tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13323785227280291632011-12-01T15:30:57.398-08:00Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.comBlogger211100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-52709988674124586182010-04-22T22:27:00.000-07:002010-04-22T22:44:54.556-07:00

The weather's nice, the days are long, and our wheels are rolling again!And when I say "our" wheels, I mean it. Our little guy has taken quite a shine to his balance bike, and insists on riding it everywhere. This weekend we were able to convince him to get out of the saddle long enough to hitch a ride with us down to the waterfront, where we grown-ups parked our bikes and walked alongside while

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-2582794497872800782009-08-09T17:05:00.001-07:002009-08-10T08:21:13.916-07:00

I'd heard the horror stories before, the names like "Bridge Walk" and "Bridge Push-Your-Bike," and I'd vowed to never take part. Something about having a kid, though, pushes you outside previously set boundaries and into doing things you never would have before. Like learning the names of all the Thomas the Tank Engine characters or signing up for Bridge Pedal.Riding with me were my

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-36769466301411595592009-06-28T21:53:00.001-07:002009-06-28T22:19:00.019-07:00

The nice weather has us out on the bike together at least once a week, if not more. Last weekend Everett and I took a ride to Fort Vancouver to see some reenactments of life in the 1800s. There were sprinkles throughout our visit, but now I've learned to keep a shower cap tucked under the seat in order to keep it covered when I'm not riding. No more soggy saddles! We, of course, were completely

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-6136107932698086692009-05-30T15:39:00.001-07:002009-05-30T19:04:44.133-07:00

All-in-all, I've found the Bakfiets to be well thought out and constructed. One area has always seemed lacking to me, though: the seatbelts for the bench in front.There's a strap for each shoulder, coming together into a single buckle in the front that passes through the child's legs. The issue we've run into is that when the straps are adjusted short enough to fit my son's shoulders (he's 21

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-42372376814799318932009-04-21T14:35:00.001-07:002009-04-21T15:48:46.388-07:00

Nice weather, more daylight, and reasonable working hours have finally come together here and allowed us to get the Bakfiets out of storage and back on the road. I can admit it -- I'm a fair weather cyclist.I've kept the bike outside, but underneath a motorcycle cover (see it here). The leather saddle and seatpost stayed indoors, and the seat tube was plugged to keep any water out of the frame.

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-78915686918014183582008-11-26T11:47:00.000-08:002008-11-26T12:10:28.182-08:00

A month without posts?!  Sorry.  Between work and weather, there hasn't been much Bakfiets-ing around here recently. I could post daily updates on how great the bike looks sitting in the garage, but that would hardly be worth anyone's time, would it?  We did have one notable experience, though... We took a ride to the bowling alley one Sunday morning to meet with some friends.  The weather was

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-25743351285598206692008-10-25T14:00:00.000-07:002009-01-16T15:55:30.745-08:00

Welcome to Part Two of the Smart/Bakfiets Comparison. We already looked at the raw measurements, now let's put some of the features of each side-by-side.TransmissionA 5-speed automated manual transmission keeps the Smart moving briskly down the road. Not to be outdone, the Bakfiets features 8 speeds. Notably missing from the Bakfiets is a reverse gear. Both vehicles are rear-wheel drive, and

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-28677201528352847032008-10-23T18:08:00.000-07:002008-10-23T18:12:00.608-07:00

Huge bikes and tiny cars, what a great combination!Welcome to part one in a series comparing the Bakfiets cargo bike to the Smart fortwo convertible. Interestingly, these two head-turning vehicles are about the same length and have similar cargo capacities. What other attributes do they share? What are some of the differences? I invited my friend Darrel to bring his Smart over for a photo shoot,

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-57673677723974093352008-10-19T23:47:00.000-07:002008-10-20T01:16:13.982-07:00

It's already been more than a month since I rode the Bakfiets home, so it was time to head in for a tune-up. The only real problem that's come up is that two weeks ago something happened in the rear hub, and 4th and 8th gear ended up completely out of sequence. 4th had the resistance of somewhere around 1st, and 8th was down around where 4th should be. Going from 3rd to 4th was like downshifting

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-45970776128579396682008-10-05T11:02:00.000-07:002008-10-05T11:02:00.217-07:00

I've recently noticed a certain wear pattern to my left shoe that I haven't seen before. I wonder what that scuff could be from.

