The City Bike

When was the last time you had that much fun on a bike? I'm not necessarily recommending V-neck sweaters and saddle shoes for biking attire (although there's nothing wrong with that). But what about the bike itself? Those sturdy, dependable steeds of our childhood memories - where have they gone?

Fortunately, there seems to be a resurgence of this type of bicycle, often called a "city bike." Not that they've ever really gone away in much of the rest of the world. In the United States, however, we've been riding in a different direction for a while. When "10-speed" bikes caught on in the 70s, I can recall how odd it felt at first to ride such a skittish beast. The mountain bike craze of the late 80s / early 90s brought us back into a more stable kind of riding. But unless you're cruising down singletrack, most of us don't really need a mountain bike.

Don't get me wrong - I love drop handlebars, and enjoy a light, responsive road bike as much as the next guy. But for a certain style of riding, there's nothing to beat the relaxed ride of our youth. Besides, I always need a bike project to occupy my mind (especially in the winter months). So I'm thinking of converting my hybrid bike into more of a city bike configuration. The main thing is to change out the handlebars; I'm just waiting for the oh-so-beautiful porteur handlebars at Velo Orange to come back in stock.