There are few things more fun than cycling with your kids, especially when they’re in front of you so you can talk as you ride. A baby giggles, gurgles and squeals at all of the sights and probably the dynamics of cycling as well. With a toddler the communication is obviously more intellectually stimulating. P1 (2.5 yrs old): “Papa, papa… Taxi, blue Land Rover jeep winch, two motorcycle! Thaaaat’s funny. No helmet racing bicycle! Playground! Slide. Go to plaaaayyyyy ground!!! Plaaaaaayyyyy ground!!!!” Still, nowhere is P1 more motivated to articulate complete concepts than on the bike. I expect the same will be true for P2, except probably with girl topics instead of our current mini gearhead talk.

Both P1 and P2 began riding in the Cargobike at about a month old (in a Maxi Cosi secured in the box) and then moved to sitting on the bench at about nine months old. P1 absolutely loved watching the world go by from the Maxi-Cosi and even at just a few months old was happy (or sleeping) for rides up to a couple hours long. P2 on the other hand, just didn’t like riding until she could sit up. Of course she still went in the bike almost daily for errands, to the daycare, to friends etc but we didn’t even bother to try a longer ride with her. It was clear it would just be too frustrating.

P2 (10mo old) began to enjoy cycling about a month ago when she began to sit either in the child seat behind the handlebars of our Fr8, or on the bench of the Cargobike. She sits in the same support seat we used for P1 (the shell of a Bobike Mini), mounted on the right side of the bench. Now, she’s clearly enjoying herself, smiling, squealing and waving her arms as we ride. It’s also a lot more convenient not having to bring the Maxi-Cosi along and it’s freed up lots of room in the box for other stuff: P1′s tiny bicycle, picnic gear, or perhaps everything the family needs for a few days on the road.

With P2 now enjoying the ride and the spring weather appearing it’s time to get back to the long bike rides through the countryside we so enjoy. Last year we did a number of quite long rides with P1, even bike touring a hilly area of France with him between my arms. But having two kids makes everything more complicated so first a little mini-tour to refine what we need to bring along, figure out how far we can ride and how much we have to stop and just plain old see whether it’s still fun. So last weekend I escaped my usual Saturday shop duties for a weekend family bike tour.

We figured 50km to be a reasonable distance and there are fortunately interesting routes and destinations in practically every direction. The weather in these parts is notoriously fickle at this time of year so going much further would be akin to asking the gods for a day of force 5 headwinds blowing a steady rain into our faces for the return trip. A bakfiets is probably only marginally more aerodynamic than a barn door and it doesn’t fit in the train for a shortcut home so we played it safe. Lage Vuursche, a village in the “Utrechtse Heuvelrug” (a wooded area with some small hills in the middle of the Netherlands) was chosen as destination, a hotel reservation for Saturday night made and the bikes checked over thoroughly. I would ride the Cargobike with the two kids and most of our stuff. Kyoko would ride our Fr8 city bike with just the snacks (lots of them!) in the bin on the front carrier. Coincidentally I found a clean sheet of eggcrate foam just big enough to line the floor of the bakfiets box. A little trimming and it fit perfectly. P1 was on hand to test our “instant bed” and approved… immediately taking a nap in the box.

The gods smiled upon our plans and blessed us with a beautiful Saturday and a forecast of a rainy but warm Sunday. I can live with that. A nice big breakfast, comfy clothes on, everybody smeared with the first sunscreen of the year and off we began our little adventure. With a warm day ahead we didn’t want the bakfiets canopy greenhousing the kids so I wrapped it up with a small tie-down strap and stowed it under the bench. Not bringing a rain canopy in the beginning April would be very dumb! Loading up the bikes I couldn’t help but note the sheer volume of stuff we were bringing: We filled the bakfiets box and the bin on the Fr8. In retrospect I shouldn’t have been surprised; It was mostly just clothes, raingear and other light, soft items just loosely packed in bags instead of being tightly stuffed into panniers. We brought a small sleeping bag along for possible picnics, to wrap the kids in if it got cold or for napping in the bak. And anyway we are packing for a family of four, mostly in one bike.

It wasn’t long before the first stop was necessary: An unhappy P2 turned out to be a hat that’d flopped over her eyes. P1 wanted his sunglasses, which he mostly wears pushed back on top of his head.

Riding with little ones you just have to accept and enjoy LOTS of stops. First major stop was for a snack and playtime along the Waver river. Here we also had a lovely talk with an older couple heading the other direction on their own weekend tour. Yes, bike touring is very popular in the Netherlands, particularly amongst those of the “empty nest” age group.

Scrutinize this picture carefully; It’s the only one with me in it. A great thing about this area is that we can ride almost endlessly on such paths. We’re only about 10km from Amsterdam but you wouldn’t know it from the scene.

An hour or so later it was lunch (and play) time. We stopped at a great little cafe along a river in the village of Baambrugge. P1 enjoyed until it dawned on him that we wouldn’t be going canoeing like those who glided past: “Caaaaanooooooo!! Caaaaanooooooo riiiiide!!!!” and so he screamed, writhing and kicking while I secured him in the bakfiets again. This is the main reason the bakfiets has harnesses, more so than protection in the unlikely case of a crash. Of course he calmed down again after a few minutes but continues to ask about going canoeing. I’m stalling by telling him he needs to first learn to swim.

Another hour or two further (I don’t keep track of such things nor do we have computers on any of our bikes) we escaped the paved world entirely, riding on smooth dirt paths through a nature preserve. Here P1 points out the obvious to us.

Probably already six hours “on the road” at this point the kids are looking pretty fried. No more hamming it up for the camera.

And a little while later they’re both lights out. P2 can rest her head against the clothes we’ve stuffed behind her head but P1 is doing the nodding thing, waking himself up. We rearrange some baggage, make a little nest with the sleeping bag and plop him in there. We’re less than 10km from Lage Vuursche, entirely on these perfect dirt paths so the danger factor is exceedingly low.

The mostly elderly guests at our rather posh hotel didn’t seem to know what to make of this bike riding family with two free-range tikes. I think we scared them away from this patio. Interestingly, even in the Netherlands, even in an area extremely popular amongst cyclists… there was no bike rack at all at the hotel and we seemed to be the only guests who’d arrived by bike. Lacking any more obvious option we just parked the bikes on the patio and nobody complained.

