From FRED STARR
Your article on bicycles was a real disappointment because it concentrated
on sporting and racing machines (‘The bike built to win’, 30 June). As a
cycling commuter, with over 50 000 miles behind me, I am appalled at the
unreliability of modern bikes.
Starting off with basics, the accumulation of dirt on chains and gearing
makes nonsense of the claim that only 1 per cent of power is wasted. More
irritating are components going out of adjustment, brakes binding, constant
punctures, and fatigue failures of axles, gearteeth and bearing races. When
are cycle designers and constructors going to realise that virtually all
modern consumer durables are highly reliable and maintenance free? If they
want to get people out of their cars and onto their bikes, they had better
realise that not everyone wants to spend Sunday morning with an oil can,
a rag soaked with paraffin and a spanner to tighten everything back up.
Fred Starr London
