9606

At one time I thought running 26+ miles was crazy.
Now I am through my marathon running life stage.
At one time I never dreamed of a hub generator and a front rack.
Now I am in the middle of my rando riding life stage. (A lot more expensive than just running!)
Getting to a control and trying to find a nice shady, cool spot against which to lean my bike is getting to be a drag. Is that part of the scene, or does it make sense to look into a nice kickstand of some sort. I don't see many. Is this because they are not 'stylish', or because there are no good ones?
Thanks for your feedback -

Chris Pringle

Obviously, you can do what you feel is best for your cycling enjoyment. Kickstands, however, add unnecessary weight, they often get loose and some bike manufacturers (e.g., Surly) completely discourage them on their frames. The right thing to do is to add a kickstand plate to the frame, but very few bike manufacturers do this anymore. If your bike doesn't have a kickstand plate, it is very likely that you'll damage the bike's paint job, increase rusting (in a steel frame) and add stress which might eventually damage your beloved frame. I actually added a kickstand plate to my custom touring/randonneuring bike thinking that one day I would use a kickstand. I never did and I don't think I ever will since I discovered a click-stand. These are super light, do not scratch the frame and fold small to easily fit in my front bag. Problem solved!

unterhausen

I have never had a problem finding a place to park my bike on a randonnee except on PBP. Even there, it only happened twice and a kickstand wouldn't have helped either time. I have a lot of experience with kickstands, and I wouldn't have one on my bike unless I had a utility bike with a really good dual kickstand. Simply put, they are great until the bike falls over. I went to a bike club meeting once and some **** had his bike on a kickstand next to the rack. It was a pain navigating my bike around his knowing that the slightest bump was going to knock it over.

dwmckee

I like my ******** double leg kickstand and do not mind the extra weight at all. I have a kickstand plate that made it easier to mount. It doubles as a repair stand for certain repairs too. Most will think it is frivolous, but the extra weight is no big deal to me. My own weight fluctuates 10 pounds or more in a season so what the heck.

Single leg kickstands are a waste though.

Regardless, I do not think you will see many distance riders or even road riders with them because they are have a pretty negative stigma, but I do not care. for some reason bf is editing out my kickstand brand which is p l e t c h e r.

unterhausen

woah, now I'm going to have to look that up on urban dictionary

Chris_W

You could go with a weight weenie, carbon fiber kickstand - the Upstand. I bought one, and it did work when testing it at home, although it isn't super stable. Out in the wild, leaning the bike against something is always easier and more stable, so I've never actually needed to use it for real. YMMV. The fact that no-one ever even asked what the mounting tab behind my quick release was shows that it is not only light but is also very stealth.

jwarner

Meh... I get around by bike. I move every bit of shopping except dog food, large bike parts, and sometimes ski stuff from the store to my house by bike. My bike lives in the corner of my office during the day. The kickstand keeps it off the walls. I like having a kickstand. It is convenient, makes it easier to park and load my bike, and I really don't care about the weight, or what people think.

If it is stupid but it works... it isn't stupid.

mibike

I have one bike I use for shopping etc. that I put a kickstand on. I thought it would be handy to have. I don't use it very often because if the pavement is not level, a gust of wind, someone brushes into the bike, too much weight in the bags, etc. it falls over. I had to drill a hole in the mount for my shift cable so left it on but will remove it the next time I replace cables. After trying it the only way I would consider putting on a kickstand is if it was a duel leg one.

FrenchFit 

The double-legged stand is a joy to use, but you need to use a little brain power to install it in a manner that doesn't injure the frame with regular use. If they start moving around or if you over tighten, you will mar your frame for sure. I use a variety on kick stands on my bikes with bags, none on bikes without bags. It's 50/50 in my stable. But it's true that the technology is lacking, decades out of date. It would seem fairly obvious to make a lightweight, stable, doubled or single legged stand in carbon or a light alloy with an improved clamping system...but it's yet to arrive.

unterhausen

I know a lot of people get here sorta by accident seeing the word 'kickstand' at the top level of the site. Of course, this is the long distance forum, so something I would be willing to have on my commuter is not necessarily something I want to carry with me for 200 miles. I get it that most of us are a little overweight, but the whole idea that I'm 20 pounds over my target weight so a pound of kickstand is not big deal doesn't really make sense to me. A pound here and a pound there adds up to a lot of weight. And even the weight weenie versions are something else to carry around with you.

nobody is going to even look twice if you show up on a brevet with a kickstand. Post a picture of it in use on a ride

StephenH

I don't know of any long-distance riders that use kickstands.

Just a general comment on them, though- the heavier your bike is, the better a kickstand works- it is the weight of the bike that keeps it from blowing over in the wind. So it's not just snobbery that keeps people from using them. So on a Harley, absolutely. On an old gas-pipe cruiser bike- sure, works pretty well. On a high dollar light-weight bike- generally not.

pdlamb

I've got one on the bike with the best lighting system, use it on brevets, and make no apologies. Like the title of Feynman's book, "Why do you care what other people think?"

Rowan

If finding a spot to lean the bike is getting to be a chore, lay the bike down on the ground, derailleur side up. You can lie down right next to it, which is handy if you are worried about security.

I have not found or seen someone else use a stand that has been entirely foolproof. Wind, weight and lack of strength all have presented difficulties. I agree entirely with unterhausen.

And obviously, people do care what you or I think, or they wouldn't be asking questions... it's the way we learn.

RatMudd

I prefer the Click-Stand: Click-Stand Home Page

Another cheap bombproof alternative, that's available at any Walmart, is a cheap aluminum extendable monopod used for shooting: Winchester Shooting Stick - Walmart.com

Don't forget the wheel stabilizer, if it fits: https://store.velo-orange.com/index.p...tabilizer.html
A small bungee cord also works for a parked front wheel stabilizer.

All good stuff for getting in and out of loaded panniers at camp and home. Otherwise, I don't have any use for a "bike prop."

Lanovran

For a bike that's going to be loaded up with gear, groceries, or whatever, I definitely prefer having a kickstand. Yeah, I could find a place to lean it, but I'd rather just be able to stop, dismount, flick the stand down, and have my bike stay put in a matter of seconds without having to even think about it, even if carrying a load. The amount of weight that a kickstand adds - particularly for a touring bike, as in my attached photo - is negligible, but the ability to keep my bike steady while I load it up or rummage through my bags for something is a valuable thing to me.

On my 520, I have a Bontrager rear-mount kickstand (the one pictured is the older version, which I've since replaced with the newer one). There's no need for a kickstand plate, nor any risk of crushing the stays. The mounting brackets are designed such that they won't put that kind of pressure on the frame, yet the whole thing stays plenty secure and doesn't move around, nor does it interfere with my pedals or panniers.



Now, if you're talking about a dedicated road or mountain bike, then no...I wouldn't put kickstands on those, as they'd just get in the way and serve no purpose. I only have them on bikes with which I intend to carry stuff around and/or have a greater need to "park" more frequently.

dwmckee

I do use my touring bike as a distance bike too so that may explain my comfort to using a kickstand.

linnefaulk

If you want one, get one.