. . . err, rare bike, rather. Seen in rain, on a street in a nearby town:
It’s nearly impossible to tell from this shot, snapped as it was on the fly, but this is a true cargo bicycle. That’s a serious cargo rack on the back, with bag attached, and those are heavy-duty panniers on each side of the rack. I’m certain this cycle is a “long tail”, meaning that the chassis has been extended in the rear, making the bike longer than a conventional model. It was raining hard, if intermittently, but this cyclist was undeterred by the downpour or the soggy streets.
This is the first time I’ve ever seen anything resembling a cargo bike in our suburban haunts. I’m regarding this as an exciting development; if cargo bikes arrive, can a cycling culture be far behind?
4 replies on “A Rare Bird”
Yes a cycling culture can be far behind
Gulp . . . I know you’re right, Saul. I just don’t want to admit it! But a cyclist can dream, no?
Getting back to the “rare bird” topic (maybe temporarily?), perhaps it’s time that Basil be equipped with a rack bag? A full set of carry bags would show Basil’s capabilities superbly – & then with a trailer… (Just what sort of culture are we dreaming of?)
Interesting comment, Ian, and a good question. As you know, we’ve discussed Brompton World Domination in comments before. Now that’s a cycling culture I can get behind!
But I’m willing to be ecuminical about cycles, so I’m fine with dreaming of a culture in which a majority of people are on any human-powered wheels a lot of the time, Bromptons not required. (But preferable, for sure!)
Indeed, no cargo bike is required if one has a Brompton . . . I’ve no doubts at all about Basil’s cargo capacities. A trailer may be in his future, for hauling lumber, large water bottles, and the like, though I must note that his T bag is so big that I’ve not yet needed anything else for ordinary load-hauling. But you’ve given me an idea for a post that I will follow-up on in the near future, as others may not realize how very competent our small-wheeled cycles actually are.