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Bike industry bashing special! The lack of standardisation and limited options for larger riders discussed on the road.cc Podcast

From different standards of bottom brackets to limited clothing sizes, what could the industry be doing better?

The latest episode of the road.cc Podcast puts the bicycle industry under the magnifying glass as we look at the lack of standardisation when it comes to components, accessories and even clothing, as well as discussing what can be done to encourage larger would-be riders, who often feel daunted and disheartened at the lack of suitable bikes and clothing sizes, to get in the saddle.

 

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Whether it’s headsets, mounts and chargers for GPS and other electronic devices, tubeless wheels and tyres, seat posts or – perhaps most notoriously – bottom brackets, the bike industry is full of examples of parts and components that vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Add in various pedal and shoe systems and even seasoned riders, let alone newbies, can find themselves presented with a head-scratchingly bewildering array of products to choose from and, crucially, in many cases will need to ensure that what they’re buying will be compatible with the bike they are buying it for.

In this episode, host George sits down with the road.cc tech team to talk through some examples of the frustration caused by the lack of standardisation in the industry, its environmental impact, and what can be done to resolve the situation. (Spoiler – according to road.cc tech editor Mat, “It’s never going to happen.”

The second segment in this episode sees road.cc’s Jack and Mildred join George for a chat with Steven May from Knaap e-bikes, which targets its bikes at larger riders, among others.

Among the topics they discuss is how to get people who aren’t into bikes onto bikes, plus the intimidation some might feel when they walk into a bike shop, not least due to the lack of suitability for them of the bikes on offer, and the sizing of clothes, which as anyone who has rifled through the racks will know often tends towards the smaller sizes.

The road.cc Podcast is available on Apple PodcastsSpotify and Amazon Music, and if you have an Alexa you can just tell it to play the road.cc Podcast. It's also embedded further up the page, so you can just press play.

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Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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6 comments

Avatar
tubasti | 2 years ago
0 likes

Standardizing jean sizes? Have you observed the different shapes people come in?

Yes, bottom brackets should be threaded. Italian or BSA, builder's choice. Done. Hey, I'm happy handlebar stems come are 1 1/8" x 31.8 mm. Except Giant. Get in line, Giant. Your extra steerer girth doesn't matter.

Avatar
RoubaixCube | 2 years ago
1 like

Its not a bashing without Hambini being involved. I know some people find him a bit of a twat but there are methods to his rather insaneness. 

Avatar
brooksby | 2 years ago
5 likes
Avatar
Steve K replied to brooksby | 2 years ago
3 likes

Hasn't Rees Mogg said that one of the Brexit benefits is we can have a different charger for every device we own?

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to Steve K | 2 years ago
3 likes
Steve K wrote:

Hasn't Rees Mogg said that one of the Brexit benefits is we can have a different charger for every device we own?

And we can now enjoy being over-charged for phone roaming charges too!

Avatar
mdavidford replied to hawkinspeter | 2 years ago
3 likes

Well, one's butler does deserve a reasonable wage for carrying it around after one.

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