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-90496370701241022692008-10-01T10:54:00.000-07:002008-10-01T16:46:45.192-07:00

This is Everett, my son and co-pilot in cargobike travels. He's just over thirteen months old, and is the main reason we got the bike. I wanted to be able to share rides with him, to talk (even though he isn't yet), to point things out to him, and allow him to do the same. I like to think the bike was his first birthday present, because it was on his birthday while we were setting up for the

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-56960169605390840962008-09-30T22:26:00.000-07:002008-09-30T22:52:25.805-07:00

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-15309466602508503582008-09-25T10:32:00.000-07:002008-09-25T10:32:01.349-07:00

When researching the bike before purchase, I occasionally went to the English language version of the Bakfiets website: http://www.bakfiets.nl/eng/A few days ago I forgot the "/eng/" and ended up at the Dutch page (www.bakfiets.nl), where I was able to recognize the words "newest accessories" on a popup. Oooh, sounds interesting!The first accessory that caught my eye was this, to make a small

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-29742508461588042292008-09-23T23:28:00.001-07:002008-09-23T23:29:13.356-07:00

rough nexus 8 hub: the culpritOriginally uploaded by cleverchimp Courtesy of cleverchimp, here's a photo of the inside of the Shimano Nexus 8 hub on the bakfiets. Not my particular bakfiets, mind you. I've always wondered what was going on in there.p.s. anyone who gets the title reference and how it relates to this post is a super-geek.

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-83726881891324742482008-09-21T18:27:00.000-07:002008-09-21T19:08:14.418-07:00

I know the bakfiets is made to live outside, but I'm sure that keeping it dry when not in use will only prolong its life. This is a motorcycle cover that happens to fit the bakfiets perfectly. It's only water-resistant, not waterproof, but every little bit helps.It takes only a few seconds to put on and take off. There are bungees and drawstrings underneath if you wanted it on a little more

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-64991735655549010182008-09-18T11:20:00.001-07:002008-09-18T23:49:34.304-07:00

Can a Bakfiets make it across the I-5 bridge between Portland and Vancouver without scraping paint? Is there room to squeeze between the bridge columns and the rail?Indeed, there is!You might not want bomb across it at high speed, but there's plenty of room. This photo was taken going north on the southbound side (yeah, yeah, deal with it) at its narrowest point. I'll go back later to see how it

Nathannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-10324793804553075522008-09-13T11:20:00.000-07:002008-09-18T11:39:42.142-07:00

I took a tool to the Bak for the first time today. Nothing much, I just adjusted the brake levers slightly. From the factory, they come facing quite far down. I'm pretty sure the human wrist just isn't meant to bend this way. Maybe if I were 7 feet tall and reaching down toward the handlebars, this arrangement would work. But I'm not and it doesn't.I understand that they're set up this way so

Nathannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-47858201003508982422008-09-10T10:05:00.000-07:002008-09-18T23:09:36.018-07:00

Here's how fifteen minutes of my morning went, trying to fix last night's brake problem:Spin the wheel, squeeze the brake lever.Nothing happens. Adjust the barrel.Spin the wheel, squeeze the brake lever.Nothing happens. Adjust the barrel more.Spin the wheel, squeeze the brake lever. Nothing happens. Adjust the barrel the other way.Spin the wheel, squeeze the brake lever. Nothing happens.

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-36636908751402626932008-09-09T21:30:00.000-07:002008-09-18T11:43:20.714-07:00

Rode the Bak down to the grocery store today. About 7 miles total, downhill on the way there and uphill on the way back. It was the first real ride since the ride home on Sunday.The bike seemed much heavier & harder to pedal than the Bak I rented last month. I know the new version is slightly heavier and has a different seatpost angle, so I thought that must be the reason.Then I got home, put it

Nathannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-65607692329299189292008-09-08T11:18:00.000-07:002008-09-19T01:14:37.341-07:00

Home is in downtown Vancouver, about a dozen miles from Clever Cycles. I'd never ridden that route before — in fact, I haven't ridden in Portland other than an occasional weekend ride through Waterfront Park and the Eastbank Esplanade and when we lived there five years ago.That Esplanade was the first stretch of my route. Move it, roller-bladers and skate punks! Don’t you see I’ve got a 100lb,

Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14297009541089479418noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1332378522728029163.post-24933998525549117302008-09-07T22:47:00.000-07:002008-09-19T01:12:26.641-07:00

At long last, I got the call that our Bak was ready!We all piled in to the car and headed for Clever Cycles. The shop was busy, so we spent a few minutes checking out stylish helmets for my wife, Sara, before we were helped."I'm here to pick up my Bak!" My grin must have been ear to ear.After paying for it and making sure that serial numbers matched between the bike and the paperwork, Dean led us

Nathannoreply@blogger.com0