Sunday morning was cooler, foggy and wet but not really raining; perfect cycling weather in my book. Still it was cool enough to better have the kids out of the wind so the canopy went up, and stayed up the whole day. In case you’re wondering the black tape on the canopy window covers a couple little holes caused by the two times the bike was tossed over into the canal by the wind.

The website for Lage Vuusche mentions the Castle Drakensteyn. Not reading the description carefully I promised P1 that we’d visit the castle this morning. But despite Drakensteyn being just a few hundred meters from our hotel there was not a sign to be found anywhere, never mind an entrance for visitors. There’s just a big, imposing fence and lots of high-tech security gear surrounding the grounds. I asked a woman working at the hotel and she replied “Which castle? There are many castles in Holland… Oh sorry, I’m not from around here.” A couple of local women outside were more helpful. They informed me, clearly amused by my question, that Drakensteyn is the summer home of Queen Beatrix. It was further just refurbished and will soon become the permanent residence of (soon to be king and queen) Alexander and Maxima. None of my Dutch colleagues or friends seemed to know this either so I don’t feel like such an idiot. (And according to Frits below, this isn’t even correct.)

Anyhow the promise of a castle visit remained and the ladies told me of another castle, called “Groeneveld” less than 10km through the woods. They were sure you could visit. It was in the opposite direction from home but a promise is a promise and it seemed a worthy destination as well. So off we headed for Kasteel Groeneveld. It was a beautiful ride and only took about half an hour. Upon arriving the kids were of course…

…asleep. With the canopy up they sleep better because the corner of the canopy works perfectly to nestle their heads into. Unless we lived in a desert or tropical climate I couldn’t fathom not having this canopy.

So we did actually go to a castle (thus fulfilling the promise!) but the kids unfortunately slept through it. It’s probably just as well since this castle was also “closed”, with no signs of opening times or anything. At least we could get up close and I got to take a nice photo.

Oh, in case you’re wondering what bike Kyoko was riding here she is, snacking in front of the castle. It’s just my current daily ride: a Fr8 with a random collection of parts I’ve been testing. It’s now a three speed with drum brakes front and rear. A Nu Vinci infinitely variable hub and the latest Shimano roller brakes will be installed soon for their long term test. The bin on the front carrier is cut away because there’s usually a child seat behind the handlebars and bin (fixed to frame) would otherwise interfere with the footrests (that turn with the handlebar). A couple strips of duct tape keep the bags from falling out the back this weekend. Nope, you don’t need a special bike to go touring and I know lots of folks here who’ve done far more ambitious rides on far more basic bikes.

When the kids woke up a while later it was play, snack and coffee time again. Here P1 demonstrates why a rock-solid parking stand (and strong spokes) are important. He climbs up, sits on the rack and insists we ride like this just like he sees the big kids and adults do all the time. No, not yet kid – certainly not on a bike without any foot/skirt guards over the rear wheel.

About halfway home (different route, even more nature reserves) we encountered an odd obstacle for the Netherlands. This gate was locked with a padlock. Usually these are just secured with a latch since (I assumed) they’re to prevent large animals from passing through. A standard size bike can be squeezed through the chicane with a little maneuvering but not a 2.5 meter long 40+ kg bakfiets. Fortunately a very sweet older couple helped us lift the bakfiets over the gate (without the kids inside!). The gate at the other side of this area just had a latch as usual.

The ride through this nature reserve (first image above in this post) was worth the little hassle though. It’s a very beautiful marshland. The rest of the ride home was equally scenic and peaceful: a warm lunch at a village cafe, a good playground to let the kids work off some steam and dinner at a favorite restaurant in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel. Finally we rode home with full tummies as it was getting dark and quite cold. The sleeping bag came out again to cover up the kids who of course fell asleep for the last leg.

It was a great trip and many handy lessons were learned for future editions. But the basic format of touring from home with the kids in the bakfiets and Kyoko on a simple city bike works perfectly. The distance of 50-60km seems about right. Much further would just take too long with all the stops required. Hopefully we can choose a new direction and get out for such a ride each month or so while it’s warm.

The other day Tom called me from our Veemarkt shop to ask about paying the import duty for a mysterious package. It was a tube marked from “The Bird Machine” and clearly addressed to Workcycles. I also knew nothing about it so I asked Tom to have the TNT hold it until we could figure out what it was. A quick search found the website of, no great surprise… The Bird Machine. And right there on the home page was the above poster (called “Portable”) of a bakfiets with a tree in the bak. OK, we might not know anything about it but it’s clearly intended for us, and it’s most probably not a letter bomb or anthrax from a Bullitt or Metrofiet owner still angry about Josh’s Guest Post or some of the 154 following comments.

Anyhow, with the tube now in our possession we opened it up and found indeed a half dozen beautifully hand printed posters as seen above. One’s going up in my office, another in the Veemarkt shop and I’m not sure where the others will go. It would seem rather wrong to sell what’s basically a gift so probably they’ll get through-gifted, perhaps as lottery prizes in our famous annual Oktoberfietsfeest (which we sadly just didn’t have time for in 2010). So if you want a “Portable” you’ll just have to come to our party and cross your fingers for good luck, or go to The Bird Machine’s website and pay twenty buck for one. In the meantime, thank you very much Bird Machine for your cool posters!

Do you also have something cool and Workcycles related you’d like to see featured on this illustrious blog? Well, then by all means send us some of them for free! Please, though, low-ball the stated value so we don’t go broke paying the import duties on the flood of incoming goods!

And why on earth did Bird Machine send us these posters? My guess is that it’s a recognition of the image that inspired the design, or at least provided the basic template. See my photo below:

Oh what a better world it would be if everybody were so honest and forthright about the things that inspire them. Here though is a classic example of how NOT to do it. Supposed do-gooder company Baisikeli in Copenhagen purchased a number of Workcycles Fr8′s, promising to distribute them in Scandinavia. Several months later, with no explanation or discussion they stopped ordering bikes. A few months further we found that Baisikeli was representing our Fr8 as their own design. To add insult to injury they began producing a (very crudely made) copy of our pride and joy. The unique geometry, structural elements and essential features of their copy are all directly lifted from the Fr8 to the millimeter. About a dozen mostly cosmetic elements were changed to dodge intellectual property protections, and indeed they’ll probably be successful in this regard.

Baisikeli’s copy of the Workcycles Fr8 bike.

A real Workcycles Fr8 in action.

