I’m back! (And some thoughts on bikes in Japan)

[Kitty]

Hello everyone! My apologies for not being around as of late.

As soon as the NBC ended I left my bike at the shop for her annual maintenance and then boarded a plane for vacation for a 10-day trip to Japan. (My first time there as a tourist and not there for study or work). After we got back though it was hard going getting back into the swing of things, with long nights at the office to make up for being away, and further travel and social engagements (Halloween etc.) keeping me largely away from the computer.

Anyway, I thought before I get back to posting/snarking etc. I should at least account for my absence, as well as share a few observations regarding bikes in Japan.

Mindset: Pure utility. The bike is a vehicle to get you, and all your stuff, from point A to point B. Road bikes and performance machines exist, but are rare by comparison to the thousands who are content to ride (albeit slowly) as their primary mode of transportation.

• The “Momma’s Chariot”: The typical bike you will see in Japan will remind you of a CaBi on a slight diet: stocky metal frame, thick wheels, upright seat, 3-7 gears, built in (friction powered!) headlight, and one basket on the handle bars. Optional features: umbrella holder, additional rear baskets, rear and/or front car seats for up to 2 children. They are slow-moving tanks; built for function, ease of use/maintenance, and cheap! (I saw them retailing new for around $125!). These “mommy bikes” will account for 90% of the bikes you see and are ridden by everyone from mothers on errands, retirees, commuting school kids and salarymen in suits–even the police!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]10065[/ATTACH]] These were the ones we rode in Kyoto, the most basic “Mommy Bike”

• Multi-modal: Once while studying there, I was living in the country and multi-modal was de rigueur students high school aged and over. People would often ride into town on the train and then retrieve their bike from their rented bike parking and ride to school. I noticed that this was the same in the places we visited in which you would ride your bike to the bus/train, and leave it, but your bike never rode on the vehicle.

• City Cycling: Tokyo is starting to get a bit more “bike friendly” by building special bike lanes… on sidewalks. There are many bikes in the city as thousands used them for commuting and errands. Interestingly the custom seems to be most cyclists ride on the sidewalk, but follow no discernible “keep to the left/pass on the right” rules. Rather the cyclists and the pedestrians operate with a silent trust that they are watching out for each other and there will be no collisions. The cyclists will go slow as needed and only pass if clear. (EXCEPTION: Little old ladies as a rule disobey ALL posted “No Bicycles” signs and will run into people and keep going without so much as comment.) As a result, anytime I saw a cyclist in the street, it got my attention. These were the only cyclists not on “mommy bikes,” and rode things closer to what we tend to ride. They were also the only ones wearing helmets.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]10064[/ATTACH] A rare, marked-on-road, bike lane–with an interesting “head on” design. (Look ma! No helmet!)

• More on Bike Rules and Signage: Kyoto is more of a bike town than Tokyo–it’s laid out in an easy to navigate grid, and more compact with many narrow streets that cars simply cannot navigate easily. Here was where I got some practical city-cycling experience. Within about 10 minutes I realized I needed to give up on trying to follow the “rules of the road.” As noted above, there was no “keep to left/right,” or a set take the road or take the sidewalk. Instead it was a series of exceptions on limit signage “Bikes go here” indicating the sidewalk on one side of the road, immediately followed by “No bikes” and “Bikes go here” on the other side of the road two blocks away! Moreover bike routes were not indicated by a universal symbol, but rather dense kanji-characters, which are hard to read at speed when barely literate in the language.

Did you catch that? It says “One Way, but if you’re on a bike you can use it.”

• Security: Chances are when parking your bike in Japan there is no need to look for a rack, or a post to attach to. Your standard-issue “Mommy bike” will have a built-in lock. This device is like a C-shaped ring attached to your rear fender. When you need to lock your bike, you pull out the key, which engages a that closes the C all the way to form a ring that locks the rear wheel in place. Now, nothing is to stop someone from, say, picking up your bike and walking away with it… except that it weighs a ton, and theft is rare in Japan. Though it does mean you need to watch where you park! If you leave it in a no-parking zone, this makes is easy for your bike to be impounded! All they need to do is dump it into a truck!

Topic

[Kitty]

Aside from that, here are some miscellaneous bike-related photos. I didn’t get any of my husband or I on our Kyoto-by-Bike adventure, largely because he wasn’t having much fun (our bikes weren’t in the best shape and his had brakes that kept locking and gears that wouldn’t shift) but the memories were there. It was a fun way to get around for touring.

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This “rugged” Mommy Bike in Tokyo is a Chevy. Seriously, the decal reads “Heartbeat of America.” Hummer was another popular model.

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A van decorated with “Keirin” bikes- a special indoor type of racing.

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A bike shop in Sendai with a ton of “Mommy Bikes” parked outside. (I have to wonder if they bring them out and set them up every morning)

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A shot of the same shop. What struck my eye is they do sell road and performance bikes, but inside on the 3rd floor–with the sporty figure jumping the roof!

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A quiet neighborhood street in Kyoto, with the residents’ bikes parked just outside the front door.

