Stadjer

That's an interesting observation, allthough not universal. Maybe it's because bikes aren't seen or are not wanted to be seen as having the same purpose?

kickstart

Is it really "disingenuous"?

Is an American flag made in China a Chinese flag or an American flag? Is a BMW built in South Carolina an American car or a German car? How about a European bike built exclusively from Asian parts in Europe? We live in a gray world where concept, engineering, and manufacturing can cross over many borders. Its really not so cut and dry anymore.

alan s 

Yes, IMHO. You may have a different opinion, which is OK, IMHO.

AlmostTrick

$200? Really? Please explain what you base this assessment on. Examples of similarly equipped new bikes from other manufactures would go a long way to justify your comment.

kickstart

Sometimes its hard to have an opinion.

What is it? American? Asian? Canadian?

An American style bike, made in Asia, for a Canidian company....What the heck is it?

keyven

That was my thinking... used to have the Automatix S2 on my Dahon... pretty good but for its low shifting range (8mph)

bigbenaugust 

I understand the shift speed is dependent on wheel diameter/RPM. I think it's 11mph on 700mm wheels, but you can open it and change the spring to alter the shift speed. I did the homework for my SS bike and decided against it.

noglider 

You're describing the US and Canada markets, right? I don't know as much about other markets, but I believe bikes haven't become quite as impractical outside the US and Canada.

In the 80s, people realized that bikes inspired by racing bikes were not for everyone who wanted to commute or haul stuff (or both). Mountain bikes came in, and people used them as all-purpose bikes instead of using 10-speed bikes with drop bars. These had some advantages, but they still didn't come with lights or racks or fenders or chainguards. They somewhat solved the comfort problems by putting the riders slightly more upright and by providing wider tires, though the knobby tires on paved surfaces are a disservice. So as I see it, we went from one form of impracticality to another.

Which is driving trends, supply or demand? I think that's a tricky chicken-and-egg question. As much as I believe people would ride more if they found it to be practical, practical bikes are not offered in many bike shops. Yet when shops display them, customers don't buy them. Do Americans really think a bike isn't worth consideration unless it is sport-inspired? Maybe; I don't know. Do Dutch bikes (and similar) have the frumpy image that mini-vans (aka mom-mobiles) have? I suspect so, because look at how car companies inspire people to buy: by appealing to the notion of an exceptional trip being the normal, i.e. the vacation or the empty road, when reality is that we're trudging along in our cars in irritating traffic, heading to work and back. Yet we buy oversized vehicles ideally suited to a vacation, not to commuting.

I-Like-To-Bike

You speak to the Truth!
Too many bicycle enthusiasts believe in their own alternate reality when it comes to discussing bicycle commuting or non-speed/training/endurance bicycling activities.

noglider 

I should mention that I'm not immune from that. I rarely ride bikes with upright handlebars even though I do haul stuff and commute to work on bike. But I got into bikes as an athletic cyclist, and I'm fine with cycling in an athletic way, if you know what I mean. But it's just not for everyone. I would like it if upright bikes with fenders, racks, and lights looked normal to Joe Average. That way, when he goes looking for a bike, he's open to that idea.

Things are changing in cities. I see utilitarian bikes here. How long that will spread to the suburbs, if ever, I can't guess.

NPC Brown Cow

There is the old sales adage that "people don't know what they want until you show it to them."

NPC Brown Cow

Sad to say, but in America bikes are seen by the general public as either a rich mans toy or a poor mans means of last resort. In some places that is changing, but it is slow.

noglider 

Well put, @NPC Brown Cow. NYC and other North American cities are seeing change, but as you say, it's slow, and it puts the bike in between poor person's last resort and rich person's toy. Cycling has become common enough that people don't look at you weird if you arrive by bike. And walking around with a helmet on means you're on your way or to a bike, and it no longer brings stares.

alan s 

People still stare at my awesome legs.

noglider 

Sure, that happens, and nothing wrong with that. I was passed by a car on Saturday night, and it was full of men in their early 20s. You know the type. They yelled how they liked my legs. I laughed loudly enough for them to hear me. All in good fun.

kvwall23

sladda (Swedish)
Verb
sladda
intransitive - to slide, to skid
transitive - to groom a gravel road, to crush clods in a farm field

sturvey

Hmm, I wonder if it will have a Synchro Shift option

thumpism 

We were in IKEA at Potomac Mills in NoVa today and I got to check out the bike. Nice enough little bike but I do not like coaster brakes, even if a two-speed hub. The SRAM kickback works well enough (they had the bike set up on a trainer) but it seems to be direct drive and overdrive, a combo I would probably find to be overgeared for me judging by the chainring (beltring?) and cog sizes. Another guy was looking at it also and commented on the price of $399 and I said, "It's got $100 worth of tires on it." He was shocked, but Schwalbe Marathons are not cheap. I like the porteur rack with IKEA-branded wood strips. The little trailer was also pretty cool, and they sell panniers in black or neon green for $30 bucks each. My favorite feature of the bike was the tiny bell integrated into the Tektro brake lever.