I've noticed several people here in town riding these bikes. They look very classy.
Land Yachts? They're no bigger than any other bike, but the classic elements do make you think that if Chris Craft made bikes, this would be it.

If you really want to be seen as a classy, respectable, mellow, cruising kinda lady or fellow, how about an upright trike? But don't make the mistake of pretty much every person I've ever seen on one (including on the website I liked to up there) - don't ride on the sidewalk. Instead, dress up in your finest and cruise aristocratically around on the streets paved with gold, black gold, that is!

Only way to go for good health in your back and not a pain in the butt literally is a recumbent bicycle or "bent". More efficient & less stress to your back and very comfortable.

Two problems:
1. single speed. It's fine for flat places, like the netherlands, not so fine for not-flat places like a good portion of the US.
2. coaster brakes. Not so good if you need to make a sudden stop or if you're carrying a heavy load. It's harder to gradually slow with them and they have a couple of failure modes which are worrisome, especially for people who are not often riding a bike.
Now, if you want a bike much like that but with more 'modern' amenities:

http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/koga/index.html

That's a great commuter bike and it features all of those options and more.

It's flat here in Houston :)


In fact it's flat pretty much over the entire US Gulf Coast and that's a pretty sizeable portion of the continent.


I'd ride one, too. Heck, I'd ride any bike here if I could be assured of relative safety from my fellow drivers. Unfortunately, if you're in anything other than an enclosed cage of steel and plastic, to at least some "drivers" you're also fair game. And until I have decent health insurance and a safe crossing for a particularly dangerous freeway system here, I won't be biking to work. I do need to convince the City of Houston that they should use all those power and pipeline right-of-ways for hike-n-bike trails though...

Okay, I am from the Netherlands so a few words about how our bikes:

1. A bicycle is the fastest way of transportation in the city. It is impossible or very expensive to park your car anyway. Riding a bicyle is very common and everybody does it.

2. Yes, this looks like a typical Dutch bike, be it a very sturdy one. Most have just one tube at the top and a simpler saddle. You don't need gears in the city, they will break down anyway. Coaster brakes are perfect for the job and yes you can make a sudden stop and they work with heavy loads and they still work in the rain.

3. Nobody wears a helmet on a bicyle. I can imagine it might be safer when you fall but I haven't fallen in the last 20 years or so and apart from that it would look silly it would also be a major hassle. Also you don't ride a recumbent bicycle because you loose overview in traffic and they are less flexible in cornering.

4. Because it is so common and because we have an infrastructure for it, it is easy to do and convenient. That is the reason we do it, not for the environment or to save energy, although that is nice too.

I wished all you Americans reading this website could just have a look at the thousands of people going to work riding their bikes in the morning in the streets of Amsterdam or any other city. The system works, the bicycles work, there really is no excuse not to do it yourselves.

Sander,

Really, there are legitimate "excuses" not to bike to work. You should come to Houston and see for yourself just why I say that. I truly would love to bike to work, but I am NOT going to risk my life that way. The attitude towards non-motorized travel in the US is not what it is in Europe. It's bad enough that there's very little respect for other drivers, but too many simply don't like being "inconvenienced" by a bike that's "in their f-in' way". I always try to help out the cyclists when I can, but my respect for them, too, falls off when they disregard the traffic laws, such as running stop signs, weaving in and out of traffic stopped at lights, running red lights, not signaling, riding two of more abreast and not yielding to traffic. I do suspect that many have taken their total disregard for traffic laws while driving and simply made them their biking habits, too. Many attitudes have to be changed before it even comes close to what it is in Amsterdam and other European cities.


And then there's the size of the cities here. Too many cities simply do not do enough to accomodate more bicycles because they still see them as only for "recreation". So, locally, we have plenty of "hike and bike" trails that don't cross major freeways and don't do much for helping cyclists get across major thoroughfares safely, either. The car is still "king" here and that is an attitude that is very slow to change, unfortunately for all of us.


But I'd still like to have a bike like this one :)

Eric - Fellow Houstonian here, and a frequent bike commuter, to boot! I agree with all statements regarding the differences here and in Europe. I must say though that the more I ride, the more aware I become of the sad mental state of the road-enraged masses in this city. Even I get tired of being in my metal cage of a car! That alone is enough to make me walk, bike, bus or light rail it when I can. I just don't want to deal with the angry Houstonian drivers while in a car. I am better able to find ways to avoid them by biking mostly residential areas. I often find it a fun challenge to come up with nonarterial routes to get to my favorite places, or try to be multimodal. Thank goodness I am able to live close to work.