It’s frustrating but also unfortunately just something to be accepted about doing business. Do something well and others will be inspired. That inspiration can be taken in many directions, most of them perfectly ethical. The Bird Machine included a little “apology to bakfiets-en-meer” (and to CETMA Cargo as well) but it was totally unnecessary. For the record I think it’s just great that a silly photo I took prompted him (I think it’s a “him” based on their bio) to create a poster loosely based on it. Similarly I’m frequently inspired by technical and aesthetic elements I see in other products, occasionally but usually not bikes. The monotube frame of the Fr8 probably has its roots in the 1960′s Moulton suspension bikes; I wasn’t thinking of that bike when I drew the first Fr8 plans, but I certainly knew of and admired it. The connection only occurred to me while unpacking the Series 1 Moulton I bought last year. On the other hand the Adaptive Seat Tube geometry (seat tube angle and top tube length follow median biomechanical ideals) is purely my own conception. Without a shadow of a doubt others have considered it, probably sketched it, maybe even made such a bike… but in my 30+ years around the bike industry I’ve never seen or heard of it before.

Workcycles Adaptive Seat Tube automatically follows the biomechanical needs of a wide range of rider sizes.

We’ve come to expect that good ideas and products will be copied, sometimes quite effectively and sometimes laughably. Amongst soulless corporations it seems to be standard practice. But Baisikeli’s entire business model (or perhaps just their marketing?) is centered around ethical practices. The bikes (the Fr8 copy they call “Chimoio” that is) are apparently leased to companies for three years with the pitch that they’ll be sent to Africa afterwards. But how can one trust a firm that claims to be philanthropic with one hand while ripping off their colleagues with the other hand?

Meanwhile Mike Flanigan of A.N.T. in the US took the honest, and perhaps more practical route. He simply licenses the use of the Adaptive Seat Tube in some of his beautifully crafted bikes. Mind you, I’m realistic about the monetary value of such an innovation to other bike companies; If we ask too much others will simply alter it enough to evade its protection, confusing people in the process. So we essentially keep the costs low enough to make it a no-brainer: For a modest sum we can share knowledge and perhaps enjoy some marketing symbiosis, or we can save a few euros and fight about it. The same would have been true for Baisikeli, perhaps even more so given their supposed philanthropic goals… but they never asked.

A.N.T.’s very pretty and handy Basket Bike with Workcycles Adaptive Seat Tube

One last thought: The Bakfiets Cargobike with skinny tree above was apparently inspired by a considerably more robust project we’d done a couple years earlier:

An introduction to the introduction from editor Henry:

About a week has passed since this post first went online and as of this moment there are 109 comments, quite a few of them rather extensive, a couple mildly angry or at least indignant. A few people have expressed dismay that I would publish such a piece, even if I didn’t write it myself. Another has requested that I add something to the introduction to further qualify the post below. That last request seems the most appropriate approach and what I’ll try to do now.

Interestingly though the post is widely criticized and has even apparently sparked offline discussions in coffee shops (both flattering and a little scary) nobody has suggested that I remove it. This is good since that would be quite a disappointment to all those who’ve invested time in writing, editing, commenting, discussing and even writing their own blog posts about this post. So now I have to actually figure out what it is that really needs to be said to further qualify this post.

That the post is, in retrospect, a grand faux pas is an understatement. But every now and then I just do that: I make a weird misjudgment and stick my foot deeply in my mouth. As one miffed commenter noted it doesn’t matter so much that it’s a guest post; It is my blog and I determine its content. Fair enough.

But what is exactly the problem? I’ve reread the post and slogged through the comments several times. I see two basic issues:

1. Several commenters dispute Josh’s experiences and opinions about two of the bikes discussed: the Bullitt and the Metrofiets. The Metrofiets I’ve only seen in photos so for the sake of discussing the post I’ll focus on the Bullitt which I’m familiar with.

Concerning the Bullitt I had already added from the beginning an editor’s comment that Josh’s opinion about aluminium being an unsuitable frame material was unsubstantiated and probably unjustified. Nonetheless a discussion raged about whether aluminium is a suitable material for such a bike, something I found rather silly.

Yet for all the defense it’s received here the Bullitt IS, in all fairness, a quirky bike. I’ve ridden several of them, loaded and unloaded (as well as being a noted bike designer who’s ridden a LOT of bikes) so I’m not in the dark here. Aside from the still underground CETMA the Bullitt really has no competitors in the world of light, sporty Long John type bikes. Structurally and conceptually it’s brilliant: light and apparently quite tough. But come on folks, please accept that it’s got its quirks too: The steering geometry is far from ideal and the ergonomics are strange. By no means is either factor a deal killer; After a little while you get used to the handing and forget it was ever a problem. You either adapt to the bike’s sitting position or swap out a few parts to make it fit better. My own bike designs have their own quirks and I really don’t mind hearing about them either.

I suspect that any criticism of a bike with such a cult following as the Bullitt will deliver some angry fans to your doorstep but Josh unfortunately digressed too far into opinion instead of more objectively addressing the bike’s virtues, faults and eccentricities. Interestingly, Josh’s Metrofiets critique stuck more closely to his own experiences but was also met with resistance.

2. Interesting material but in the wrong place: I believe the crux of the issue is that posting critical reviews on the forum of a person or company playing in that very field is just tricky business. It isn’t impossible: I do it regularly and somehow seem to find shelter in a steadily more developed mix of obvious irony, humor, absurdity, self-reflection and hard-core objective criticism that’s just difficult to argue with honestly. And, yep, sometimes I just plain old shoot myself in the foot. That I accept as a necessary consequence of keeping Bakfiets en Meer, and by extension Workcycles honest and real. There’s no fluff here folks and I’m not a professional writer.

But that’s all much more difficult to keep straight in a guest post. Josh has a lot of experience and insights and a lot to say. I was game to let him take a crack at a post and I take full responsibility for the results. But then as he notes in one of the now 110 comments below, he’s more comfortable working with metal than with words. And I have only so many hours for blogging. I do also run a company, have a wife and two little kids and like to ride my racing bike fast with my friends when possible.

We’ve discussed this experience offline and Josh seems game for another try… ahem yes, with a somewhat different approach. We’ll see how it goes.

Regards,
Henry

An introduction from editor Henry (the original introduction that is):

Over the years I’ve offered several colleagues the opportunity to do a “guest post” but maybe only once before has somebody gone for it. I’ll begin this one with an introduction and preface:

I didn’t write the post below nor do I necessarily even agree with some of the things Josh wrote. It’s an opinion piece. Nonetheless I found it an interesting and discussion provoking read and after somewhat too many hours editing chose to publish it. Even though it’s written by somebody completely independent of Workcycles, I founded Workcycles and this is my blog. So no, I can’t really avoid taking some heat for the criticism of colleagues’ bikes but I can live with that.

