CliffordK

What about a string of induction powered amber lights on the cranks (front and back).

cyccommute 

acidfast7

Really.

£599 here should be around $650. Usually, we get screwed, not you guys. Also, our salaries are ****.

acidfast7

I like the way you think, however, having space to have all of the tools and extra bits necessary for building/maintaining is relatively rare in Western Europe and most people live in an urban environment where a garage would cost more than 10% of their monthly wage. That's one reason that most bikes in Northwest Europe live outside for their lifespan.

Example, England ... 55M people (50,300 mi2 ... in the size of an average US state).

RubeRad

Or pedals. Seems everybody is aware that moving lights are more effective than stationary, but not many use that info (including me)

RubeRad

Turn signals.

I've seen a bike around here with a very ad-hoc looking (DIY?) set of turn signals mounted on the back of his rack. It would be useful I think to have a board like 2-3" high and extending 9 or so inches to each side of my rack with LED turn signals on, that I can activate from a switch on my handlebars.

That in addition to hand signals would I think 'signal' (that's a pun there) to cagers that I'm not a MAMIL scofflaw, I'm a commuter, I just want to use the public roadways subject to the same rules as everybody else, and at the end of the day get home safe.

CliffordK

My pedals are pretty tiny.

I do tend to lift the heel on the upstroke, so one might get a flashing effect with the pedals hidden from the rear, then visible on the upstroke.

However, I would really like LIGHTED SHOES. Oddly there seem to be lighted walking shoes and running shoes, but not cycling shoes.

I have been using a pair of Nightrunner 270 lights for a year or two now, and so far so good.

https://www.nighttechgear.com/

I get a lot of comments on them when people see me coming. But they don't wrap around the back well (see the little tiny red light on the side in the photo).



REI had some "spur lights" on sale, but unfortunately they weren't rechargeable, and had short battery life, and the whole thing had to be disassembled to replace the batteries. I'd rather a really good cuff light... just my last ones disintegrated.

RubeRad

USB chargeable lights on elastic ankle-straps is probably the way to go.

But... I wonder if somebody could design a comfortable electric generator that is basically a near-flat biscuit under the insole, which exploits tiny amounts of compression every downstroke?

I heard once that somebody designed panels that sat on freeway sound barrier walls and were able to generate electricity from vibrations due to freeway noise.

Darth Lefty 

acidfast7

If you call up a place in the UK or in DE (If you know some German), they'll ship the whole bike to you for a nominal amount (usually under $100).

Darth Lefty 

Bike Gremlin

I don't like a very poor (at least where I live) offer of reasonably built and priced rigid (no suspension) bicycles. With rim brake mounts, mudguard and rack mounts etc.
I also hate the decades long trend of relatively short chainstays ("aggressive", "rigid", "aero", "responsive" and similar nonsense being marketed for the short chainstay bikes).
Expulsion of road triples in favour of doubles, and a trend towards 1x road drivetrains as well.
Demise of 7 speed freehubs, with better dishing compared to 8-10 speed ones. No new Shimano 7 speed freehubs can be bought where I live.

My longer ramblings on (modern) bicycle frame (dis)comfort and 1x systems.

Harhir

In general the selection of Trekking and city bikes as well as accessories is limited here in the US and when you find it it is often over priced. Here the market really focuses on the recreational riders on road road bikes, mountain bikes or beach cruisers. But when you want or need a bike for daily errands such as commuting or shopping, aka a utility bike, the selection is limited here in the US. Yes you get some stuff online but bikes stores normally don't carry stuff like utility bikes, dynamos, dynamo lights, internal gear hubs, great selection of fenders and racks, commuter cycling clothes ....
Lots of that you find in most bikes stores in Germany. Fortunately I have family in Germany which I visit once a year and who come here as well. So I order bicycle gear in Germany and have it brought or bring it myself. Last item a brought with me was a SON hub dynamo.

PaulH

That's my experience. Walking into a US bike shop these days is like going to a car dealership, finding nothing but Formula 1 and ATVs, and thinking, "where the hell are the real cars?"

Daniel4

Flexible retractible 3ft clearance bar for riding in traffic that has no bike lanes. Retractible because you don't need it on trails or bike lanes.

Manual crank charger for rechargable dry cells and lithium battery packs.

Retractible sunglass shield that attaches to your bike helmet so you don't need to wear separate sunglasses.

noglider 

Good ideas, @Daniel4!

Bike shops do have commuter bikes here in NYC and probably other places where practical cycling is more common. But I haven't seen any hub dynamos in shops yet. The LBS a block from my home, now closed, was once the biggest Linus dealer in the US. He had Biria and similar brands, too. I think he carried a Dutch brand as well.

acidfast7

https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/283128099418?chn=ps

General Geoff

That's because in the U.S., bikes are by & large recreational toys, and not widely seen as vehicles for transportation.

Darth Lefty 

acidfast7

Way to stereotype of a very diverse population of 320M+ people.

I might as well do the same with the EU and it's 512M inhabitants.

RidingMatthew

it is true though for the most part most people see bikes as toys and not as viable transportation. If they did they would be using them as transportation and we would have more of a demand for the infrastructure. i think of the bike shops near me and they are for the most part pretty varied but I imagine many of the bike sold are for recreation vs transportation.



True

acidfast7

Perhaps you are correct but I don't like stereotypes.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...bD4/edit#gid=0

RidingMatthew

@acidfast7 I don't really either but it can be shown by the lack of cyclists for transportation.. ps cant access google docs.

noglider 

That's a very interesting chart! I'm so amazed that Minneapolis has so many bike commuters.

A metric I'd like to see but I'm sure is not available is how visible bike commuters are. Even though only 1% of New Yorkers commute by bike, we are very visible in many parts of the vast city, and drivers are accustomed enough to seeing us that they behave fairly rationally around us. I hear that is not the case in New Orleans, yet their bike commuting rate is higher.

Harhir

Neither do I but this lists manifests that in my city people do not use their bikes for transportation. Plano TX is almost dead last on the list with 0.1% bike commuters. We have about 70 miles of trails in Plano and 60 miles in neighboring Allen where I work. My commute runs 30% on trails and 70% on suburban neighborhood roads with little to no traffic. But I hardly see any other commuters on bikes.
As an example: One trail runs right by our office building. We have bike racks in the parking garage so the bikes are in the dry. We have showers, lockers and a brand new gym inside the building. And still out of 500 employees there are two of us commuting by bike. But we have people bringing their road bikes by car/truck so they can have a quick ride during lunch time. lol
And for the upcoming election they have added three bonds to the ballot. A $600M and $100M bond to build and improve roads and a $10M bond for parks and trails. So no, it is no stereotype. You are considered normal if you use a 2 to pickup truck to haul your ass to work but you are crazy if you use a bicycle.