[Tim Kelley]

A few photos of the velodrome in Tokyo from my visit last year:

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And my artistic attempt in Kyoto:

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[Powerful Pete]

Oooohhh… great report!

Keirin! Track awesomenes!

[dasgeh]

@Kitty 127748 wrote:

Your standard-issue “Mommy bike” will have a built-in lock. This device is like a C-shaped ring attached to your rear fender. When you need to lock your bike, you pull out the key, which engages a that closes the C all the way to form a ring that locks the rear wheel in place. Now, nothing is to stop someone from, say, picking up your bike and walking away with it… except that it weighs a ton, and theft is rare in Japan. Though it does mean you need to watch where you park! If you leave it in a no-parking zone, this makes is easy for your bike to be impounded! All they need to do is dump it into a truck!

This is, I believe, a “frame lock” (I’m familiar with them attached to the frame, not the fender). They are useful here for cargo bikes, which are too heavy pick up. You can buy a chain/cable that works with a frame lock, but generally these are less useful for normal bikes. But, man, is it convenient to just turn the key and go.

[vvill]

I had similar impressions from my visit to Japan. I didn’t have much time to ride but I definitely did lots of observing/gawking

Shinjuku (in Tokyo)

1×6 SRAM twist-shift bikes that were included as part of our house rental in Kyoto. Pretty easy to ride, and they had the frame/C-lock mentioned above. The seatpost was pretty short though, even for my modest height. I had it as high as I could whilst feeling comfortable it wasn’t going to jump out of the seat tube.

Some more bike related photos here. I noticed a LOT of family biking, and many with what looked like e-assist. I did also visit a big electronics/camera store and also noticed how cheap a nice family bike would’ve been (at least in USD).
http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-sCcqq3

[Kitty]

@Tim Kelley 127783 wrote:

A few photos of the velodrome in Tokyo from my visit last year:

That’s awesome! Those action shots are fantastic!
I’ve only recently learned the Keirin and how highly regimented it is. (All riders, bikes etc, need to be up to every precise spec.) Apparently it was started as a gambling sport, much like horse or dog racing, so a lot of care it put into trying to keep the yakuza (Japanese mob) out of it.

@dasgeh 127887 wrote:

This is, I believe, a “frame lock” (I’m familiar with them attached to the frame, not the fender). They are useful here for cargo bikes, which are too heavy pick up. You can buy a chain/cable that works with a frame lock, but generally these are less useful for normal bikes. But, man, is it convenient to just turn the key and go.

You’re right, they probably are attached to the frame, just over the fender:

I like the idea of them on a cargo bike or anything else no one is going to walk off with. That’s the one benefit of so many people being on similar large, heavy, cheap bikes, less temptation to steal! (societal opprobrium not withstanding)

[Tim Kelley]

@Kitty 127941 wrote:

Apparently it was started as a gambling sport, much like horse or dog racing, so a lot of care it put into trying to keep the yakuza (Japanese mob) out of it.

Keirin is government run, started after World War 2, and I believe that proceeds go to help fund education?

And here’s a surprise from the Tsukiji Fish Market:

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Bullit’s have a pretty good range!

[DCAKen]

There was an article in the NY Times a few months ago about how bikes weren’t locked up very often in Japan.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/12/magazine/the-bicycle-thief.html?_r=0

[PotomacCyclist]

Apparently in Copenhagen and in other European cities, parents leave their babies in strollers on the sidewalk while they dine in a restaurant or cafe.

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/14/nyregion/toddler-left-outside-restaurant-is-returned-to-her-mother.html
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2014/08/12/339825261/global-parenting-habits-that-havent-caught-on-in-the-u-s

Apparently this was also common practice in the U.S. in previous decades. According to some accounts it continued into the 1950s, perhaps later.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/15113
http://www.chronicallyvintage.com/2011/01/vintage-365-1940s-ad-reminds-parents.html

[mstone]

@PotomacCyclist 128031 wrote:

Apparently in Copenhagen and in other European cities, parents leave their babies in strollers on the sidewalk while they dine in a restaurant or cafe.

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/14/nyregion/toddler-left-outside-restaurant-is-returned-to-her-mother.html
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2014/08/12/339825261/global-parenting-habits-that-havent-caught-on-in-the-u-s

Apparently this was also common practice in the U.S. in previous decades. According to some accounts it continued into the 1950s, perhaps later.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/15113
http://www.chronicallyvintage.com/2011/01/vintage-365-1940s-ad-reminds-parents.html

!

[GovernorSilver]

Great report, Kitty!

Did you get to try climbing a 20% grade super slope on a mommy bike?

This guy has made a career out of refurbishing surplus bikes from Japan and reselling them in the Philippines – mostly mommy bikes and mini velos. Umbrella holder seems to be a popular mod. Swing lock is cool too – the lock prevents the front wheel from swinging around when you don’t want it to – useful for carrying the bike, working on the wheel, etc.

http://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/484425-jitensha-philippines.html

[Tim Kelley]

Why Cycling Works in Tokyo

[video=vimeo;157120644]https://vimeo.com/157120644[/video]

[Author]

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