Tuesday, September 9, 2008

More thoughts on Fargo

I philosophized on the Salsa Fargo and thought I'd share it with the world.  The bike industry started out making transportation machines, then added racing machines to their line ups.  In the US, cars became huge, and so the transportation aspect of bicycling mostly dissapeared.  Companies were concerned with performance (or in the case of K-Mart dual suspension mountain bikes, the appearance of performance).  With expensive gas, the concept of a bicycle as a tool is returning and if a bicycle is a tool, the Fargo is a swiss army knife.  In Europe, cars are important, but not entirely necessary because of the dense cities and mass transit.  A fashionable, heavy, comfy bike like an Oma Fiets is perfect there.   The US doesn't have those things.  We have long distances, dirt trails and a cycling environment that is more of a battlefield than a civilized affair. Xtra cycles, and used mountain bikes with slicks are the way to roll around here.  I hope the Fargo does well, I hope that mass trasit makes accomodations for bringing more bikes on board, I hope more people buy touring bikes than RV's next year but most of all, I hope you get a chance to ride your bike today.

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