The Myth of the 2 Wheelers

It's seems to be in our Singaporean culture that we always have to ask where do everyone else live on our tiny island and our mode of transport, at least once. It's like chatting up someone with the generic one liners like : "Have you eaten?" and "How's the weather?"

And when it's my turn to answer the question, I can tell that many people are surprised to hear that I have been cycling to the MRT station in shirt and pants for as long as I have worked. In fact, I have been cycling during my secondary and poly days too. There are a couple of factors which make it very appealing for me to do so ...

And so here is the obviously pro-bicycle Q & A !

Q : How much time do you save ?

A: Quite some.

1. Walking - 15 mins
2. Bus - 20 mins
3. Taxi - Don't have $$$ to try
4. Cycling - 5 mins

You see, it's not hard to make a choice on the mode of transport to get to the MRT station. The more time that I save on transportation, the more time I can pig, and hence the later I can stay awake in the wee hours. It's also very economical and environmentally friendly.

Q : Don't your shirt smells after all that physical activity ?

A: Actually no. I perspire less than walking and walking to the bus stop. How can this be ? Yes, the HDB block that I am living in, is located on a gentle slope. That means in the morning, I just have to glide down the slope to the flat road leading to the MRT station. It helps greatly when my bike is not the cheapo Carrefour or Giant sub $100 bikes. So the amount of physical activity from cycling is actually less than walking. It is also quite cool to cycle in the morning, so any perspiration will dry up quickly.

Q: You mean a cheapo bike cannot make it?

A: Many people didn't know the difference between the cheapo bikes and the more expensive bikes. For many, a cheapo bike is a no-frill MIC 2-wheelers which you get to rent in our parks. All bikes have wheels, so why pay more ? The obvious difference is that anything beyond $150 will give you forward suspension, and if you are willing to pay beyond $300, you will get an alloy frame, rather than a steel frame which weights a ton.

Q: Then what do I get for more than $300?

A: Depending on what you choose that is.

1. Sealed bottom bracket ball bearings
   This is a big draw. It convert most of your physical movement into actual movement, not lost to friction due to cheap sleeve bearings. The bicycle will also glide much longer too, saving a lot of physical work. The cheap sleeve bearings are also susceptible to wear and tear. On the average, I worn out 2 pairs of sleeve bearings a year before I see the light and change to sealed bearings.
   
   
2. Good wheels with ball bearings.
   Similar to the above, the bicycle glides longer without additional physical input.
   
   
3. Pedals with ball bearings.
   Yes there are all bearings too ! I personally like aluminum pedals for their better grip in wet conditions. Add point 1 to 3 together and you get a bicycle that goes a long way per pedal cycle.
   
   
4. Gear sets and gear shifters.
   All mountain bikes come with gear shifters. Unfortunately, not all are able to change gears properly. The better bikes come with gear shifters that will always change at 1 gear stop at a time, every time. You will appreciate this when riding on slopes.
   
   
5. Brakes that works.
   I had experience with cheapo bikes that didn't have proper working brakes right off the shelves, and I can assure you that's very dangerous. Cheapo bikes brakes do not grip evenly or hard enough on both sides of the wheel. Some braking pads are so bad that they will wear out in a matter of weeks. Speed without control is suicide and I will refuse to ride a bike without working brakes. My bike's 3 years old brake pads are still working well so far.
   
   
6. Rust resistance.
   The more expensive bikes do not rust, at least for most of the components. You just have to spray some WD40 and you are done. The junks that you see rusting at the MRT station are rusting because they are made of steel and not oiled.
   
   
7. Bicycle seat.
   For some reason, I couldn't pull off the bicycle seat completely even after loosening the bolts securing it. That's why it's not stolen yet...ha ha.
   
   
8. Suspensions.
   Sub $100 bikes come with none. $150 bikes comes with forward suspension. $250 will give you full suspension. So pay $250? No! Then idea of having suspension should be from a safety aspect. The forward suspension will be sufficient for you to keep your hands from flying off the handle bar. If you get a $250 bike with full suspension, it's very likely that every other part on the bike is crappy. It will also make the bike a natural giant magnetic target for bicycle thieves at your favorite MRT station.

Q: Then if I buy such an expensive bike, it will only get stolen! I know that [INSERT NAME]'s bike was stolen, and it was a cheap bike at that!

A: The value of the bicycle does not matter. The duration that it was left at the MRT station isn't either. It is how it is secured. I have never lost a bike before at the MRT station, even if i's overnight parking. I used a motorcycle lock and a heavy chain lock to secure both wheels to the body frame, which makes it hard for the typical opportunist bicycle thief to steal it. It will take heavy equipment to saw through the 2 locks, taking a long time and make a lot of noise.

My last $300 bike was lost after 3 years of use because my mom borrowed my bike and refused to use my locks. Instead, she happily ignore me and used a cheap and light $10 lock for her own convenient and lost the bicycle within a week. She came up with all sort of excuses such as conspiracy theories but refuses to acknowledge her error. My next bike cost over $500 and it is still in operation for the 4th year running now. Oh the locks cost slightly under a hundred bucks, making it more expensive than some of your cheapo MIC bikes.

Q: What did you buy? Can you show a picture of it?

A: I am not attaching a photo of my bike in case someone read this and target my bike. ROFL.

That's all folks. Hope this article will clear up the misconception on bicycles.