I’ve known Josh Boisclair for six or seven years now. He’s worked for two of our dealers, visited us in Amsterdam a couple times and spent a week or two “learning” in the Workcycles workshops. Realistically he was learning much more about Dutch culture and cycling than about building Dutch bikes because he’s one of those few, gifted mechanic types who doesn’t really need to be shown how something as simple as a bike works. With a couple hints about what to be looking for he’ll figure out the rest. Josh has spotted and solved a couple of our production irregularities from afar.

Such characters don’t generally come without their eccentricities and Josh is no exception. Perhaps Josh’s tick is that he’s brutally, sometimes painfully honest. If he sees that something’s been poorly designed or made… he’ll say it regardless of the political ramifications. If he digs something you’ll hear that too. He doesn’t kiss ass and that makes a great barometer for the thick-skinned. And I suppose that’s why you get to enjoy Josh’s take on cargo bikes ca. 2011; If he didn’t like my own bikes he’d have explained exactly why and then there wouldn’t really be any point in me publishing such unflattering stuff on my own blog.

The other tick is a rather humorous tendency toward conspiracy theory or at least a belief rooted in the misconception that everybody has innate technical understanding. Thus one who sells something that’s less than “as good as they can be reasonably expected to produce” is quickly categorized as dishonest, rather than possibly naive or disinterested.

So my dear colleagues apologies in advance for any bruised egos that result from the report below. I didn’t write it but I do trust both the technical understanding and honesty of its source. Put your hardhats on and have a fun ride!

Regards,
Henry

Photo courtesy of Oscar Mulder at My Dutch Bike. Photographer unknown and almost certainly no longer amongst the living.

Bicycles that carry stuff have been around for over 100 years. The Long John, of the 1930′s is still in limited production. The Dutch Bergreijer company was one of many firms experimenting with various styles of cargo-carrying bicycles at the turn of the last century. There is however, a relatively recent “revival” of cargo bicycles in the last few years. Bicycles in general have been gaining popularity. Americans like “stuff” so now more and more of us are looking for ways to carry our stuff by bicycle. Of course this isn’t really new at all: Elsewhere in the world people have been carrying stuff by bicycle for over a century. What has changed though, is the way we buy things, and how we gather information-(often misinterpreted as learning) about things.

There have always been inferior designs of machinery, low quality products, salespeople completely disconnected from what they are selling, and marketing scams. Now all these things can reach many more people much more quickly. The way we buy things and gather information has changed. We may look at pictures and read about products on the internet, all without ever actually seeing or touching the product in question. In general, there is a growing disconnection from all things material, a growing frenzy of confusion and deception… all leading toward a growing market for Crap. What follows is my brief review of this phenomenon regarding the recent cargo bike revolution in American cities.

I have been a professional bicycle mechanic for 15 years. One of the companies I worked for was The Dutch Bicycle Company (now called “The DBC”, not to be confused with “Dutch Bike” Seattle and Chicago ). We were one of the first to import the van Andel (Bakfiets.nl) Bakfietsen and Workcycles “stadsfietsen”. This was my introduction to “real” bicycles: bicycles for every day life. I moved with the company to Boston and witnessed the company’s shift from importing quality bicycles into poorly trying to reinvent the wheel with their own city bike. By this time I had ridden many bikes extensively: the Monark Long John and Truck, Long and Short version Bakfiets, Sorte Jernhest rear-steer trikes, and all of the imported city bikes from Workcycles, Velorbis and Sogreni.

I left and rode my fixed-gear bike with a BOB trailer to California. (Ed: Yes, Josh actually RODE his fixie across the USA with a trailer, folks) Here I worked in a few more shops and was introduced to the Bilenky cargo bike, and the Xtracycle. I performed probably 50 or so Xtracycle conversions, and thoroughly learned the limits of that concept. Many were very scary to ride! Surly came out with the Big Dummy, an improvement on the longtail idea, and now all the big names make such bikes. Even Bikes Not Bombs performs sketchy extended rear end conversions for developing countries.

Now I work at My Dutch Bike in San Francisco and have come full circle. Many “new” designs have popped up in the last two or three years and I’ve been able to test the Larry vs. Harry Bullitt, the Portland-built Metrofiets, the Double Dutch Birota (which is also called a number of other names under different “brands”), the Human Powered Machines cargo bike made in Eugene, a Puma/Biomega prototype at Interbike, the Fr8 by Workcycles, the Gazelle Cabby, as well as a number of local, hand-made bikes of varying quality and functionality. I’ve even designed and built my own cargo bike for my girlfriend and I to use for transporting gardening supplies, welding tanks and other bikes.

My goal here is just to provide a real, “blue-collar” review of the cargo bicycles I’ve personally ridden, and some meaningful information about others I either admire or despise.

Photo from Workcycles.

van Andel Bakfiets (Bakfiets.nl/Workcycles)
This is the cargo bike that I have the most experience with. My girlfriend and I rode a short one back in Florida daily. Since real-world bicycle use is almost non-existent in Florida, the bike got tons of attention and positive comments. It introduced me to the endless capabilities of bicycles. Before this bike, all I ever had to carry things was a BOB trailer. So the Bakfiets really enlightened me to the ease and comfort of carrying 100 plus pounds regularly.

Since then, I have lived in Boston with the same bike, and now live in California and sell the Bakfiets at My Dutch Bike in San Francisco. The frames have since been modified slightly: a larger main tube in place of the old gusset along the bottom. The rear rack is also changed slightly, though it’s function is the same. These bikes represent a very aesthetically pleasing way to efficiently manufacture a strong, durable cargo frame. The stock gearing is 38 x 22, so 1st gear is a very small 23 inches, adequate for the majority of people in the Bay Area. Even after importing fees, taxes, euro to dollar conversion, and customs, the bikes are selling at a reasonable price. If you add up the parts, and consider the frame, paint, box, ball joints, 2 oversized cartridge headsets, really long steering tube, steering rod, alloy double-wall rims, 13 gauge stainless spokes, dynamo hub, LED lights…the list goes on: the bike clearly costs what the sum of its parts add up to. One thing I do miss is the internal electrical wire routing of the older frames. Not sure exactly why this stopped, although the wire is still adequately protected with plastic sheathing. Could one build a lighter-weight version of this bike and still have the same load capacity? Sure, but it would take twice as long for the factory to make resulting in a utility bike costing more than most are willing to pay. Azor/van Andel/Workcycles have engineered a perfect blend of practicality, affordability, features, and quality into a bicycle.

