Coasting: All Washed Up

Two years ago, I wrote in this blog (here) about a new concept, "Coasting," that Shimano had come up with:  to attract non-cyclists to riding, the company engineered an automatic transmission and it ended up on bicycles made by Trek, Raleigh and Giant in 2007, followed by four other firms in 2008.  The idea was that the 161 million non-cyclists in America could be lured onto the roads if they had simple, fun and relatively inexpensive bikes.  Although it seemed at first that sales were good, it now appears that the program has ended and no Coasting bikes are being produced anymore.

One of the fascinating aspects of Bicycle World is the endless inventiveness as people try to improve the Perfect Machine.  Coasting owes its origins to a design firm, IDEO, which received a brief from Shimano in 2002.  To a man with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail and to the IDEO people the problem seemed to be the bicycle rather than the environment.

Trek's Coasting bike, the Lime, won the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum's People's Choice Award in October 2009 but that was not enough to save it.  In addition to the error of applying a technological solution rather than addressing the real problem of why people don't ride bikes, the marketers also priced the bicycles at around $500, which would make them very unappealing to extremely casual cyclists-to-be.  For that money, there are plenty of good bikes (admittedly some that need to be shifted) with practical features such as racks and fenders and wheels that are easily removed for tire changes.

Of course, if you are really not very picky about your bicycle, you can go to Wal-Mart and pick up a Mongoose commuting bike for US$119 (marked down from US$132!).  This is not a typo.  On the other hand, you have to assemble it yourself and will probably have to change the innertubes before the first ride or the plastic pedals (according to a surprising number of reviewers), but, still, 87 reviews of 113 gave the bike at least 3 out of 5 stars, and 34 of those went for the 5.  It seems to me that many of the reviewers were not "hardcore" cyclists but were just looking for cheap transport and were willing to accept parts that fall off sometimes.

The word "fun" does not appear in customer reviews of the Mongoose once but the people who bought Trek Limes seem to really like them.  I guess there were just not enough of those customers.

Trek brings back chainless bicycles...sort of

Trek District

Well, here we go: before I can finish the very interesting article on the history of chainless bicycles for my blog, which has been in progress for some time, Trek Bicycles have jumped the gun and are bringing the chainless bike back to the mass market. Of course they have a long history, falling out of favour due to the additional cost of the shafts and perhaps extra weight. But, in fact, what Mr. Trek is offering is nothing like Col. Albert Pope did back in the days of the Columbia Bicycle Company empire but rather a conventional bike that uses a toothed belt instead of a chain.

It is apparently a newsworthy story as Associated Press came out with the piece below, datelined today in Richmond, Virginia for some reason. I will still do my post when I have worked it into shape but at least you can be entertained in the meantime. Although I am not sure why Mr. Felberbaum thinks internal hub shifting systems are not geared, which of course they are.

Trek introduces chainless bicycles

By MICHAEL FELBERBAUM Associated Press Writer

If you've ever been riding down the street and had your pants cuff ripped asunder, there may be a revolution at hand.

Trek Bicycle is part of a movement to bury the finger-pinching, pants-munching, rust-prone sprocket and chain, and usher in an era of belt-driven bikes that might have the inventors of the self-propelled transportation Schwinning in their graves.

Wisconsin-based Trek is introducing two models this holiday season that are chainless, instead using technology most often found in things like motorcycles and snowmobiles. While some smaller custom bike makers have used them before, Trek is the first to use the technology for mass-produced bicycles.

The nation's largest domestic bike manufacturer is hoping to capitalize on a new group of urban pedal-pushers who are trading their cars for a more low-tech way to get around because of gas prices as well as health and environmental concerns.

The U.S. bicycle industry was a $5.4 billion industry in 2007, including the retail value of bicycles, related parts, and accessories through all channels of distribution, according to research funded by the National Sporting Goods Association. More than 43 million Americans age 7 and older were estimated to have ridden a bike six times or more in 2005, the industry group said.

"People are really finding bicycles to be a very simple solution to some very complex problems that they face every day," said Eric Bjorling, Trek's lifestyle brand manager. "Anything we can do in our design to really help them and help them live that lifestyle is probably better for both the consumers and us."

Bjorling said the new belts are a low-maintenance solution to a chain, which has roughly 3,000 parts including all the links and connectors.

Aside from the whisper-quiet ride, the lighter and longer-lasting carbon-fiber composite belts won't rust, can't be cut, won't stretch or slip and won't leave grease marks around your ankles. A guard over the belt-drive and the construction of the system makes getting your pants stuck an unlikely scenario, Bjorling said.

One version of the chainless bike, called the District ($930), is a single-speed, complete with a silver body, orange accents and brown leather seat and handles. The other, called the Soho ($990), is an eight-speed bike that uses an internal hub to adjust the speed rather than gears.

Bicycles have come along way from the "boneshakers back in the 19th century," said Orin Starn, a professor at Duke University who teaches a course on the anthropology of sports. Some companies have used direct drive or drive shaft bikes that provide some of the same benefits as Trek's chainless bikes, but those models have yet to replace the age-old chain.

