rolling-orange-061110.jpg
bike-061110.jpgAs we predicted, the Baltic Green Giant is becoming a bike store. (Thanks to tipsters and Pardon Me for Asking for the heads up.) Rolling Orange opens this Saturday and will sell Dutch bikes, which are known for their sturdiness and large storage spaces in front. The picture to the right is a model they had in front of the store the other day. With the neighborhood’s new bike lanes, they should see some decent business, no?
Something Afoot at Baltic Green Giant [Brownstoner]
Green Giant of Baltic Street Filled [Brownstoner]
Still No Takers for Big Green Space on Baltic [Brownstoner]


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  1. tyburg6, was not specifically to you. I just think fixed gear is a weird fad given that it’s less functional and many don’t have brakes (which is illegal) and less safe.

    My weight comment is because ‘serious’ bikers are so worried about an extra pound or two which cannot make any difference in reality. To the rest of us, our choice of lunch may make a similar difference.

  2. quote:
    OK, earlier this week there was a post about too many card stores. We don’t have enough card stores — but my god, how many bike stores can the city support? They are all over the place. There are like four per neighborhood in North Brooklyn. It’s crazy.

    aint you heard? they’re the new nail salons!

    *rob*

  3. Not to be Debbie-downer here, but those Dutch style bikes are a pain to maintain. As a former bike mechanic, I can say that whenever someone pushes one of those into a bike shop with a problem, the mechanics will all be rolling their eyes and giving the bike to the new guy.

    Say what you will about the aesthetics of fixies, but at least they’re simple machines to maintain. I was at SID’s in Manhattan the other day and happened to be looking at one of their Dutch style bikes. You need a mechanical engineering degree, just to adjust the brakes.

    Something to keep in mind.

  4. “tybur, these bikes will be crazy expensive. they are status symbols for people who claim to eschew status symbols, nothing more nothing less.”

    Good one, Rob.

    OK, earlier this week there was a post about too many card stores. We don’t have enough card stores — but my god, how many bike stores can the city support? They are all over the place. There are like four per neighborhood in North Brooklyn. It’s crazy.

    Don’t most people buy their bikes used on Craiglist?

  5. hey *rob*, serious question. if you have kids or just run a lot of errands, want to be “green” and dont want to own a car then what should one use to get around that isn’t “for attention and eurocred”?

  6. CMU — You were very selective in your reply to my comment. The weight factor was only ONE positive aspect of my single-geared bicycle. Not to mention you made it sound like I was a proponent of fixies… not nice.

    twc — BakfIEts. “Baker’s Bike” Just thought i correct your spelling in case someone wanted to google ’em.

  7. quote:
    you have to give credit to anyone who is willing to ride a bakfeits as there are obviously easier ways to get around with kids and groceries.

    um no. i’ve seen many of those in brooklyn. people ride those for attention and eurocred. lame.

    *rob*

  8. bakfeits (bike with box) as they are called in the netherlands are awesome. i’ve seen a mother with two kids + a dog in the box, another kid in a childs seat behind her and groceries on the handle bars.
    not sure how much they cost and i can’t comment on what it would be like riding one around brooklyn but the premise is admirable.
    if they are too heavy and too expensive that is one thing but the more bikes on the road the better. you have to give credit to anyone who is willing to ride a bakfeits as there are obviously easier ways to get around with kids and groceries.

  9. “My single-gear (non-fixie) bike is VERY light weight, ”

    If you think of a bike loaded with a 180lb adult, having gears (2-3 lbs) is negligible. A fixed gear bike is basically a stupid fad…you get the same with a single-gear bike, which can coast so it’s safer.

    Not to say the Dutch bikes are not way too heavy.

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