Photo by Claudio Olivares.

Larry vs. Harry Bullitt:
This Danish bike is interesting. I like are the look, the colours, and the general idea of building a faster, lighter, sportier cargo hauler. There are a few messengers here in SF riding these around in very flashy custom colours. The bike IS very light, although the cargo platform is too narrow. Also, I am curious why they didn’t make it with a lower step-through. Perhaps because the market for these bikes is amongst experienced riders. Here is great video highlighting the Larry vs. Harry Bullitt in Copenhagen. Also visible are Sorte Jerhest rear steer trikes.

What I don’t like about the Bullitt are the ergonomics, the steering geometry, aluminum frame, exposed drivetrain, inability to mount a rear rack, lack of wheel lock eyelets, and the smallish cargo area. The steering column should be taller and threaded for use with a 1 1/8” quill stem. The frame should be chro-moly steel, like the Cetma Cargo bike and others, and the top tube should be lower. Aluminum is not nearly as strong as steel and is soft. To make a frame that won’t break, the tubes have to be thick and large, resulting in a very stiff ride. If the frame flexes enough, over a long period of time, stress fractures are inevitable. Even a small dent in a tube starts to crack after a little while. Aluminum is just not a material for a long-lasting cargo bike. I am very interested to see how and when these bikes start breaking.

(Ed: Josh, I disagree on this one. I suspect the Bullitt is so overbuilt that it’ll take a lot of use and abuse before even fatigue and crack propagation kills any. And besides it just wouldn’t be the same bike in skinny steel tubes. The fatness is very much part of the bike’s charm.)

Photo by Metrofiets.

Metrofiets Portland Manifest Cargo bike w/ Box:
I absolutely love what Metrofiets is doing in Portland. They join a handful of other cargo bike builders there, amongst them Joe Bike and Tom LaBonty. As much of a fan I am of the Metrofiets ideal, I was not impressed with their bike though. It rode like a wet noodle with gobs of lateral flex even without a load. The steering feel was very heavy and stiff since instead of heim joints they use bolts with a plastic sleeve, and the front wheel is large at 24 inches. The bike itself was huge and seemed just as heavy as the van Andel Bakfiets yet it included no rear carrier. The Metrofiets box, while nicely made, was small… especially for such a big bike. I’m also not a fan of disk brakes on a bike for everyday use in the real world, nor an exposed drive chain.

As a metal worker, it bothers me to see welds ground down to be smooth yet still having pinholes visible even through thick powdercoat. More time could be spent cleaning them up. The parking stand was also not very functional at all. It sure was pretty but style shouldn’t interfere so much with function. It was rusting where it touches the ground, the paint having been scraped off and the steel being worn down. The hinges were rusting and squeaking as well.

I talked with Metrofiets over the phone and was assured all these issues were being taken care of in the new “production version” of their frames. I was told that this particular bike was made to be lightweight for the cargo bike race. Well, it wasn’t that light, and I am not sure how long that main tube can flex so much without bending or breaking. I mean, there was no weight at all in the bike and I felt like I was riding a leaf spring. The production bikes will still have disk brake mounts, but they can build you whatever you want. I prefer Sachs drum, Sturmey 90mm drum, and Shimano IM70 rollerbrakes. Hydraulic disks are very powerful, able to stop on a dime as your pinky accidentally hits the brake lever on a bump. But the cost is too high both for the actual parts and also the extra fabrication. Maintanance and repair costs are aso higher and not so easy for the average joe just trying to get around town. Even more importantly: Is such a chassis structurally and dynamically up the task of violently stopping 500-600 lb total? I don’t doubt these bikes will get better and I wish them the best of luck. Their colours are very nice as well as their cargo bay rails and detailing. I look forward to testing one of their newer frames.

Photo by Workcycles.

Monark/Velorbis Long John:
This bike is tough, industrial and classic. It looks like it was designed a long time ago because it was. It has a very low trail steering design, which caters well for heavy loads, but unloaded takes a little getting used to. They cost quite a bit of money for the level of craftsmanship and components used. The rear rack is insanely sturdy. I would love to own a vintage Long John one day, but the reintroduced ones are dated. There are better options available these days.

Photo by Workcycles.

Biomega/Puma Cargo Bike:
I don’t have much good to say about this bike other than that the handling is pretty good and that the steering linkage has decent heim joints. Further, the aluminum frame rides harshly and the stupidly-long-reach threadless stem isn’t height adjustable. There are no rear carrier mounts, crappy V-brakes, crappy wheels, crappy derailleur gears, unneccesarily high stand-over/step-through height, a regular kickstand, all for an extremely small and useless cargo area. Not worth your money or another word.

Photo by Workcycles.

Chinese Cargo Bikes (Birota, Double Dutch, Zeitbikes… )
I started working with steel a few years ago, welding, brazing, cutting, bending, building, etc. Needless to say, I’ve learned a ton about various types, kinds, and grades of steel and what it all means in the real world. To sum it up, whatever “metal” they’re using to build these bikes is soft, weak, and full of impurities. I know this first hand: You can cut through a Chinese bakfiets with a dull hacksaw blade installed backwards in about 30 seconds. Then, you will notice that the inside of the frame tube has a thick coat of bright orange rust, even though the bike is brand spanking new. If you try to weld the two halves back together, good luck: all the impurities burn off and instead of getting a nice puddle of molten steel to weld with you get a gaping hole since all that wasn’t steel just went into your lungs if you weren’t wearing a respirator. So is it even necessary to go further and waste time talking about the shitty components installed on the frames? Or the thoughtless “design” of the frames? The amount these bikes are selling for will not last, but these bikes will always be available, and some schmuck will want to make money for nothing. Flying Pigeon bikes are still made and still sell, because you can get them for about $200, much less in China. Expect prices of the Chinese cargo bikes to drop to $300 – 600 within in the next few years. Meanwhile, the CEOs of these companies are buying their retirement retreats in Florida.

Photo by Wojofoto, and a great capture it is!

