Bicycles

Bicycles and life

The bicycle was a truly exciting machine when it was first invented over a century

ago; it was improved with every passing. A bike has many advantages- it is the most

energy efficient form of transport on earth, it is healthy, non-polluting, economical and

safe, but it's most unique, outstanding and enjoyable quality is that a bike is totally

personal.

The experience is unlike anything that you encounter while you are bicycling.

Swooping around corners, the wind rushing against your face and through your hair, the

smells of grass, of morning bakeries and evening dew is sensational. Moving your legs

steadily and evenly, you create and experience both rhythm and pace. When you bite hard

into the pedals the power and speed you create are totally yours. The ideal of classic

Greek culture was the most perfect harmony of mind and body, so a human and a bicycle

are the perfect synthesis of body and machine, of art, craft and technology, the sheer joy

and vitality of life. It is in the nature of the experience that cyclists have always wanted

the best machines they could build or obtain. However recent advances in gears, brakes,

tires and most significantly in light weight materials, have been huge. Compared to those

of a decade ago, today's bicycles are simply amazing and the demand for quality is

greater than ever before. The only viable means of private transport in the world today is

the bicycle. The main threat to this claim is the car, which has helped industrialize the

world in the 20th century. But the car has already proved its limitations. It is running out

of space and energy supplies and is now responsible for both serious environmental

pollution and 250,000 deaths and 10 million injuries worldwide. As the truth dawns that

the automobiles liabilities outweigh its benefits, industrialized nations are beginning to

seek alternatives to the car. One of the principal beneficiaries of this reawakening is the

discovery of the bicycle as an ecologically clean and efficient machine. As for its

technological development, the bicycle appears to be at the dawn of a golden age in the

western world. Encouraged by the upsurge of interest created by mountain bikes,