"Certainly for the last 40 or 50 years we have this iconic image of the traditional bicycle that includes the chain," Starn said. "We've seen this evolution in different styles and stuff, but the chain has been a cultural constant."

Bjorling admits chain-driven bikes are still efficient, but said an urban rider won't have to worry about greasing or cleaning the chain. The belt can be cleaned with a normal cleaning agent and rag, and the bike sprocket is designed to push through any snow, dirt or grime. And one belt will typically last three years -- the life span of three chains.

How riders will take to the new bikes remains to be seen, since they are not out for sale yet. The District model will go on sale in December, followed the next month by the Soho. There may be those in the biking community that may take issue with swapping bike chains with newer technology.

"Bike purists are going to take a look at it and say 'oh, you know it's another option to a chain,'" Bjorling said. "Are we going to see a ton of people switching from a chain to a belt drive? I think in some urban environments yes, but it's definitely not the coffin that's gonna bury the chain."

Over the years there have been many changes in the bike industry, specifically materials that have made products lighter and stronger, said David Oakley, a manager at Agee's Bicycles, which has been in business in Richmond since 1910.

While some may question the chainless bikes, Oakley pointed to the initial skepticism, and eventual success, of mountain bikes.

"We all know that putting gears on a beach cruiser to be able to ride back up the hill turned out to be a pretty good thing," Oakley joked of the bike industry's most popular segment. Oakley said there's a general excitement behind the new technology, but cautioned that the notion may not ring everyone's bell.

"From a maintenance standpoint, it's huge," he said. "If this really, completely takes off, the lubricant industry is probably not going to be excited."

Coasting Bikes: The Road Ahead or a Dead End?

Giant Suede (top), Trek Lime (centre), Raleigh Coasting (below)

Coasting: Cycling for Everyone?

To the surprise of many of us who are obsessed by–oops, sorry: I meant to say "enjoy"–cycling, the bicycle industry in the United States is apparently in a decline. Bike sales have been flat for a decade at between $5.5 and 5.9 billion but as more high-end bicycles are being sold, cyclists are leaving at the other end of the market or never even getting in. The National Sporting Goods Association calculated that in 2006 35.6 million Americans over age 7 rode a bike at least six times in the year, down from 43.1 million the year before and 53.3 million in 1996. So as the expensive carbon bikes hit the market, revenues were stable but unit sales declined.

Shimano, the Big Daddy of the bike components business, was alarmed and retained a California innovation/design firm, IDEO, to create a better biking experience and, of course, sell more Shimano parts. IDEO went to the homes of non-cyclists across America and met with people to learn about their leisure activities.

In the end, Shimano/IDEO decided that what they were hearing was that cycling had become too intimidating and had lost its child-like fun. The choice available to cyclists had become overwhelming, and over-priced. They did not want to go into a bike shop and talk about technology and performance but wanted to reclaim their memories of just riding around as a kid. Nothing about being too lazy to ride or fear of Spandex!

Working with IDEO, Shimano came up with Coasting, a concept that called for new bikes that looked familiar and were easy to ride and affordable. In fact, the bikes require so little from the rider that they shift themselves, using a Shimano automatic transmission. Shimano also has made an effort to improve the bike purchasing experience so that Coasting buyers are comfortable in bike shops. Shimano then took its concept to several big manufacturers and to date Trek, Giant and Raleigh have Coasting bikes on the market and apparently sales are good. Even Business Week had a story about it.

From the reviews I have read, the Coasting bikes–the Trek Lime, Giant Suede and Raleigh Coasting–are pretty heavy and not very responsive. They are a lot cheaper than a decent Mavic wheelset at around $450 each and they look unthreatening with their rounded lines, covered chains and simple brakes. They do not have lights or even racks so it is unlikely they will be used for even short errands but probably for just riding around subdivisions.

Raleigh One Way

If the Coasting idea brings people into cycling, it is all for the better but it seems to me that perhaps the concept is a dead end rather than the smooth Highway of the Future. The bikes are not designed to be maintained by their owners–just looking at changing a tire conjures up nightmares–and their appeal will be primarily to people who will probably not move to more capable bicycles, either for commuting or sport. There are nice alternatives that are much better bicycles: for example, the Raleigh One Way is a steel classic-looking singlespeed bike (ie. no shifting), with fenders, good brakes, eyelets for a rack and a price tag of only $600.

To me the reason that people drop out of cycling or never get much into it is the perception that it is dangerous to go out and ride a bicycle on the street. I have ridden in heavy city traffic on three continents and there are skills that have to be developed. But there also has to be an environment that is welcoming to bicycles as transportation, whether through traffic-calming, market bike lanes or paths. If this element of the cycling equation were to be improved, I think that more people, across all age groups, would be more interested in cycling in the United States. Selling automatic transmissions to big manufacturers might be easier for Shimano than effective bike advocacy but in the long run–to reduce traffic fatalities, to improve your health, and to just have fun–the industry has to get behind advocacy in a much bigger way.

Cool-looking bikes, though. The first prototype presented by IDEO to Raleigh made the managers liken it to something that was a cross between Audi and Dr. Seuss.