It was Lycra, rolls, coffee and bananas all round
It was wall-to-wall Lycra at Hyde Park last Wednesday as cyclists converged for free rolls, coffee and bananas courtesy of the City of Sydney on National Ride to Work Day.
While the speeches from Cr John McInerney and Planning Minister Kristina Kenneally predictably peddled their various measures to promote cycling, the best stories were among the crowd.
Three ‘velocops’ were there with bikes, having ridden from their station at Wetherill Park to Fairfield and then caught the train. Apparently they still have energy to catch bad guys after riding to work.
I asked them if they had ever chased and crash-tackled anyone from the bike, a tricky operation that I for one am not keen to try. Senior Constable Steven Weekes had found himself chasing a guy who had snatched a handbag from a woman, and brought him down from the saddle. Apparently the trick is to ditch the bike on the ‘non-drive side’, so the chain and gears don’t get damaged.
The three had also been on duty at the Bathurst 1000 car race. One installed a speedometer on his bike to clock speed as they patrolled the track, achieving a respectable 74 kmh along Conrod Straight in 21st gear. The gas-guzzling V8s top 300 kmh in sixth gear on the straight during the race.
Then an ultra-cool bike caught my eye, a cleanline aluminium number that managed to look futuristic and vintage at the same time. It had no gears, a fashion trend that piques my curiosity, as I use 14 of my bike’s gears all the time.
So I quizzed the bike’s owner, Meindert Wolfraad who, it turns out, is wholesaling these new Amsterdam-designed VANMOOF machines in Australia.
He explained that gearless bikes are lighter and simpler with fewer parts to go wrong. Everyone in Amsterdam parks their bikes in the street so the simple design also prevented rusting of the derailleur gear mechanism. A three-speed hub-gear model is also on its way. The back-pedal brakes, with no external parts, also resist moisture and keep the design uncluttered. In Amsterdam, front brakes are not required so there the bikes can be cable-free. The frames are made from rust-free aluminium, left unpainted to give the bike its space-age feel.
Amsterdam cyclists cruise calmly around their enviable cycleway network, not needing the speed that Sydney cyclists seem to reach as they mix it with similarly impatient local car drivers.
“It might be slower down the hills but it’s quicker going up,” said Meindert, claiming he had overtaken all the other riders coming up the William Street hill on his way from Double Bay.
The bike had other cute features like a built-in keylock on the back wheel. A swipe on the key operated the front and rear lights which are embedded into the ends of the crossbar, need no switch and can’t be stolen like clip-ons. The lights are powered by small solar panels inside the lens which charge a battery – one hour of daylight produces an hour of flashing light, and once when Meindert had left the lights on overnight they were still working in the morning.
The bikes retail under $1,000, and I want one!
by Michael Gormly