Gazelle Cabby:
Great for family duties. Also good when you have an oversized vehicle in a one-car garage since the cargo bay folds up. The swoopy lines suggest the designers had fun with this bike and those lines are not entirely functionless. If you like the modern look, than you might like this bike. There is lots of plastic though, and the sub $3,000 price comes with a price: frame is made in China. The Cabby differs from the Chinese cargo bike knock-offs however: it’s TIG welded to a good standard. The frames are also very straight, and I have yet to see rust on a brand-new Gazelle. (Ed: Plenty of quality frames are made in China too, including those of many of the megabuck carbon fiber bikes.)

Photo by Joshua Muir, Frances Cycles

Francis Small Haul:
If I were to give awards for cargo bicycle design, the gold medal would go to Joshua Muir of Frances Cycles in Santa Cruz for his Small Haul. It’s obviously not for everyone nor for heavy cargo but it’s definitely useful and absolutely beautiful! The number of connections and amount of detail in the steel frame make it totally impractical as a production bike but that is part of the charm of this small cargo bike. Muir is clearly an talented craftsman, and his Small Haul is one of the handful of truly innovative modern designs. This is the bike I’m most excited about riding one day.

Photo by Workcycles.

Workcycles Fr8, Universal Frame:
The design, craftsmanship, and detail execution on this bike are superb. Very few production bikes have the useful. little details properly executed, in such an elegant and practical package. This may be the “Heaviest Duty” regular format bicycle (without extended steering) available. Flex is nonexistent until you have more than 200 pounds on it plus yourself, suggesting its carrying capacity must be somewhere around 350-400 pounds plus 200 pound rider. The TIG welding is above average for a production bike as well as the overall frame alignment and placement/fitment of all attachments.

I don’t think any proper “city/utility” bike is as modular or interchangeable as the Fr8. Sure, there are lighter-duty bikes which may be slightly more suitable for some people carrying lighter loads less frequently, but this bike is called the Fr8 for a reason.

The Fr8 successfully blends the best elements of the traditional Dutch transportfiets, and the traditional baker’s bike, deli bike or truck bike (whatever you want to call a bike with a smaller front wheel and low front rack with a single steering column) and adds modern materials and components, insane modularity, vastly improved ergonomics, significantly increasing the bike’s versatility over anything previously made.

Photo from Steven Vance’s Flickr photostream.

Yuba Mundo:
This design, like the Xtracycle, and various other extend-a-bikes seems a passing fad. I mostly see people carrying two children on the back platform, or groceries, sometimes a large ladder or box,… plus an additional “counter-weight” on the other side. The drive chain needs to be very long, necessitating rollers and/or varying kinds of tensioning /anti-derailment devices further adding drag, wear, and things to go wrong. I have yet to find any “old” photos of bikes with this design. If anyone finds any, please share them and let me know! Otherwise I’ll regard them as nothing more than a 10 to 20 year-long fad in bicycle design.

One day about a year ago I was stupefied when somebody came into the shop carrying two bikes, one on either side of their Xtracycle rear end. The customer carried one bike into the shop for service, and I assumed both because, why carry two right? When I asked about the other bike, carried four miles on their Xtracycle, they said it wasn’t being dropped off, but was counter-weight to balance the repair bike. “well what is your counter weight now” I asked since they just dropped off one bike for repair. “no need, I’m just going to ghost ride it home.” “OK, I thought, why didn’t you just ghost ride the repair to the shop?” Actually I didn’t really say that last question out load since I then realized that some people just like to be seen riding their bike(s).

CONCLUSIONS
When buying a cargo bicycle or ANY piece of heavy-use machinery, go with something that has stood the test of time. Any “brand-new” design or company will be hit or miss, mostly miss. To a certain extent you generally get what you pay for except with the cheap, Chinese “cargo bikes”: in that case you’re just getting screwed.

Family transport:
Carrying multiple children distances under 20 miles is still best with either the van Andel Short Bakfiets or Joebike Shuttlebug. Second place comes the Long Bakfiets or the Workcycles Fr8, since these can actually carry three or more children. Compared to the US hand-built bikes these bikes have more real world useful features like a built in lock, good parking stand, hub brakes, enclosed chain, etc. For longer distances and/or “sport riding” with children the Francis Small Haul looks great.

Cargo transport:
For carrying cargo, there are plenty of options dependent on your needs: Bilenky or Borracho “Filibus” type cargo bikes, the Cetma Cargo or HPM Long Haul, the Workcycles Fr8… However an actual vintage Dutch Transportfiets would gain you some retro-groutch/bike snob/cool points.

Somehow it just warms my heart to see thousands of city bikes lined up in endless rows. That requires about as much space as a supermarket or a small office building. Sometimes I wonder how big a parking facility for that many cars would be. I suppose the answer is that it would look rather like the vast sea of asphalt and cars that surrounds a big shopping mall: Occasionally full but usually mostly empty blackness… what a waste of space.

A Dutch bike parking facility, on the other hand, tends to remain remarkably full. Only after business hours does it thin out considerably. When I used to park my bike daily at the Amsterdam Fietsflat I almost always ended up walking all the way up to the upper level since I came in toward the end of the “rush hour”. The lowest level was perpetually crammed with crappy student bikes, often two or three per “official” space.

Of course there’s bike parking all over the city but most of the really big units are at train stations since lots of people ride their bikes to take a train to another town. That might be to “commute” to a job in another town, but it’s often also students who move back and forth between the university in one town and “home-home” in another. They might even keep an old bike at each end. I suppose one could say that this is a misuse of public space, but it could be easily argued that it’s really very, very little space. Any other means of transport also requires some use of public space and resources as well.


I couldn’t find any pictures of the brand new Haarlem station fietsenstalling so this artist’s rendering will have to do for now.

This morning I read in the Fietsberaad Newsbrief that a new that the city of Haarlem has just opened a new fietsenstalling (“fietsen” = “bikes”, “stalling” = “parking”, as in stalls for horses). With spaces for 5050 bikes they claim it to be the biggest in Europe. Certainly it is bigger than the famous and constantly photographed “Fietsflat” by Amsterdam Central Station, which somehow typically holds about 4000 bikes in 2500 spaces. But the “biggest in Europe” might be a bit of hyperbole since there’s already at least one other fietsenstalling with about 5000 spaces: the Stadsbalkon in Groningen. But I’d be surprised to hear about any other facilities in the western world (but outside Holland) that even approach these numbers.

Groningen – Stadsbalkon (Stationsplein) by Geert Schotanus, on Flickr

Stadsbalkon/Fietsenstalling by stormblast1953, on Flickr

Ironically, both of these new facilities will probably operate at capacity within a couple years since, like auto traffic, the demand seems to follow the supply.

