What gear / bag(s) / tools do you carry?

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I carry a complete toolkit in a Seal Pak waterproof (airtight) waist bag that I strap to the lower left side of my luggage rack. Must-have tools: L hex wrench set, 14mm hex crank wrench, 2 small adjustable wrenches, compact chain tool, tire patches & levers, compact 19mm socket, spare bolts/washers for the fold joint. I keep all this in a thick fleece pouch so it doesn't rattle. I also carry a compact ground-brace air pump w/ gauge (saves time when I feel like checking tire pressure and a bungee net for unexpected cargo. All this is for commuting. For longer trips I might carry spare batteries for my lights.

Oh, and for a cross country trip, you should put Schwalbe Marathons on the front wheels, and a Durano on the back. While they are great tires, I've had two Duranos blow out the side wall, so I'd be packing a spare for a cross-country trip.

Yeah, it's too bad Schwalbe doesn't make Marathon Plus in the 451 size. The net bag is a great idea, Rogwild at the Ridephoria site mentioned that he carries one on his Trikke (I'd never thought of that).

I'm looking forward to being able to carry my Trikke on the back of the Summit. The roads around my farm aren't suitable to the poly wheels, but now I'll be able to carry it into town and ride it when I feel like a change of pace. :)

BTW, I grew up around Houston, I've skated all over town. I must say I don't envy you the traffic there!

Best regards,
Daniel

The trikke net's a little different...it's triangular and made to stretch between the trikke's legs. I carry the standard bike-type with four hooks.

I've logged well over 5,000 miles on trikkes, but one of my main reasons for getting a strider was so that I could ride in rush hour without spooking drivers. I live in the Montrose and commute to Bellaire, so I mostly ride on the relatively sedate streets of Southampton and West U. I've had some interesting discussions with Rogwild, particularly about bike helmets, which I consider placebic (I advocate/wear absurd hats to get drivers' attention).

I'm going to try an Air Free 451 tire. They make a new high rebound version that's supposed to absorb shock more like an air tire.

> The trikke net's a little different...

Sure, I understand, I'm just saying that I'd never even considered a net of any kind. It's a great idea for when your eyes are bigger than your panniers at the grocery store... :)

I'd love to see that thread. Where on the site does it live, or has it been disappeared? And, not having read the thread, I guess my question would be, "Wouldn't absurd-ing up a regular helmet be the best of both worlds?"

A big bouquet of long-stem gladiolas would probably do it...

Oh, those "High Rebound" air frees sound pretty neat. Will they fit the SS wheel? They say that the rims should be 32mm wide or a little less for the Sebring HR, and the SS are 37 apparently. Are you planning to replace the wheel

?

(Sorry, somehow I managed to post before I was ready)

I'd love to know how you make that work, and your riding impressions with the tire. It doesn't look like they make front tire sizes, unfortunately. I'd love to be able to not carry all the tire care bits and pieces, and I'm not really all that worried about the extra grams.

Best regards,
Daniel

The 1st number is the tire's overall width, around 1 3/8". the Kenda comfort is 37mm, the road-style Durano is 28mm. I think the strider's rim accommodates most 451 tires.

Silly hats are better than decorated bike helmets for three reasons:
1. No rationalizations about the safety/danger of autos. EVERYONE in the vicinity of autos is in mortal danger, all with about the same odds of serious head injury (seatbelts do not compensate at 70mph on a busy freeway, and buses don't even have them).
2. Hats can protect a rider from the elements (particularly UV exposure).
3. "Bike helmets" are really just hats in that they are not designed to be impact helmets. It's just a piece of foam strapped to your head, considered ridiculously inadequate for any other helmeted sport (skiing, surfing, BMX, etc.). A real impact helmet has a rigid shell that wraps around the back of the head.

I sent email to Air Free asking about the size - haven't heard back yet. Oh, I just realized, I now have a strider, I can just go measure the rim! :)

I almost agree with all your points on bike helmets; I just didn't register that all-important word "bike." You are right that most bike helmets ARE hats.
Get the best helmet you can afford, the one that offers the most protection and that is easiest to incorporate in your routine. No matter what the bureaucrats say is appropriate. Wear it religiously.

I don't walk down the street with my wallet hanging out of my pocket, and I don't ride anywhere with my head dangling in the breeze. I've always worn motorcycle racing helmets, mostly motocross-style full-face but at least with polycarbonate or lexan face shields. Don't want to mar my great masculine beauty! :) And yes, the youngsters used to laugh at me when I wore full body armor and a cross helmet to practice new tricks on my roller skates at the skateboard bowls, but so what. I have a picture of the bottom of one of the deeper bowls at the old Austin skatepark with a pool of blood in it - and it's not my blood, I promise.

I've never collided with a car in any meaningful way, and I agree that a direct collision at any real speed will render useless just about every form of head protection. On the other hand, I've had a million falls and collisions while skating, Trikking, biking, motorcycling, etc., and my use of helmets has protected my noggin so many times I couldn't enumerate them all. My spine at the base of my neck are pretty messed up, but I can't blame it all on helmet whiplash. Quite a bit of it happened before I was smart enough to know that my melon is precious. Better a little pain than brain damage - as two of my old friends can attest. Or at least they could attest if they still had the faculty to talk, walk, eat with a fork, dress themselves...

