zambaccian

It's starting to get kinda hot and I'm having second thoughts about this whole stripped-down track machine aesthetic.

Why do messengers not just use baskets or panniers or something? Who wants to bike around with a sweaty back?

FarAwayBoy

Messenger bags are cool.
End of story.
Baskets are lame unless you're a five year old girl.

droptop

i completely disagree. reasons 1-24 why my rear rack is better than your backpack is the case of beer i just got home. 25 is my dinner.

FarAwayBoy

Well.
It's easier for me to access my rear wheel and drivetrain.

Enthusiast

I like the feeling of a light bike so I prefer to carry the weight on my back. I also appreciate having my cargo carrying ability separate from my bike when I decide that I want to go on a group road ride on the weekend, or lock my bike in a sketchy part of town. Taking racks/panniers/baskets on and off a bike is a big pain. Oh, and I use a backpack but the same idea applies for a messenger bag.

kringle

There's plenty of cool rides with baskets in San Francisco.

imetazoa

i love my basket. but i am a girl... a tiny one who looks like she is 5 years old...

FarAwayBoy

My comment stands.

Snails

backpacks give you sweaty backs..

imetazoa

to be fair... there are front loading racks that dont look as girly. i think the cetma racks are cool... then you can have all the access you want to your rear wheel.

lanOGiro

sweaty backs give you chicks

orangepaint

Well, I've got two reasons:
1. Racks and panniers affect the handling of your bike. M
2. Most bikes that have provisions for mounting these have touring geo and don't have the handling characteristics some people prefer.

FarAwayBoy

I like those front racks.
I've had people ride on one before.
But baskets make me think of a little girl.
Nothing against racks.

supercub

+1. I don't want the weight on my bike. And messenger bags look damn cool. That's why.

GTPowers

Sweaty back and you get to look like a Ninja Turtle!

maldekai

yep. for me its a matter of handling. who cares about a sweaty back if you're going on errands or working?

FarAwayBoy

What company makes that backpack?
It's ridicidack huge.

cosmo starr

popping curbs with a rack full of groceries never ends well.

hxzero

Chrome.

FarAwayBoy

Should've known.
Those buckles man, that's their signature.
I have one of their messenger bags, the citizen, which is a medium and nearly as big as timbuk2's large.
Their biggest messenger is large enough to carry a child in, comfortably.

GTPowers

Those are actually metal...things but not buckles. Hard to explain but they are kind of like a D hook.

surfimp

Probably because messengers don't give a crap if their back is sweaty?
They do ride their bicycles for a living, you know... sweat is just part of the gig

deadforkinglast

Racks and panniers are really more practical for carrying things. Messenger bags are used by messengers because they have to get on and off of the bike to make deliveries all day and don't want to deal with putting on and taking off panniers all day. I use a bag, not a rack, because I don't really want to put a rack on my track bike or my road bike and don't carry enough weight around for that to be too impossibly impractical.

Racks effect your handling, but, in my experience, not as much as a heavy bag. Racks really make a huge difference in handling when you're carrying a lot more weight in them than you would normally carry in a messenger bag. I've definitely slipped out of a corner on my road bike because my bag pulled me down. That's not really as much of an issue on fixed gears, though, because pedal strike becomes an issue before your bag does.

bryanhayn

because you can't be hipster with a rack/pannier...duh. it's all in the look. style over function. the same way we drive around sporty cars over pickup trucks/vans...or use a belt instead of a piece of string...or drink wine over 40s.

andre nickatina

Panniers = no fun in traffic.

In my experience, a rear basket affects handling way more than a messenger bag. But don't take my word for it, I only delivered up to 50 pounds of burritoes on a track bike through downtown as apart of my totally sweet food delivery job last summer... what could I know!