79pmooney

All my bikes can take fenders. They stay on year-round on my two rain/winter/city bikes, go on as needed on my two best bikes and go on and off my old custom depending on its function at the time.

One of my best bikes is a custom road fix gear with a very long dropout. The rear fender is cut at the brake bridge. The reap oiece got modified further. I cut the fender sides in two places, straightened it out a bit, then fiberglassed the inside to maintain that new shape and increase stiffness. Now I can slide that rear wheel anywhere and never contact the fender. I can ride that Portland hills now using both a 23 tooth cog to go up and a 12 to come down and never mess with the fender. (SKS silver. Not a bad match for a ti frame.)

Ben

Darth Lefty 

The surgery-recovery trike absolutely would require some fenders if used year round. The front wheels spray on the hands. As it stands I go around sprinkler puddles and anything else.


Here's the mud guard situation on my MTB-commuter. Overkill most of the time, but good for mud puddles. I'm not back on this bike for another month or two.

jlaw

Your rig looks almost identical to one that one of the older gents on our Sunday morning rides uses - with the exception that he has an electric hub motor on the rear wheel. He's been in the club a long time and has had some health issues. His trike keeps him out there - cruising along at 15-16 mph for 30+ miles. His battery is in the trunk bag supported by the rear rack like the one you have.

Best of luck in your recovery.

tweekfreekdX

Does velo sell the release tabs or does it come with the fenders, also thanks for the info on the install. Kind of wondering if the stainless won’t be a bit much with an orange frame and mostly black accents. Shiny things strike again!

Gresp15C

Are you sure you didn't mean to say that the overwhelming majority do have fenders? Indeed, open-wheel cycling might be a peculiarity of the US.

Here's China and Netherlands:

Darth Lefty 

You don’t get more points for dunking harder

mcours2006

I think you actually do in the slam dunk contest. More emphatic.

alloo

I originally got a bike without fenders, but installed fenders after going through some puddles after a rain storm. I guess it depends how much it rains or people use their water sprinklers where your ride.

jlaw

I used the tabs that came with the VO fenders - they look like they would release if the fender stays are pulled hard axially. If you're not sure then you can buy specific hardware like this:

Check to make sure these work with VO stays.

https://www.jensonusa.com/Planet-Bik...BoCfQ0QAvD_BwE

fietsbob

Commuting ? , at least 2 ...


the 2 bikes I ride least, have no mudguards.. (out of 8) or racks to carry stuff ..









...

RidingMatthew

i would recommend a bike with fenders. My commuting bike has them and they are great. One time a friend and I were riding a rail trail together we got caught in a storm. The trail became a river of black water it was gross. i ride on a trail with sand and stuff and i believe it keeps me and the bike cleaner. I have not noticed the fenders slowing me down or any other common gripes against them.

I arrived dry because the rain had stopped and my bike/ body was clean. He was covered head to toe in black dirt from the trail and so was his bike.

I am still surprised his lack of adding fenders after that experience.

Harhir

Yes in Europe most bikes have fenders. Over there the bikes are utility vehicles first. Yes they ride fender less mountain bikes and road bikes too but the majority of the bikes are the utility bikes you ride to work, school, haul your groceries and run most of errands with. And since people wear their regular clothes on these bikes they just don't want to get dirty.
When you go to bike store here in the US they mainly have three types of bikes: road bikes, mountain bikes and cruiser. All tailored towards the recreational use. Hardly any US bike store carries bike pictured above. In Europe it is just the opposite. The majority of bikes sold are bikes with fenders, racks and fixed installed dynamo driven lights like shown above.
This is what I grew up with and what I still ride today. I have fenders on almost all my bikes except a mountain bike. I just don't want to get dirty or wet when I ride to work or get my groceries.

alloo

Townie w/Fenders

Archwhorides 

I think that riders with mud slicks on their butts are sexy - seriously, who needs fenders?!

Stormsedge

I put fenders on my Domane this spring when it was raining all the time...have seen no reason to take them off. Not slowing me down. Was briefly mocked by a couple of weinies at the Start of the Cherohala Challenge...then Mother Nature treated us to an absolute downpour the last 20 miles...my jersey the only one not rudely striped with road dirt and oil at the finish. Bwahahahaha.

tweekfreekdX

Not entirely sure that’s gonna happen anytime soon, that’s why I started this thread gotta balance the fun with necessity. Although I would like something a little racier than my Cross Check maybe. I do fancy that bike a lot though it hasn’t let me down yet!

wipekitty

I never believed in fenders, but then I moved to a place where it rains on a regular basis, rains at times of the day other than 4PM, and does not rain so hard that you'll get wet just looking out the window. Amazing - they actually do serve a purpose!

I still primarily use fenders for commuting, though I have a little detachable rear mud flap that I'll transfer to other bikes for riding in the rain. Ever been in a paceline in the rain when riders do not have fenders? It's really not fun.

noglider 

A couple of years ago, someone from Finland said here on BF that club rides go out in the rain. (I guess they don't have much choice.) The club rules state that you must have fenders and that you must have a flap on the rear fender that touches the ground, out of consideration for the person behind you.

robertorolfo

Yeah, can we talk about this? How annoyed do you get when it's a nice dry day, so you are riding a bike without fenders, and then you come up on some stream running across the road because someone is sprinkling their lawn or washing the sidewalk? Kidding but not kidding...

(P.S. In Manhattan you get a few sidewalk washers, but WAY worse are the random little puddles/streams near some parking spots where you know that an Uber or cab driver just dumped out their "bathroom bottle." Fun times...)

devianb

Appearance wise I would rather not have fenders on my mtb, but it is nice to be able to willingly ride through mud, snow, and wet stuff and not worry about backside being dirty after wards. I also have love/hate for my triangle frame bag, but its function out weighs appearance.

jlaw

And, once you have fenders you'll need a set of these.​​​​​​

Buddyflaps | Our Collection

jade408

I am on team fenders because they look pretty

Not on all bikes, but many. They are a good finisher.

Korina

Nah, you really don't. Seriously, where would her internal organs go? In her backside?? These would be much better IMO.

Korina

Kind of a compromise; front fender but not rear; there's a Planet Bike Eco Rack under those panniers (pan-yers), with a solid center section that will probably have a rear fender under it when the rainy season comes.

Riveting

In the late winter when it's still close to freezing, but with lots of snow melt, on the road bike I'll often mount a cheapie plastic clip on front fender if I want to keep my feet from getting too wet (and therefore cold) on longer rides. I also have a seat post mounted rear fender, which goes on in any wet conditions, year round, to keep my butt dry, and sand out of my jersey pockets.