Christmas Lights and Bike

[lemmy]

I've put a video of an enjoyable short trip on my Kalkhoff here

 

[Biged]

Sooner you than me cycling there, i noticed you were the only cyclist who took any notice of the traffic lights, no wonder cyclists have a bad name

 

[eddieo]

very nice...But you seem to be in some pain?

 

[lemmy]

i noticed you were the only cyclist who took any notice of the traffic lights, no wonder cyclists have a bad name

I try to be reasonable in my riding. You have to cut a few corners same as bikers and car drivers do - and pedestrians for that matter.

I feel much safer cycling in those environments than I do cycling in the country, funnily enough. No lunatic 20 year olds in screaming four wheel drifts on the wrong side of the road.

In general, I find a greater respect for cyclists in London than I do outside. The worst was when I lived on the south coast but I find cycling in Norfolk a bit worrying too. Car drivers seem to not care whether you are there or not. But...all subjective. I'm sure there are people who scared witless by cabs and buses while riding in London and people entirely happy with the boy racers in Norfolk.

 

[lemmy]

very nice...But you seem to be in some pain?

Yes...the day before I had lifted my Kalkhoff, all 28kg of it and my cameras, on and off a couple of trains and carried it over two bridges with steps up and over to the station. The whole shebang is so badly balanced that it requires physical force to do it. And as I did so I felt the wrench on my back

While doing the film, I was having to twist my body to keep the camera horizontally aligned to the scene while stopping at red lights and manoeuvring between cabs etc. hence the pain. Unfortunately, being the person (read idiot) that I am, I am unwilling to let anything stop me doing what I want.

If only there was an e-bike of 15kg! I should have turned the volume down!

 

[Jimod]

May I ask what camera you use? It seems not bad quality. It also looked cold

 

[steveindenmark]

4.15 minutes................You can see the difference a good vis jacket and rear light makes. You can see that other cyclists from a long way off.

Thanks for posting this. It looks pretty but I am glad to see what I am not missing.

Steve

 

[lemmy]

May I ask what camera you use? It seems not bad quality

I used a Panasonic Lumix G3 with Olympus 12mm f2 lens.

It looks pretty but I am glad to see what I am not missing

Don't like London then? I love it and always have and as I said, prefer living and cycling there than anywhere else. I've just bought a little place in Languedoc, in the middle of vineyards and country roads so I'll be cycling there a lot. People are a bit nicer to cyclists around there so I prefer it to the UK for biking. Warmer, too

Not an electric bike in France, though, a nice road bike is planned! What a contrast, city on an ebike, country on a drop bar road bike!

It dawned on me that I'm 67 (as is my wife) and any money we don't enjoy is wasted, especially when even the best savings are simply losing buying power. One thing is certain, cycling in general is a wonderful thing. Bikes can get you to work on the cheap yet imnprove your health, equally they can be great recreation with a bit of mechanical interest thrown in. Is there a down side, I wonder?

 

[jerrysimon]

Nice video thanks for posting,

If only there was an e-bike of 15kg!

You already almost have one, its a Brompton with a Tongxin hub fitted

Regards

Jerry

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Quote Originally Posted by lemmy
"If only there was an e-bike of 15kg!"

An additional wight of 2 KG makes a difference of 0.2mph for an average rider on an average bike riding up a 5% hill, or an extra 5w of effort to maintain the same speed, but more difficult to carry up stairs.
Bicycle Speed (Velocity) And Power Calculator

 

[eddieo]

If I fitted my DaaHub kit to sons C Boardman road bike it would be approx 14-15kg. my specialised is 20kg and feels lighter as weight distributed so well. the KTM Bosch we had (21kg) felt much heavier, I guess because all the weight was central.....

until Wisper release the proposed 16 kg E bike in 2013 I will stay with kits on decent donor bikes. There is no way I will tour in camper with bikes any heavier, as my back simply cant take lifting them on to rear carrier.....Anyway a light weight bike handles and feels so much better.

 

[indalo]

There is no way I will tour in camper with bikes any heavier, as my back simply cant take lifting them on to rear carrier.....Anyway a light weight bike handles and feels so much better.

Well you certainly don't want one of those To...o bikes then Eddie! They're way too heavy for Fiamma bike racks and I refuse to risk putting my bike, of a similar weight, on my rack, especially as Fiamma recommend a maximum of 15Kgs per channel.

Light weight is essential when motorhoming, particularly with the modern Transit-sized trucks that have become popular and you're right; the last thing you want when doing a lot of driving is a ricked back.

Indalo

 

[eddieo]

Well you certainly don't want one of those To...o bikes then Eddie! They're way too heavy for Fiamma bike racks and I refuse to risk putting my bike, of a similar weight, on my rack, especially as Fiamma recommend a maximum of 15Kgs per channel.

Light weight is essential when motorhoming, particularly with the modern Transit-sized trucks that have become popular and you're right; the last thing you want when doing a lot of driving is a ricked back.

Indalo

Well I dont even consider that T thing as being a bike, just based on looks alone, never mind the weight it is a total non starter IMO.

with new van I went for the Thule Omni sport rack, as that has a 50kg capacity, so 2 x 20-22kg E bikes without batteries no problem. to be honest you dont know they are on the back and I can easily lift on/off on my own. It is just the security and all the locks I use that is the hassle, but worth it as reasonably confident that not many will bother to steal them....

 

[lemmy]

If a Brompton with motor came in at 15kg I'd be very happy with that. The weight of a bike doesn't bother me unduly when riding it but when lifting it over step bridges onto trains it does.

I like to take the Kalkhoff on the train to various areas I take pictures of for my stock agency. I think an electric Brompton might be the only bike I'd need. Especially if I could change the hub motor wheel for a standard one and ditch the battery for when training it into London and I don't need power.

Even more so now that I've swapped all my DSLRs for 4/3 stuff - My DSLR outfit weighed in at over 8kg - equivalent 4/3 at 3kg.

 

[bode]

Even more so now that I've swapped all my DSLRs for 4/3 stuff - My DSLR outfit weighed in at over 8kg - equivalent 4/3 at 3kg.

You learn something new every day: I'd never heard of 4/3 cameras until I read your post. Now I've looked them up, read reviews, and I want one!

 

[lemmy]

You learn something new every day: I'd never heard of 4/3 cameras until I read your post. Now I've looked them up, read reviews, and I want one!

They are excellent, light and versatile. I've actually sold all my DSLR stuff now and just have 4/3. You sacrifice a little quality in favour of handle-ability but nothing of any consequence for most people.

I've tested a couple of Panasonics Here and an Olympus Here

They make better movie cameras than most dedicated movie cameras, too, due to the bigger sensors.

 

[bode]

Very interesting!