Speaking of getting more bikes on the street, Workcycles has just begun a historic clearance sale on a bunch of bikes and gear. After eight years in business it’s just time to simultaneously make some space and make some customers happy with some great deals. At the top of the list are no less than four ex-rental/demo Cargobikes (all Long versions) in great shape. Also on offer are Monark Trucks and Long Johns and a whole bunch of parts and accessories. The bikes can be seen here:
Workcycles Clearance Sale

And the parts and accessories will be added in the coming days and weeks. Expect to see: lights, panniers, tires, saddles, locks, child seats and plenty of random but perfectly usable components.

The coastal climate keeps it from snowing in Amsterdam as much as you’d figure for a place quite far north and with a reputation for considerable rainfall. Some winters it hardly snows at all while some winters it begins in November and snows regularly until spring. Still it almost never snows more than perhaps ten centimeters and then it usually warms up a couple days later, making a slushy, dirty mess and gradually disappearing.

This winter, however, it’s already snowed more in November and the first half of December than we usually see all year. No matter; we have our bikes to get around and today’s snowfall was just what I needed to remember that. This morning I had a plan to train at the Velodrome with my friend Toon. Yes, I still do that sort of thing and no, there is no conflict between being a cyclist for both transportation and fun/fitness. The Amsterdam Velodrome is great way to stay fit when it’s like this outside. It’s just warm enough to wear shorts and even in a snowstorm there are 30 or 40 riders in a training session paceline.


Here’s a picture I coincidentally found of Toon at the Velodrome. See? Nice and warm and dry and fast; sure beats sitting on a stationary trainer at home.

The only challenge today was that I had my track bike at home, not in the storage at the velodrome. Carrying a bike while riding a bike is no big deal; usually I do it with the bakfiets. The front wheel comes off and I strap the handlebar against the back of the box. The rear wheel stands on the front edge of the box and a pair of straps hold the whole rig upright. Looks a little funny but it works like a charm. You might be thinking “Why doesn’t he just ride with the track bike rolling alongside like most normal folks would do?” Or alternatively “Why doesn’t he just ride that darn track bike like the entire world population of skinny-jeans with U-lock wearing, butt-crack showing hipsters. And there is a reason: At a wooden velodrome it’s not allowed to ride on tires that have ever been ridden outside. They can pick up debris that would damage the track surface.

Anyhow Kyoko needed the bakfiets to bring the kids to the daycare this morning and for reasons to mundane to explain our Fr8 city bike was at the shop. That left me with my Brompton folding bike, which actually sucks in snow much less than you’d expect. It is sketchy handling on the slippery, squishy stuff but it’s also very low to the ground making it really easy to do the one foot “outrigger” or tripod thing. So for lack of a better option I set the saddle a few cm lower than usual, tossed the track bike on my right shoulder and set off through about 10cm of unplowed snow holding the Brompton’s handlebar with my left hand. Comfortable it was not but neither was it dangerous; I just had a few kilometers to ride, almost entirely on separated bike paths. I didn’t fall until I tried to dismount at Toon’s house. Then I discovered that the neighborhood road I’d been cycling on was as slippery as a greased pig and fell immediately on my butt with two bikes on top of me. So much for grace.

I did consider the other transport options this morning:

Car: Well, we don’t have one of our own. I could probably have borrowed a friend’s car but it’s parked about half as far away as I had to ride anyway. In any case auto traffic around the city was a mess. The few snowplows they have here were running way behind the heavy snowfall and cars were stuck everywhere.

Tram: There’s a tram that runs between our two houses, with just another few minutes walk on his end. Problem is that the trams and buses were all getting stuck behind the floundering cars and trucks. One of my Workcycles colleagues spent half the afternoon trying to cross the city by tram and finally ended up walking most of it out of frustration. The trams that are running smoothly are jam packed so I also wouldn’t have made any friends carrying a bike frame and a pair of wheels.

Taxi:That would be convenient aside from sitting in traffic while watching the meter tick away at the alarmingly fast Amsterdam taxi rate. Oh, yes, I’d still have to disassemble and reassemble the bike to fit it in the trunk. Basically we only take taxis in Amsterdam when headed to deliver a baby or return home with that baby. Four times thus.

Walking: The distance was just too far for a reasonable walk. It would have taken well over an hour.

This evening after work I rode the Cargobike (bakfiets) to the daycare to pick the kids up. By then quite a bit more snow had fallen and it was either packed down into ice on the car roads or half packed and half sliced up into zig-zag tracks on the bike paths. The bakfiets is actually quite good in such crappy cycling conditions. Though the front wheel is lightly loaded and slides fairly easily the low center of gravity and long wheelbase make for very forgiving handling. Kyoko and I both prefer it to our city bikes when it’s slippery. When it’s as slippery as it was this evening falling is more an inevitability than a bad scenario. Falling with the children under a tough canopy in the wooden box of the bakfiets is annoying for you but probably just funny for your kids. Falling with kid(s) on child seats on a regular bike will result in at least one snowy, screaming kid.

I did drop the bakfiets once this evening; After successfully navigating the paths, roads and sidewalks (hey, whatever works when it looks like this out) to our home I once again today fell on my butt after dismounting at my destination. Two year old Pascal’s response while on his side under the canopy? “Bakfiets Boom! Bakfiets Boom!”

One morning about a week ago I walked outside with the kids on the way to their daycare to discover that our beloved bakfiets had disappeared. A number of Workcycles customer bikes have been stolen recently so theft was our first thought. Nonetheless I walked across the street for a closer look and found the bike hanging from its front wheel. The second lock, which I usually leave behind on that rail, wasn’t connected to the frame. I’m really careful about locking so this all seemed very strange.

A neighbor, headed to unlock his own bike, commented that he’d just seen some guys busy here. Probably they’d tossed the bakfiets over as a joke. He was kind enough to help me pull the 40kg bike back onto land and I continued on to the daycare and work. Aside from some scratches on the box and canopy there was no visible damage.

The bike had been sitting in the water past the rear hub so I asked our shop guys to open the hub, clean the taillamp and chain etc. They found surprisingly just a few drops of water in the hub but that’s still too much. Cleaned and re-lubricated, back in the bike, and the hub now actually feels much better than before. This hub, not uncommon for early Shimano Nexus 8 speeds, was noticeably rough in the fourth gear. Freshly lubed and adjusted, this has all but disappeared.

