All mine have kick stands, would be lost with out them plus they came with the bikes.

Ha ha, so true!

I have a love-hate relationship with stands. Centerstands tend to be the most stable, tend to come lose regularly, can touch in hard cornering, and aren't suitable for CF or light aluminum frames without specialized mounting interfaces.

Rear mount stands aren't stable enough when used with a kiddie carrier, or front panniers.

The most reasonable stands that work well and don't mark paint or damage tubing are the ones that are manufactured for specific bicycles and have mounting lugs incorporated into the frames. Giant does that on some models - but not across the board.

And even those ones aren't any better for kiddie carriers and loaded touring than any others.

If your old enough to remember flik-stand, your old enough to do whatever you want with your bike.
BTW, I had a flik-stand too

The Click-Stand has a "loaded touring" model with a fater tubing and a fater, larger rubber foot! The site has lot's of photo's of loaded touring machines and tandems. NOW, he does state, NOT to Use for loading KIDS into carriers!!

Put a kickstand on it, they are very practical.

As a commuter, a kickstand is a must, in my opinion. It's feel sorry for the poor guys (typically roadies) that have to support their bikes, standing in one position for 20 minutes to hold their place in line. Here is my Pletscher double kickstand. I was surprised how light it was. Just a little heavier than a single. Nice for loading the pannier:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8052/8...7f172ed8_b.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8355/8...8095f1d9_b.jpg

I put a kickstand on my giant roam 1. i was tired of placing it on the ground or always looking for a spot to lean it on.

Got a $28 retail centerstand on my Trek DS 8.6 that is already heavy.
Like it, bike stores tight to the wall, makes tire inspection, chain clean & lube easy but is not uber stable for loading the bike with grocery shopping, just gotta use care.

I do not hear the centerstand bounce when hitting bumps like the sideststand(clamps to seat/chain stays type) that is on my Specialized HT. But the sidestand is more stable loading the rack up w/50# of shopping. (car free here)

One use for the kickstand that makes it "worth the weight" is IF you use a "utility or kid" trailer, man it's a RPIA to try to hook up a trailer to a bike without a kickstand, jmho, ymmv!!! :)

I like that! Gotta CF bike headed my way and will prolly buy one... + it comes w/2 tabs. Kewl. :thumb:

Something i was offered as advice a long time ago. Use a small bungie to hold the rear brake lever on, that way there is less chance of roll-off.

I use these "Brake-Bands" (scroll down) by Click Stand even on my utility bike with a "chain stay stand" so it won't roll foreward. http://www.click-stand.com/Products___Ordering.html

Thanks for the heads-up! I'll have a look!

I know this off topic, but really like the way you have set up your Bike. Looks awesome, (and as for the kickstand debate goes) they are practical, but really don't care for them..

Definitely a kickstand! Why not? Your bike has two wheels and cannot stand on it's own so by having a kickstand your bike can stand up on it's own and it doesn't get scratched and scraped.

When my wife and I picked up our bikes at the store we ordered them from they asked if we wanted one and I said no, she said yes. After 2 weeks of seeing how much more convenient it is for her to have one I am going to go get one today. So I say yes lol.

I have one on my Trek DS and love it. But then that is a utility bike with fenders, rack, trunkw/ panniers, pump, lights, etc... So the weight of the stand is not a factor. The thing already goes over 40Lb with a couple water bottles and stuff in the trunk.

And, in addition, it has hydraulic brakes -- so I do not want to lay it down (any air in the cylinders could move and cause problems).

But, my Cannondale road bike and LeMond cyclocross do not. And I do not plan on putting one on. I want those bikes to stay light...

That's the beauty of the upstand. The tab adds only 15 grams to the bike. Then the cf stand itself is only 25 grams. So the total is quite low for the convenience factor..:thumb:

When I'm not riding my bike, I wish it had a kick stand.

My Fred bike needs one to keep the theme.
Dont have one on my road bike or my MTB, but the cruiser and the Fred bike would be amiss without the kickstand.

I love side stands I like a double leg Pletcher the best. They come in so handy when I get a flat in the poring down rain.

i think kickstands are invaluable. the bike i bought a few months ago from craigslist didn't have one - i use it to commute. i called my parents and had them take the kickstand off my old bike i bought 15 years ago, and mail it to me.
definitely makes putting my trunk bag and panniers on a heck of a lot easier now. i also don't have to precariously lean it against my car after a ride, or find a tree or sign post randomly.

......,,,,,I find this quote curious ( I got tired of lifting the bike) ofcourse the next question is what was the frame made of ********** lead ???