The Beach Cruiser Bike - Retro bike

We can all think of a few things from the past that we are only too happy to make a part of our modern life. Fashion, technology, music and more, they all end up being part of one of the human race’s endless obsession with retro. One of the major elements of our retro obsession is the unending love of the Sixties, but going a little bit further back it is easy to find one of the most classic bicycles of all time, the beach cruiser bicycle. Designed to be easy to ride on a beach – unsurprisingly – the cruiser with its wide tires and single-gear mechanism is one of those things that is built to last.

The beach cruiser is modeled after the traditional bikes seen all over America from the 1930`s until the 1950`s, and has become a trend in recent years, though the modern version is more lightweight than the bikes of the early days. The first beach cruiser was made by the Schwinn bicycle brand, which still sells many cruisers today, along with a wide range of mountain bikes.

The interesting thing about the beach cruiser bike is that it pretty much went away entirely for some time. If you think about classic retro developments, there is usually a line going through time which shows you how they have been popular and continued to be so throughout time. The Beatles would be a good example. The beach cruiser bike appeared in the 30s, dropped off in popularity in the 60s, and suddenly appeared in people’s estimations again towards the end of the last century. Our human utilitarian instincts mean that we like things that are built to last.

In bringing back the beach cruiser bicycle, people have shown that quality will always have its day. It should be noted that you do not need to be on a beach to ride a beach cruiser bicycle – although it is quite an experience when you do – but just appreciate it for what it is.

Check the tires on your bicycle

Although there are many legal requirements that are known and followed by motorists, and these requirements tend to mean that most cars on the road are safe to drive, the same requirements are either non-existent or scarcely followed by a number of cyclists. This is no criticism of the average cyclist, who will take every effort to ensure that they can cycle safely. However, some people will always let the side down. It is important that you do not let yourself become one of those people. This means that you need to check your bicycle tires regularly.

The importance of quality bicycle tires is significant. The average bike tire has grip and tread in it that allows you to brake swiftly if you need to and means that your tires will hold fast to the road when you are going at speed or changing direction. Checking that tread is one of the most important things you can do. If you let the tread on your bicycle tires run down, then there is a very real chance of it leading to an accident. If you let your tires become flat, then the tread will wear away more quickly, and there will be a very real danger of the tires slipping and causing you to fall off.

One of the most sensible things you can do is briefly check and, if necessary, pump up the tires of your bicycle before you set off. Even if it is not a matter of urgency, getting your tires to a requisite level of firmness means that you will not have to worry unduly about the risks of cycling.

Bicycle locks

Although bikes in general do not cost as much as an equivalent quality of car there is no doubt that owners want to make sure their bicycle is protected. It is not uncommon to leave your bike somewhere you consider to be safe, even chain it up, but come back to find that someone has stolen it. It is selfish behavior, and it leaves the cyclist high and dry, but the bicycle thief has one thought in mind – freeing up that bike so that they can sell it on. It is important to remember that thieves can be enormously resourceful, so your anti-theft measures need to be of a high quality.

Bicycle locks are not a new innovation, but there are changes made in the mechanics all the time, as thieves learn how to crack older models and their efforts need to be countered. The main problem with bicycle locks is that you will be well advised to update the kind that you have, and possibly use more than one or two to make sure that even if the thief gets past your first line of defense, they will have a tough job to steal it without anyone seeing them and stopping them.

A little bit of online comparison shopping should enable you to find at least one good bicycle lock, and if you put the lock through the frame and the front wheel of the back as well as adding a back wheel immobilizer you can feel relatively secure in the knowledge that the person who tries to steal your bike will usually shrug their shoulders and move on to another target – which is really the best that we can hope for.