How about that. Our blog is another year older and non the wiser. Just what did we learn this year?
Well, according to the stats we learned that gears are more popular than single speeds. Yes, that’s right. On a blog almost entirely dedicated to single speeds and fixies an article on 3-speed bikes is the most popular.
I’ve got nothing against that in itself. I kinda like gears. I have two bikes that have about a million gears between them. It’s just that the blog is more or less about single speed bikes, in name and action, and you people are making a mockery of it. (But at least you’re reading so I don’t care either way. Prepare for more bike reviews of bikes with gears this year as I pander shamelessly to my audience.)
Best of Cheap Fixies is next in terms of popularity. Good to get back on track. That’s an old article by now though and maybe I’ll update it with links to the many bike reviews we’ve done since then.
Speaking of old articles. The top ten is rounded out with a very old article I did on fixie fashions, perennial favourite since the dawn of time the review of my hard wearing Mojo (back when it was still new and free of rust), the Cooper Sebring review, and the Jelly Bean review. None written in 2013.
They’re all pretty old now and it’d be great to refresh them with reviews of the most recent models. There was some talk between myself and Mojo. They were keen but we kinda lost track of each other. I’ll pursue that one for the new year and see if we can’t get a review on one of their latest rockets.
Best Of The Cheap Fixies is also an old article and it gets into the top ten (no doubt because it so perfectly captures a common Google search).
Reid Cycles get two bikes into the top ten. One is my review of the Reid Harrier. The other is the only top ten article actually written in 2013. Hurrah! But again it’s a bike with lots of gears, the Reid Falco Elite.
Bike Reviews 2013
The
Brown Jersey bike review was added late 2012 and was a popular item the last year, perhaps spurred on by the fact that I became this bike’s new owner and can’t stop mentioning how much I love it. That bike was a subject to few little niggles, like the brakes (
which they resolved), but for me it was also an excuse to change stuff. I wasn’t really a fan of drop bars, they were something I requested for the tester because I never thought I’d become it’s lucky owner. So on went some
wooden bars from Etsy and
Dirt Harry levers.
For something a little different we took the
Papillionaire Racer for a ride in May. It was a lovely change of pace from reviewing single speeds and fixies. I’ll hope to get another ride on a Papillionaire again this year.
Then the
Yes threw me for a spin. Mainly because I was too stupid to realise what this bike was trying to achieve. Once I found out where the bike was coming from I had hoot on this Melbourne based brand. You can put a square peg in a round hole but only if you’re particularly stupid. Thankfully I got it right in the end and found out just how much fun this bike can be.
The Yes probably set me up for the
Create Bikes Originals Fixie. In many ways they were bikes with a similar target, albeit coming at it from different directions. I was able to throw a leg over the Create and “get it” straight away. We had brilliant fun from day one. Both the Create and the Yes are begging for action. Don’t treat these as commuter bikes unless you treat your commute like playtime.
The year in reviews was rounded out with the
Chappelli Cycles review. It was something of a return to a more traditional bike. Not the bike you want if you’re jumping gutters and perfecting your urban moves but a great bike for commuting and café jaunts. It found a new owner with a friend of mine snapping it up before I had a chance to return it. I look forward to seeing the Chappelli stay in the family.
Other notable reviews this year were the
Sturmey-Archer Duomatic (which is languishing in my shed…anyone want a Duomatic?) and the
Ass Savers. We’ve had a good run with weather and the Ass Savers haven’t seen action for months. They’re so discreet you wouldn’t know they were there so hopefully I remember they’re there when the time comes to use them.
What’s Up for 2014?
Don’t look at me. I really do just make this shit up as I go along. I know Jim Junkee of
House of Jube fame is keen for me to review his new street thrasher. That came down to earth late 2013 so I didn’t bother trying to squeeze in a review before Christmas. I think we’ll start there and see where it all takes us. Hope you can come along for the ride.
