. I did this with the Rockhopper and have NEVER had a flat here in the land of cactus quills and goat head thorns.
ReplyDeleteI've never owned a bike with disc brakes. They seem to be on everything that's coming out now. They have their good points, like braking in the wet, but to me they're just more moving parts to break. The Rockhopper has old school cantilever brakes that again, have NEVER failed to bring me back to "0."
That bike in the pic; they're using the rear frame tubes as the rear suspension springs??? WARNING, WILL ROBINSON!!! THERE'S a fail waiting to happen! It also looks like it has an suspension seatpost; another failure point. And that second "top tube;" That wouldn't be necessary if the manufacturer hadn't gotten cute and bent the downtube and weakened that triangle! That second tube has alo gotta make it REAl fun to get those water bottles out! Personally, I got away from using water bottles for hydration. They're a great way to convey the bacteria and parasites from the stream or puddle you just forded into your mouth. I use a Camelback pack instead. Even if you're going with a full backpack, most newer ones have a pouch for the Camelback bladder. Get yourself a wide-mouth water bottle for one of those mounts and put your tire patch kit and other possibles in it. Tape it in place to keep it in place until you actually need what's in it. And unless you're USED to riding on a seat like that, you're going to find that it'll floss your butt something FIERCE! You'll find your heels kicking you butt cheeks when you pedal!!!
The bicycle remains one of the most efficient machines ever devised by man, and deserves a place of honor in your preps. Just be sure to weigh the pluses and minuses when it comes to the tech! Oh; and RIDE the thing NOW! A good bike can't make up for zero exercise!
Great minds think alike Pete. I bought my Rockhopper for $700.00 new in the early 90s. I was putting on about 200 - 300km a week back then and I lived on it. Rockhopper used the highest tier Shimano derailleurs, the best chains, bearings and came right from the factory with fairly decent skins. I bounced between AT knobbies and street slicks with mine. I had no suspension and no disc brakes either. Having said all that… there are complete garbage bikes being sold in the dept stores and just looking at them… for all intents and purposes they look as good as our old Rockhoppers but in fact - they’re nowhere even close. I have been out of the game so long I don’t know who’s who anymore.
DeleteI have returned to road bike riding after decades on a hard-tailed mountain bike with rokshox forks and cantilever brakes similar to yours Pete. Decided I wanted to fit super chunky tyres to it for strictly blasting around off road and get an endurance road bike for local cycle tracks and commuting.
DeleteSo I bought an old aluminium Giant OCR that looks like new - 27 gears, aluminium forks and rim brakes for an unbelievable $250. I re-taped the drops, bought a pair of GP5000 tyres & new tubes, added bar-end mirrors and my preferred spd pedals had her professionally serviced by my bike shop. All up cost is now $700.
I do not want carbon fibre frames (or forks) so I looked at Cannondale. A Synapse 2 endurance bike started at $3,200 or a Cannondale Topstone 2 gravel bike at $3,500. Both with hydraulic disc brakes, and no pedals. These are quality bikes, and there are cheaper brands, but most are now all carbon. I do not want to be afraid of cracking my frame if the bike falls over, or I have a minor crash. 2 kilos off my guts makes much bigger difference than 2 kg off my bike (and $2,000 off my wallet).
The tech in new road bikes is astounding. They now even have "wireless" gear shifting - because that's a disaster just waiting to happen.
/RANT
A bicycle makes sense if:
ReplyDeleteYou absolutely must leave your home.
You have a bike rack on your car.
You know how to ride and fix the bike when something goes wrong.
The advantage is that you can cover more ground and carry more survival gear in comfort. Relative comfort, anyway. I've got a bike rack and two bikes to go on it - I found one in the ditch near my house, and finders keepers. I can ride, but not as well as when I was twelve years old. So, should I be forced to evacuate, and my car breaks down or runs out of fuel or something, I'll ride.
My first serious bike was a Frankenbike like yours. I found it at an abandoned property we were cleaning up when we were kids, and I got it working and slowly over time started swapping out the parts and replacing them with high end components. It took a couple years but eventually I had a fairly high end bike. I sold it and even got my money out of it.
DeleteI remember something from a movie I watched once. It was one of the post-apocalyptic story lines. Anyway, a guy meets a group of people travelling thru the area and asked them why they didn't get some bikes to ride instead of walking. They replied something along the line that it was too difficult to keep their head on a swivel while riding a bike and it made them too vulnerable to being attacked. I know, it was a movie, but I do see some logic to that.
ReplyDelete