I do lean upon justice, sir, and do bring in here before your good honour two notorious benefactors.

I don't know much about whats going on here. But I am fairly certain that this thread needs these pants in it as well.

http://www.life.uiuc.edu/~ewmartin/pants.jpg

Thats all I have to say.

this is why the SS/FG is by far my favorite section to read.

would these fly for casual friday?

<3, xheadwalkx is so much fun; the lyrics are even more hilarious if you don't listen to the songs, but make your own renditions... don't ask why i know this.

okay so since this a hipsters / brakes thread, i'm going to actually be kind of serious and present a question: i am new to the fixie thing (just got it-- an 06 fuji track-- about six days ago and so far i love it, albeit horrifying at intersections), and i am thinking i should pop a front brake on their for safety purposes. now for the question: will the hipsters think they are too cool for me if i have a brake? i'm kind of used to it, living in richmond, but **** if it isn't annoying having to deal with people who so openly think they're better than you. i hardly ever seen brakes on fixies on campus (or anywhere else for that matter), but it seems logical to have a brake on there for safety purposes, especially riding in the city. am i wrong?

also: do i look like a total dweeb riding with reflectors? i guess sometimes i think my brain is more important than my coolpoints.

aye. too true.

youth-"but it seems logical to have a brake on there for safety purposes, especially riding in the city. am i wrong?"

If you ever have a 22 foot long SUV pull out in front of you while you ride down a 20 foot wide road(8% down hill) you will be happy to grab the brake that the guy flunking English 101 made fun of last week.

Brakes are important, no matter what anyone thinks. Using your brake might even allow you to live long enough to spread your genes, which is of course what life is all about anyway, so it really makes sense that you should. Also, HELMET!

Also also, wheel reflectors have no place on a bicycle. They are only functioning WHEN YOU ARE ALREADY IN FRONT OF THE CAR! Therefor, if you wish to be safer, reflective sidewalls on your tires are MUCH more visible AND they don't throw off the balance of your wheel the way reflectors do.


Also Also Also, lights, at night, are essential. All those hipster idiots I almost run over ON MY BIKE because I can't see them because I don't have a giant headlight to make me see them make me very angry, and as much as it sucks to have people make fun of you, it sucks even more to have people ANGRY at you. So in the interest of keeping in good health, please, use a brake, a front and rear light, and a helmet, and have a good day.

Okay, fess up, which one of you pansies complained?

WAAAA PEOPLE ON THE INTERNET ARE SAYING BAD THINGS. PLEASE MAKE THE BAD PEOPLE STOP SAYING THE BAD THINGS BECAUSE I'M INCAPABLE OF LOOKING AWAY OR TEACHING MY CHILDREN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RIGHT AND WRONG.

Hey youth, aren't you the kid that rides a Schwinn Prolouge TT bike?

also, please note extreme irony:

Sponsored links: Best Deal at Dick's Sporting Goods

youth--not just reflectors, but light up like a christmas tree. front and back lights...after a couple of recent close calls (and an actual accident), it's become my policy not to go out at night without either of those, even just down the street a couple of miles.

awesome, thanks for all the positive input. i'm glad to see i'm not the only person out there who thinks this way. i have a tail light, it's a cateye and i love it. but i don't have a headlight yet. ALSO, i am riding a fixie without a helmet and i feel like every time i leave my apartment i am fighting statistics to get to my location. i really need a helmet but i just spent all my money on a bicycle!!! ugh -__-

the reflective sidewalls-- do they just sell tires like that? are they more pricy? it sounds hot, i'd be down with riding those. and, can you explain the wheel reflectors thing in a bit more detail? i think i get the gist (sp) of it, but i'd like to hear more explanations. i always notice bikes having no reflectors and i'm forced to stop and wonder about it. i do know that the reflectors on my fuji are really sketchy, and are held in place by nothing other than the tension of the spokes they are stuck between. it scares me to think of one of them coming loose and getting caugh in my bike for maybe just enough of a second to send me flying. on that note i'm going to take them off right now.

one last thing in this hip vs safe thread: say i didn't have reflectors and got in an accident, does that make my renter's insurance (which i have-- my bike is safe <3 ) or the driver-at-fault's car insurance null and void if included in the police report? i mean, isn't that equivelent to driving with no inspection sticker?

no... but i was riding a schwinn continental from the 70s for a few months though, maybe that's what you were thinking of? i just got a fuji track like a week ago and it is the best thing that ever happened to me. at least, so far. i'm having so much fun with it and it feels so good to ride it. i'm in love.

i said that. ew.

this thread has a theme?

okay, that's all i had a response to. oh, wait, no, you asked about wheel reflectors...like someone else said, no one's gonna see them anyway till you're in front of them. then the balance...i've never noticed the difference on my bikes, but it's been a while since i had one with reflectors. i have some laying around i could try it out with and get back to you...but someone else probably has an answer already.

Oh, by the by, I don't have a hand brake on my bike nor do I have reflectors, just a cute blinky. I'm not unsafe, I know my limitations. Stop fooling yourselves into thinking hand brakes make you safe. They don't.

they do if you don't have the capability (for some of us it's not having the capability YET, for others of us it's just not having it) to ride without them.

as far as reflectors...i'd agree they don't do much at all...actual LIGHTS are what are going to help you out.

i only want one on there for if i NEED it, you know? i understand the idea that riding without brakes or a helmet makes you more aware of your environment, but if some ****ing ******* who can't drive (aka anyone ever approved for a license in the city of richmond) comes flying out of nowhere in a way that doesn't make any difference to how well you are paying attention, then you wanna be able to stop yourself, or perhaps catch your head in something that will keep you alive for another day. it's not so much that i want to "be safe," it's that i want to be prepared. and informed. and ready for stupid legal **** (which, even though i do my best to be a responsible adult, seems to find its way to me a lot).

Helmets are a must. Brakes, I don't see increasing my chances very much. If car is going to hit me, personally I don't want to up my endo chances.

Don't think the lights do all that much either. One of our guys got hit this week. Three rear flashers, a front flasher and a light. Safest thing, pretend you are the invisible man. You last a long time that way.

Word.

So if they don't see you, they won't hit you? or, atleast maybe they won't know they hit you...-and what they don't know can't hurt them. hmmm, you may be onto something :beer:

One time I was driving like super sweet fast and then I saw some jerk with a brake and white leather belt on so I RAN his hipster arse off the road! He wasn't wearing blinkers so I pretended it didn't happen.

Plus I was in my jacked up FORD BRONCO so I ran over some squirrels and cows! THEN I HAD A SUPER SWEET BURGER, IT WAS BREAKLESS!!!11!1!1!1!1!!!
http://www.thegreenhead.com/watercoo...seburger-4.jpg
NuBsoRz!!