Like cars, I hate that complexities are defining "bicycles". I love my bikes and love riding them. Keeping them functioning versus in service is my objective and there is no more timely arrangement than me being able to execute adjustments, service and repair. Complexity challenges entropy directly so I prefer to remain closer to equilibrium rahter than rise high above it.
I read that a growing reason for trading vehicles has been the infotainment program suite/compatibility with owners' cellular devices. Seriously, dumping a serviceable low mileage vehicle because they got a new phone. This represents a huge wasteful egocentricity to me. A new 3000 pound product made from extracted materials, labor and energy consumption to manufacture and deliver because it plays nicer with your new phone. I abhor that motor vehicles have become considered on par with countertop appliances, many purchased by people who feelings toward them ranges from "don't care" to "dislike driving them" (as long as they can play their music through the speakers). A toaster. A car was how I could connect with my friends when corded phones were under the full family's observation and monitoring. I had passion for my serial progression of cars as I do my bikes. While not dark ages (I do dyno hubs and wired lighting), I am definitely not "for" the growing technification of bicycles. Not what propels my needs from bicycling. Andy Cheatham Pittsburgh On Friday, May 24, 2024 at 12:31:29 PM UTC-4 Robert Calton wrote: > My sense is that the complexity of bikes has risen proportionally with the > extent to which* riders have agreed to make bicycling complex*. Decades > ago, we as riders didn't much care about quantifying the power put to the > pedals, then in the late 80s, powermeters became a thing. Then as our > society became more and more technologically insatiable, electronic > groupsets blew up in the early 2000's...then folks decided *wireless* > groupsets had to be a thing (first released only 4 years after the first > iPad). Our wireless, digital, always-connected world had to permeate all > aspects of our life -- at least *all* companies did a good job marketing > that to us. > > The video makes a good callout with the "Tesla-fication" of cars. Not just > EVs, but now we see full ICE cars with giant touchscreens that nestle basic > climate controls and radio features behind menus. Cars have over-the-air > updates like our smartphones. We continue to pay monthly subscriptions to > use features on the cars we own that the manufacturers say should be > as-a-service. We're starting to see this with bikes, but on the other side > we're also seeing a proliferation of small independent bike shops who rehab > older frames with quality new parts and sell those bikes instead of the > latest big-box arguments of how bikes should be. The good news is that the > pendulum is starting to swing the other way. > > Thanks for coming to my TED talk. > On Friday, May 24, 2024 at 6:51:13 AM UTC-4 larson....@gmail.com wrote: > >> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmuO4fV1qq8&t=3348s >> I thought this was an interesting discussion, certainly for us Rivendell >> owners. I know Russ can be polarizing, but I like his approach to cycling >> and appreciate his thoughts. >> Randy in WI >> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/f6fed838-6014-4b48-ad4b-907cf22818b1n%40googlegroups.com.
