Choppers?

The lastest thing in the local bike shop is a Giant chopper
http://tinyurl.com/4xm2u . Very cool, according to my 14-year-old. He
looked at the Schwinn at the W**Mart too, and although it certainly looks
nice, and the price is right, it's heavy too. But he got me thinking about
choppers, particularly the ones with 26 inch wheels like
http://members.cox.net/xe3/xco1.html

I'm thinking something like this could be a lot of fun if it had a Shimano
Nexus 7 speed internally-geared hub.

Would this be considered a recumbent?

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman."

"alan" wrote in message
...
The lastest thing in the local bike shop is a Giant chopper
http://tinyurl.com/4xm2u . Very cool, according to my 14-year-old. He
looked at the Schwinn at the W**Mart too, and although it certainly looks
nice, and the price is right, it's heavy too. But he got me thinking
about
choppers, particularly the ones with 26 inch wheels like
http://members.cox.net/xe3/xco1.html

I'm thinking something like this could be a lot of fun if it had a Shimano
Nexus 7 speed internally-geared hub.

Would this be considered a recumbent?

Yes, absolutely. They're recumbents alright. If you put a RANS seat on
'em, they look at lot like a youth-oriented Tour Easy.

They're some of the coolest looking, best-priced recumbents on the market,
IMO. Don't expect seat comfort, or touring-friendly design; but if you want
to attract attention from the Harley crowd, and ride a 'bent at the same
time, for under $500, you can't beat these Giant choppers. They have
invented their own market segment, and share space with the kids version
made/marketed under the Schwinn name (the engineering is suspiciously
similar, making me wonder if they're not made in the same factory...).

I was ready to buy one; but I wanted a test ride first (seems reasonable,
doesn't it?) Last time I checked, the local shop said they weren't going to
have a demo for a while; because they were 6-8 weeks on back order, with
customers pre-purchasing the bikes sight unseen. Anybody actually ridden one
of these sweet Giant recumbent choppers? What's your opinion? I've heard
the seats are not comfortable at all; but other reports seem pretty
positive. I'm not sure about the huge rear wheel; but it looks badass.

WOE

This makes me think what would be a good common definition of a recumbent.
You may call a chopper a recumbent, but you sure aren't going to race a
chopper or take it touring.

At its absolute basis, recumbent is a bike geometry not exactly a type of
bike. Just like you have upright racing bikes, you have recumbent racing
bikes.

Recumbent bicycle: A bicycle with pedals less than 30 degrees below its
seat, and a torso angle reclined from 20 to 70 degrees. Generally, the more
horizontal the rider's position, the more the bike is built for racing
versus utility. The design increases comfort and reduces aerodynamic drag
on the rider and cargo.

Semi-recumbent: A bicycle with pedals more forward of the seat than
conventional bicycles, and a more upright riding position. These bikes are
designed primarily for comfort and ease of handling for novice cyclists.

Style bicycle: A bicycle primarily designed for how it looks. Comfort,
speed, ease of handling, and utility come secondary. The most common are
bicycles designed to look like customized motorcycles or "chopper bikes".

You can combine them, of course: recumbent chopper, chopper style recumbent
racing bike, semi recumbent comfort chopper bike, etc.




"alan" wrote in message
...
The lastest thing in the local bike shop is a Giant chopper
http://tinyurl.com/4xm2u . Very cool, according to my 14-year-old. He
looked at the Schwinn at the W**Mart too, and although it certainly looks
nice, and the price is right, it's heavy too. But he got me thinking
about
choppers, particularly the ones with 26 inch wheels like
http://members.cox.net/xe3/xco1.html

I'm thinking something like this could be a lot of fun if it had a Shimano
Nexus 7 speed internally-geared hub.

Would this be considered a recumbent?

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily
Oklahoman."

alan wrote:

The lastest thing in the local bike shop is a Giant chopper
http://tinyurl.com/4xm2u . Very cool, according to my 14-year-old. He
looked at the Schwinn at the W**Mart too, and although it certainly looks
nice, and the price is right, it's heavy too. But he got me thinking about
choppers, particularly the ones with 26 inch wheels like
http://members.cox.net/xe3/xco1.html

I'm thinking something like this could be a lot of fun if it had a Shimano
Nexus 7 speed internally-geared hub.

Would this be considered a recumbent?

Semi-recumbent or semi-upright.
--
Tom Sherman

Would this be deemed a bent?

YEP....would not be caught dead taking it to a bent group ride, but it does
qualify as a laid back, somewhat reclined, forward BB bent.

This is like phase 2, 1st we have the Semi-Bents (yuck) and now the Choppers
(better)...I guess Phase 3 = the Choppers morph and end up looking like a
RANS V2.

When I 1st saw the GIANT Stiletto last year I immediately looked at raising
up the BB 6 inches, pushing the seat back, adding a backrest and of course
slapping a 750W E-Motor on the front 406mm wheel (not sure about the Fuzzy
Dice).

I was too busy to have a mid-life crisis, so the Stiletto at my age might be
the ideal ride to win back some of my youth (or what I can remember of it)
before being carted off to the nursing home.

Joshua
*****


"alan" wrote in message
...
The lastest thing in the local bike shop is a Giant chopper
http://tinyurl.com/4xm2u . Very cool, according to my 14-year-old. He
looked at the Schwinn at the W**Mart too, and although it certainly looks
nice, and the price is right, it's heavy too. But he got me thinking
about
choppers, particularly the ones with 26 inch wheels like
http://members.cox.net/xe3/xco1.html

I'm thinking something like this could be a lot of fun if it had a Shimano
Nexus 7 speed internally-geared hub.

Would this be considered a recumbent?

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily
Oklahoman."

I think the main thing seperating some of the TE models from choppers
is cosmetics. Done up properly, I think a TE could pass for a chopper.

WOE, where are you? I know the kids' Schwinn chopper is flying out of
Wal-Marts, but cant' figure who is actually buying the adult choppers.

john riley Wrote:
I think the main thing seperating some of the TE models from choppers
is cosmetics. Done up properly, I think a TE could pass for a chopper.

WOE, where are you? I know the kids' Schwinn chopper is flying out of
Wal-Marts, but cant' figure who is actually buying the adult choppers.
My best guess is Edward Wong.Do I win anything if I'm right?


--
nget

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 04:57:32 -0800, john riley wrote:
.. I know the kids' Schwinn chopper is flying out of
Wal-Marts, but cant' figure who is actually buying the adult choppers.

FWIW, just about any recumbent bike is more comfortable than
the Schwinn chopper I sat on at the local bike shop. The difference
is the seat geometry.

--
================================================== =======================
Bob Parnass, AJ9S GNU/Linux User http://parnass.com

I was looking at a higher-end one not more than an hour ago at a local bike
shop, didn't feel comfortable at all to me

Those bikes are made just to look good not for riding farther than around
the block

"Bob Parnass" wrote in message
news
On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 04:57:32 -0800, john riley wrote:
.. I know the kids' Schwinn chopper is flying out of
Wal-Marts, but cant' figure who is actually buying the adult choppers.

FWIW, just about any recumbent bike is more comfortable than
the Schwinn chopper I sat on at the local bike shop. The difference
is the seat geometry.

--
================================================== =======================
Bob Parnass, AJ9S GNU/Linux User http://parnass.com