I used to have a bike like this in Cambridge, England (another flat city). It was perfect, and the sit-up-and-beg attitude lets you see safely over cars. Sadly, when I moved to North Yorkshire (much hillier), the cast-iron frame with added lead poured in (only joking) made it just too heavy to ride, and I gave it away. But I loved that bike...

James (Hello fellow Houstonian! :) )


Living close to work is the key. I live about nine miles away, and that's the shortest commute I've ever had. When I worked downtown last year, I took the rail. It was great! I still had to drive about five minutes to get there, but I was very happy it existed. But it is only set up for getting into the center of town and back. If only they'd plan and build a grid of rail lines...


As it is, I know about taking back roads or residential roads for biking but the "wall" if you will is the various points of crossing at Westpark/59 and then again at Westheimer. Those are dangerous crossing in a vehicle; I don't know how the biking and walking "day-laborers" do it without getting hit. If where I work had put their offices over in Bellaire, no problem. But I do still want to get some kind of bike so I can use it for getting to Whole Foods :) But this bike only seems to be sold in Canada :|

Remember that the most ecofriendly bike is a USED bike. Actually, that goes for just about anything you buy. The energy that goes into a "state of the art" offroader these days probably reduses your ecokarma by 10 points. Not to brag but my heap is from 1938 :) Thanks grandpa for taking care of it. It only needed new tires and innertubes.

After a weekend break in Amsterdam I came home convinced that it was this style of bike that contributed to the beauty of the people there. The elegant posture, the exercise, the clean air; they must all have a positive impact.

Eric,

Here in Melbourne, Australia they have reasonable road rules for bikes, unlike most of the US.

Exmaples:
You are allowed to go through a stop sign (just slow down and yield - for God's sake, it's piss-easy to see anyone coming if you coast through)

You can pass traffic stopped at lights on the left (we drive on the left here, so it's like hugging the curb on the right there) as long as they're not signalling a turn.

You can turn left (like a right-turn in US) on any red light when safe (you can't in a car)

You must signal your turns and stops.

You are allowed to ride two abreast, and a bicycle can take up a whole lane of traffic.

The laws here basically accomodate bikes as a vehicle. The lawmakers in the US (where I grew up) need to adjust their attitudes.

Oh, and Melbourne has a decent and constantly growing network of suburban bike paths so I can ride the 20 KMs into the city without riding on the roads at all. Having visited Copenhagen in Denmark, I'd say that's the perfect model of a sensible cycling city. It's designed for harmony between cyclists, public transport, pedestrians and the few cars that are around.

If only my beloved New York would grow up and do the same...

I think people are missing the point here. It's not just this model of bicycle but a practical daily commuting bicycle that people need.

A fancy mountain bike with no mudgards or chain cover is not something you want to ride to work in your good clothes. The number of gears should of course be appropriate to the hilliness of the city, but these days (even in Holland) you can buy a light city bike with an efficient 8 speed hub. The Dutch tend to ride around on no gear "clunkers" because of the high level of bicycle theft in the cities.

And an aside for those poor people trying to cycle in Houston. The only real solution is if the city takes road space from cars and gives it exclusively to cyclists. In all European cities that have quality cycling facilities this has been the only way to achieve them. No it's not easy to do this - especially given the all-powerful automobile lobbies. I wish you luck.

Seth, good suggestion.

Breezer makes a very similar one for half the price!

http://www.breezerbikes.com/bike_details.cfm?bikeType=town&frame=d&bike=uptown

These bikes are made out of hi-ten steel, meaning heavy. The 3-speed bike weighs 40 lbs. In a moderately hilly area this extra weight is not pleasant. Why not make it out of CroMo steel alloy or aluminum like most American bikes?

It has steel rims on the wheels - so the rims are very slippery when wet. That's why most American bikes now have aluminum wheels ( in addition to the lower weight). It does have a coaster brake or ( for the 3 speed) a hand operated roller hub brake. With a hub/coaster brake the slipperiness of the rim doesn't matter, but what about the front brake. It doesn't mention ANY front brake.

The front brake supplies something like 70% of your braking power. In flat areas, at low speed, you might be able to get away with only a rear brake. But if there are any hills, watch out.

I do think many Americans would prefer to bike with an inefficient but comfortable for short rides upright-position city bike that is sturdy, low-maintenance, has built in lighting, fenders, and a way to carry stuff. I just think a much better job can be done than this. A few companies have tried, but the bikes are maybe too expensive for the targeted market.

Instead - you can buy a fairly inexpensive city bike from any of the main manufacturers (Schwinn Giant, etc.), add some fenders, a rack and some lights, and get a very nice solution. Maybe $300 to $350 for the whole setup.