FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Well, my old bicycle, being 20 years old and definitely the worse for wear, needed replacement fairly urgently. So ... I bought a new one.

First pic I'm attaching here is the old bicycle, and you can see why it needed replacing!


Attached Image:


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

And now, the shiny new replacement!

I picked this up as a real bargain. My local Asda supermarket was selling these bicycles originally for £85, but when I took the bicycle to the till to pay for it, they only charged me £65 - apparently they'd decided to knock £20 off the display price to shift them!

So, I've now got a full suspension (front & rear) mountain bike with 18 gears, and cantilever brakes that stop the thing on a 5p piece (and if you've seen a UK 5p piece, you'll know it's a tiny coin!) and for about a third of the price I'd normally pay for a machine of this spec!

Only thing is, though, it's a heavy beast ... it's like pedalling a steamroller!

Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, the seat IS at that seemingly ridiculous height because I need it, courtesy of having a 35 inch inside leg measurement (which also causes some head scratching when I need to buy trousers).

But ... shiny new bicycle!


Attached Image:


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

And here's me riding it ...

Attached Image:


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Make sure you dont get caught riding it around a city center - did you see the guy on roller skates that got fined?! I think that was outrageous.
Being the catfish fanatic that you are, have you ever used BAS (British Aquatic Superstore) in Bolton? I've been a customer for years and started working there recently. Lots of nice stuff in, including some of the cory weitzmani.
James

Thats a nice looking bike

Only thing I miss about our last two houses, I used to be able to bike to the store for milk.... now, it's pretty risky.


Get a helmet!!!!



^_^

You have a 35" inseam? Jeez, man, how bloody tall are you?

Do you have to get a licence to drive/ride that piece of machinery. Wow how they have changed since I got my first bike about 60 years ago.

A few questions for you re the road/laws.
What is that red area in the center of the road?
Are cars allowed to drive on either side of the road going by the way they are parked?
Do Cyclists have to wear helmets?


Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info
Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Are cars allowed to drive on either side of the road going by the way they are parked?
Cars drive one way on one side of the road, and the other way on the other side of the road...some streets are one way.
Do Cyclists have to wear helmets?
Im not sure about the laws on that, but i know they have to ride in the road, or a specific cycle zone, and not on the pavement

OK, some answers ...

[1] Don't know for certain what the red strip in the middle of the road is, but I suspect that it's put there to remind motorists that overtaking in a residential area is basically stupid.

[2] Don't worry Keith, our roads are directional as well, and we still drive on the left. There's no restriction on which way your car faces when it's parked, but once on the move, only an idiot would drive against the flow of traffic!

[3] No licence needed to operate a bicycle here in the UK. Licences are only needed for motor vehicles powered by an internal combustion engine, or electric vehicles capable of exceeding 10 mph.

[4] Helmets aren't mandatory, and here in the UK, at the moment they're prohibitively priced. I'd get one if a decent one didn't cost more than the bike!

[5] I'm right slap bang on 6 feet tall. I have long legs and a short body.

[6] As far as the town centre is concerned, there's no restriction on the roads, and indeed where I live, the local authority has thoughtfully provided marked cycle lanes. They's all over the place now, whereas just 10 years ago, a cycle lane was unheard of. Mind you, some of our marked cycle lanes alternate between road based sections and pavement based sections, which can lead to a bit of confusion at times! Also, whilst technically a cyclist isn't supposed to ride on the pavement, the fact that some of our marked cycle lanes occupy pavement space means that this is only enforced where there are explicit "Cycling Prohibited" notices, or if someone is behaving like a complete loon.

[7] Yes, Keith, bicycles have changed a lot, haven't they? That machine boasts 18 gear ratios (6 cogs on the rear wheel and 3 chainwheels with derailleur changers on both), and both front and rear suspension (gas damped forks on the front, and that spring loaded shock you see coupled to the butterfly bracket inside the triangle of the main front frame provides the rear suspension). Doesn't half bounce when I start putting the power down on the pedals though, even though I've set it to a stiff setting, but then when I'm astride it, it's taking something like 190 pounds of weight over and above the weight of the bike itself. Apparently once you start riding one of these machines, you develop over time a different riding style (which I'm still learning to do) and the bounces even out as you learn to shift your weight appropriately to reduce the suspension bounce. Trouble is, it takes time to master this, and I'm still at the novice stage with respect to this, which is one reason why my progress is more leisurely than in the past over and above the extra weight I'm propelling compared to the old one.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

[3] No licence needed to operate a bicycle here in the UK. Licences are only needed for motor vehicles powered by an internal combustion engine, or electric vehicles capable of exceeding 10 mph.

Calilaaaeia
I thought you might have picked up my Aussie humour with that one, with all those gears to think about. The old bikes only had two stop and go or pedal harder and faster.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info
Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Well given the propensity of governments to licence and regulate everything that isn't nailed down (and quite a lot that IS, for that matter), it's entirely possible that in the near future, it need not be a joke any longer.

Mind you, apparently some of the top-end bicycles in the range now boast a whopping thirty gear ratios - ten cogs on the back wheel, three chainwheels!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Now you can start to investigate the strange world of fixed gear bikes!

ah well done cal!are you planning on alot of bike riding are you mate.