Fast forward a few days to Friday morning. A storm was passing through (as it often is) and the wind was blowing like mad last night. Bikes, scooters, branches, motorcycles are all over the streets and pavements. Kyoko looks outside and yep, the bakfiets has disappeared into the canal again. From our third floor (fourth to those counting American style) dining room perspective we can just barely see the bottom of the box and a parking stand leg poking into the air. As sentient beings we put 2 + 2 + 2 together and realize that it was, in all likelihood, the wind that tossed the bakfiets off the pavement and not some local, malcontent youths.

But why, all of sudden, does the bike get knocked over by the wind twice in a week when it’s never happened before in the last two years of parking it in the very same spot? Our new habit must be to blame: About a week ago we began leaving the canopy on the bike instead of bringing it inside every evening. It seemed more convenient… and I suppose it would be
if we didn’t park the bike in such an exposed location. Thus a word of warning: Don’t leave your kids in a bakfiets with canopy up in a windstorm next to a canal.

Staten Island Criterium 1982, I’m the kid with orange helmet, blue jersey, red arm pieces.

Speaking of windstorms my old bike racing buddy Chris sent me this photo from our bike racing days as young teens. It was March 1982 and I’d just moved up to the Junior category (ages 15-18) as District Champion in the Intermediate category (ages 12-14). The race was a criterium on a highly exposed course along the beach in Staten Island, NY. We did thousands of such, little races but I remember this one vividly because it was freezing cold and the wind was absolutely howling. Only those with glasses wore eye protection in those days and clouds of sand kicked up from the beach got in our eyes. Lots of it. At least half the field called it quits after it was too painful to continue. The wind and resulting echelons sliced up what remained of the field and finally only a handful of us finished. Our home was just a short drive away and my dad had lived on Staten Island so my folks came along to watch. Even given the awful conditions in such a meaningless race, quitting was not an option today. Instead I won a meal at a local Italian restaurant (or something like that) and washed sand out of my eyes for days. Those were the days.

Well, it’s at least thought provoking… especially if you can ignore such details as the radial spoked front wheel with disk brake and the lack of several important, practical details. Most notably, where’s the little fold down seat for a toddler?

From here on Designboom

Thanks to Sjoerd of Double Dutch in Switzerland.

Apologies for the lack of blogging action here at BeM. We’re just super busy with “business as usual” at Workcycles and taking turns going on holiday after lots of busy business as usual for many months.

What’s new? Well, speaking of toddlers, lots of things though the most recent proud papa moment was 26 month old Pascal suddenly deciding that the balance bike (loopfiets) is cool after all. So he just got on and pushed off. A week later he’s tearing around like he was born on the thing. It’s quite surreal to see a two year old riding a bike. I haven’t had a chance to snap any photos yet so here are a couple just a week earlier of P1 demonstrating his mad scooter skills. He’s been riding this little Micro Mini scooter (€70 at Workcycles!) for 8 months already so the balance thing is already second nature; riding the bike was just a matter of doing the same on a different shaped vehicle. Actually he pedals a tricycle around at the daycare so, in principle, he could already put the two skills together and ride a pedal powered bike already… except that I don’t think there are any bikes small enough for such young kids. It’s doubtful he could reliably operate either a handbrake or coaster brake, so this little bike would probably have to be a fixed gear like the antique Dutch kids bikes we’ve restored. I have to admit liking the idea of building a teeny-weeny fixie, complete with mismatched wheels, top tube pad and a couple Knog lights but really, riding a balance bike until he’s three won’t exactly stunt his development.

Sometimes he goes a bit overboard and takes a spill but thus far he’s never hurt himself. Mostly he laughs and just jumps right back on. I imagine it helps to have begun developing these skills at such a young age but anyhow, I suppose a toddler who’s trying to ride skateboards he makes from Lego blocks and wheels needs a little space.

I first wrote about P1′s little scooter, balance bike and baby bakfiets half a year ago: Pascal has a bakfiets too.

More importantly, what’s keeping us busy and me in a steady stream of proud papa moments is that we’re now a family of four. P1 is now Pia’s (P2) big brother.

Here they are, snug as bugs in rugs, in the family Truckster (a.k.a. Bakfiets Cargobike). Pia’s napping in the Maxi-Cosi while Pascal no longer needs (nor wants) his toddler support seat (a Bobike Mini with its mounting equipment removed). Here they demonstrate that kid(s) can sit on the bench together with baby in Maxi-Cosi, all weather protected by the canopy. As far as I’m aware Workcycles’ Maxi-Cosi carrier is the only way to do this.

A family in our neighborhood sent this photo to me today nicely illustrating something most people in the Netherlands take for granted: A bike is simply an amazingly convenient way to move stuff around the city. A bakfiets makes it safer and easier, and increases the load capacity but isn’t really necessary. Watch the cyclists ride by for a couple minutes (especially on a Saturday) and you’ll see somebody ride by carrying something unusual. it might be secured into a “bak” but then it might also just be balanced on their rear carrier and steadied by a hand, propped onto the handlebars or in one hand. Below some more examples, mostly from Marc at Amsterdamize

A Workcycles customer in Frankfurt, Germany sent this photo along; one more handy advantage of a bakfiets.

See also:
Slapen in de bak
Sleeping on het bakfietsbankje

Julie of Adeline Adeline, our brand-new dealer in Manhattan passed this photo along this evening. Not just one Bakfiets Cargobike in New York… but two Cargobike owners who don’t even know each other. Sure, there are a dozen Cargobikes in front of every day-care and nursery school school in Old Amsterdam… but in New Amsterdam, who’d a thunk? It’s about as statistically likely as having two grandmothers named “Adeline”.

Julie only laments that she couldn’t also be in the photo but she was (wo)manning the camera while transporting a stool on the rear carrier of her Workcycles Omafiets. So actually there were three Workcycles bikes present though two of the owners did actually know each other.

A couple things, though, suggest that there’s still lots more work to be done:

Anyhow here’s to this sight becoming a regular occurrence. Like almost all Workcycles dealers Adeline Adeline (yes, it does get a little tiring writing that twice each time) isn’t a bike shop in the typical, recreational, tech/cult/guy-oriented sense. In their own words “Julie brings a well-edited selection of beautiful, functional bicycles paired with lines of unique accessories in a stylish, welcoming environment.” Translation: Timeless transportation bikes for normal people who don’t necessarily call themselves “cyclists”.

A few facts in case you’re wondering: