Georgetown

Bike of the Day - Linus Dutchi

Spring is here! Told you I'd be back. I probably won't be able to keep up the posting fervor of last fall, I'll try to find a more manageable pace. No time for photos today but I hope to get out there this week.

Warm day today in DC, though historically we bounce around anywhere between cold rain and warm sunshine between now and May. Spring and fall in DC are second to none, though while fall seems to linger forever, spring too often can be a little twitchy then jumps right to oppressive summer.

Guess it means it's that bike-buying time of year. We know you're thinking about it. When I was in the market a few years ago for my first bike in ages, the Electra Amsterdam was the only Dutch-style bike available around here. Meaning a true upright ride with a chainguard and fenders, not so much to ask, right?

The city's bikescape has definitely changed somewhat for the better, though still too many bikes of the brutally functional variety out there for my taste. Linus bikes, including the Dutchi 3 (shown) are sold at Bicycle Space downtown. I've been seeing some around. I don't know how durable they are but they're attractive, seem to have the geometry right (though not as upright as the Electra), and I recall they're not terribly expensive.

The Bike Rack at 14th and Q Streets can get you on various Batavus models, though you'll need to ask, they don't keep many (sometimes none) in stock. Brands like Schwinn and Globe and even Trek have been getting into the upright game too.

Other suggestions? Or hey, for a mere 75 bucks per year of course there's always the mighty Capital Bikeshare, heading into its first spring bloom.

The real danger of biking

This short scene is pretty charming, but does serve as a stark reminder of one of the real perils of bicycling:  you may not be able to catch up to your girlfriend on the bus.

I remember Twist and Shout (Tro, håb og kærlighed in Danish) from around the time it came out in 1984. Really good but under-known coming-of-age film set in 1960s Copenhagen. I've always liked Danish director Bille August. His work usually has a certain atmosphere or quality that you can't quite put your finger on. Something about the muted color palette maybe.

Bike of the Day - Public J7

These are actually pretty cute, and an affordable way to ride upright with a chainguard and fenders. Plus not everyone wants the weight of a true Dutch bike. They're made in San Francisco, the closest place to test ride one is in NY, unfortunately. Though you can buy them online.

From their website:

The PUBLIC J7 is our ultra affordable new lightweight, easy-shifting, bike designed for stop-and-go city riding. With its curved, open, step-through frame design, it is often referred to as a Dutch bike. But this classic European geometry is seen on the streets from Denmark to Italy and now more frequently in the US. It especially well suited for those who wear skirts, carry extra weight on the rear rack, or prefer not to swing a leg over a typical frame crossbar. Tastefully understated and seriously overbuilt. Reliable enough to be your everyday, rain or shine, commuter workhorse. Chic enough to turn heads on city streets. Priced to fit student budgets. Color options include our classic Orange and Vanilla.

Batavus vs Electra

Sounds like a pro wrestling match. But no, from the blog of Curbside Cycles, a Toronto bike shop specializing in Dutch bikes:

Batavus versus the Electra Amsterdam

There's a long but vigorous and interesting debate in the comments, comparing these two bikes. So if you're considering buying a Dutch bike, it's a very informative thread.

I still love and stand by my Amsterdam, especially for the price and lighter weight, but it does have its flaws. The Batavus does sound really well-made, like a bike to last a lifetime. The Volvo of bikes.

To be fair, it's not really a fair comparision. Batavus is a storied Dutch brand with decades of experience satisfying the discriminating Dutch customer. Electra is just getting into the citizen cycling game, relatively. The two bikes are not really in the same league or price point, though here is a Batavus three-speed that's only a bit more expensive than the Electra and would last longer even if you store it outside.

Under my nose

I spent a lot of time in Prague in the 90s. I remember people always saying, when walking in Prague don't forget to look up (or you'd miss a lot of the architectural beauty along the rooflines).

Sometimes it pays to look down - like this wet morning, wondering where today's photo would come from, walking my bike through a blanket of leaves. Ok, it's no Prague but I liked it.

photo © Bill Crandall

About last night

photo © Bill Crandall

Good morning, darling. Glad to see you're still there and intact.

So sorry to leave you like that overnight in Georgetown. It's just that the event ran pretty late, and I was a little worse for wear at the end. I thought it was best if you didn't come home with me. But I did feel guilty, and was nervous until I saw you again today. No hard feelings?

Bike of the Day - WorkCycles Oma

The WorkCycles Oma is available at Adeline Adeline in NY. I'm pretty sure this is the bike I spied on U Street here.

From their website:

The iconic Dutch granny's bike with gracefully curved tube and tall head tube to sit upright or fit a front child seat. Our oma is hand-built in the Netherlands and constructed with large diameter tubing and a reinforced seat tube so it's much stiffer and stronger than similar looking frames from other manufacturers.

WorkCycles city bikes are practical, beautiful and durable transportation built to provide decades of reliable service in all conditions. Like all Dutch bikes they're equipped to ride comfortably upright, stay clean and dry in street clothes, and carry your groceries, gear and children.

It goes for $1599. Hey, no one said good bikes are cheap.

15th and U St

Along U Street in the late day light.

photo © Bill Crandall

Breezer Citizen

Today's City Zen Cyclist is Larry, proudly displaying his wheels (a Breezer Citizen, available locally) next to the Petworth bikeshare station in front of Sweet Mango Cafe. He said he commutes everyday from Petworth to Georgetown and all over downtown. Likes the upright riding, chainguard etc. His friend in the middle was saying, I like those Dutch frames.

photos © Bill Crandall

Bike of the Day - Electra Amsterdam

A few years ago, the Electra Amsterdam is what got me back on a bicycle after, I don't know, 25 years off. I knew the Dutch formula suited me - chainguard/fenders/rear skirt, upright not hunched over - and the Electra was (and still is) one of the few Dutch-style bikes that you can go out and buy in the DC area.

I bought mine at Big Wheel Bikes in Bethesda and rode it home to Petworth via the somewhat rough Bethesda-Silver Spring stretch of the Capital Crescent Trail. Hot day and first day back on a bike in a long time, so that was kind of a fun mistake... but I made it ok. You don't forget how to ride a bike, but you do sort of forget the exhilaration of it.

The Amsterdam is definitely elegance over speed, and very comfortable, but frankly sucks on major uphills (or maybe I suck on major uphills... anyway, I don't mind walking it whenever). But their so-called 'flat foot' design means the seat is shifted slightly back and lower so you're closer to the ground. Which is nice, I felt perched pretty high on the first few bikes I tried.

If you get the Classic 3i (shown, they also have an 8-speed), you'll want to add a front handbrake, it comes with coaster brake only. They also make a step-through women's version, here's an interesting review by a local citizen cyclist.

Here's mine parked in Adams Morgan when I was shooting for this blog one evening.

photo © Bill Crandall

Bike of the Day - Batavus Old Dutch Step Through

Available at Adeline Adeline in New York. From their website:

An authentic Dutch bicycle, straight from the source: a century-old, environmentally-conscious company in the Netherlands.

Bike of the day - Velorbis Dannebrog

From the Velorbis website:

This type of classic bicycle is called everything from a sit-up-and-beg bicycle, a vintage bicycle and a retro style bicycle, to an 'Omafiets' - (Granny bike in Dutch). In some countries the most common term is a commuter bike, utility bike or an upright bike. The most popular European term is the 'Dutch Bike´ or 'Dutch style bicycle'; a generic term used to describe typically a two-wheeled, utilitarian bicycle, with mudguards or fenders, a rear carrier or rack, relaxed loop frame or geometry, an upright seating position and generally an ‘old-time’ look reminiscent of the early 20th century. It is a style of bike you will find all over Northern Europe, from bicycle friendly cities such as Copenhagen and Amsterdam, to Hamburg, Stockholm and Oslo.

14th St and Florida Ave

This guy's got the idea. Dutch/upright bike, check. Riding in his regular clothes, check. Helmet, no problem with that. Using the bike lane, check.

Waiting patiently for the traffic light to change, sweet.

photo © Bill Crandall