Good luck with the hats though. :)

As for me, I think a carbon fiber composite x helmet might be the logical next choice. I'll be sure to get a UV-protectant face shield... :)

Best regards,
DF

Interesting...in over four decades of riding, I have never once seen a street cyclist in a crash helmet. For all their sanctimonious defense of their foam caps, I'd bet you could never convince Rogwild or any of the gang at Ridephoria to wear one.

That's one of the perks of being a libertarian - I don't have to convince anyone of anything. We're all in the process of passing back into our constituent elements; how we go about that is simply a choice - as long as your choice doesn't impinge on my choices.

I enjoy spirited discussion, is all... :)

I really like the Nexx carbon fiber helmet - less than 2.5 lbs in my XL size, fairly understated, total customization of pads and fit, well-vented, great reviews. Pricey though, but I've about convinced myself that my head and comfort are worth it. I wish someone made a carbon helmet with some slick system for mounting different full-face shields, so I could use just a grill like a football helmet (perfect for summer in Texas) or a mx-style in winter, but apparently all helmets are designed and tested in Minnesota or somewhere like that. :) And the so-called modular helmets seem to be designed on the idea that you'll either want full-face solid jaw protection, or you'll want to ride with it open-faced - plus they are heavier and the front-rear weight distribution is pretty awful to me. That's life, I guess.

I checked out Air Free tires, and apparently they don't make any sizes that will fit the StreetStrider. Oh well. If you find any, let me know.

Best regards,
DF

I'm a naturalist: ALL individual choices impinge or empower others. A street cyclist cannot independently reduce the danger of cycling in traffic any more than an America can enjoy a middle class lifestyle without Third World labor. It's cool that you practice what you preach, though. I ditched the bike helmet for the silly hats after the second time being hit by a distracted driver. I figured the third time I would not be lucky enough to walk away. :)

What kind of lighting do you use?

Hmmm... I assume you're not talking about Eristotelian political naturalism; it's pretty antiquated and fairly thoroughly disproved. By logical elimination you must be referring to the social naturalism as espoused by the Center for Naturalism. Assuming that's true, I have to say that I've never understood how that's any more meaningful than saying, "What will be, will be." But hey, whatever oscillates your antennae.

I'm not much for riding at night anymore. When I was doing a lot of bicycle commuting I just had some mishegas from the local bike shop, don't really remember. On my Trikke when I was commuting in Fort Lauderdale I used little LED lights that clipped on clothes, and blinked in different patterns or stayed on. That's really about it, but again, I didn't ride my Trikke that much at night either.

> ALL individual choices impinge or empower others.

I don't understand that, at all. Of course there are an infinite number of individual actions (you call them choices, but doesn't that go against naturalism, which states that there are no choices?) that do not impinge or empower. Anything that one does truly alone, for instance.

By saying you ditched your helmet because you thought you'd be safer, aren't you contradicting your statement that a cyclist can't independently reduce the danger of riding in traffic? Or are you just ignoring it? Or maybe you're saying that, as a natural part of the world, you had no choice but to ditch your helmet?

I don't understand what you mean by the middle class statement. If you're interested in pursuing this part of the conversation, maybe we should take it to the Off Topic section of Ridephoria? I'm Delta Foxtrot there.

Best regards,
DF

LOL...I was being literal about the naturalism. In a nutshell, I see cycling safety as wholly dependent on drivers not hitting cyclists. Cyclists have no control over the situation other than how they communicate with drivers.

Another way to look at it is this: You are accustomed to a "libertarian" environment as far as riding, since the risks in your typical activities (racing, stunt riding etc.) are self mitigated. I ride in a "natural" environment, where I must constantly thwart "predators," relying heavily on protective coloration. Make sense?

My statement about the (1st World) Middle Class is simply this: It's built on the back of a hierarchy that goes back generations. It's much easier to have the philosophy of "You do your thing; I'll do mine," if one holds a position of extreme privilege in society. A true believer in personal liberty has a cold understanding of the inequality that prevents such liberty for the vast majority of people. The libertarian mantra needs to be something like "I'm going to take less and be more responsible so that you all can have a chance to make some choices." Isn't that a great reason to cycle? ;)

It is a reason to cycle, I guess. I don't think it's a very good one. Because it's fun and good exercise for our privileged and excessively pampered behinds, are much better reasons.

Not that I wouldn't love to see our brothers and sisters in other areas of the world do better, but that's not really going to be effected by what I do or how much I give up. Look, this really isn't a conversation I feel comfortable having on a site that is about promoting a great product, so I'm not going to continue it here. If you really want to discuss this kind of thing we should find a venue that is made for this kind of thing.

So, what kind of hats DO you wear? :)

Agreed, but to be fair, you brought it up. Let's just agree to vote for Ron Paul. ;)

My winter hat: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004...

My summer hat: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001AG4P9K

I'm pretty sure the former has saved my life on more than one occasion. I only wore the sombrero for a short time before the season ended, but I'm going to love it under the Texas sun come June.

Lights are also very integral to my survival. The best are EL wires (currently on sale at the StreetStrider webstore: http://store.streetstrider.com/Bike-G...) I use Cree LED flashlights www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002WVD4X0 for head and taillights, mounted with velcro & rubber flashlight mounts: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CJXB5E It's an elegant rechargable waterproof solution, plus the flashlights can be easily detached to assist with road repairs.

I use blue EL and have a blue lens on my taillight because even though it is illegal, drivers take notice of flashing blue lights!