Exotic Bicycle Adventurers

Exotic Bicycles:They evolved over the years to meet our changing needs.

Leaving Netherlands along the Amelo-Nordhorn Canal and entering Germany on the paved bicycle path known as the “Grenz route” or border route we enjoy the friendly open borders of the Euro-zone.

We have been bicycling for over forty years in North America and Europe.

We have the most pleasure exploring quiet paved roads; the slower we go the more fun we have.

Our collection of cycles has filled our needs for amusement, entertainment, excursions, travel, and shopping.

After all these years we still roll along on our oldest machines that we refer to as our exotic bicycles.

For the past twelve years we have not owned any motor vehicles. All of our travels have been by bicycle or on public transport with our folding bikes.

Not being racers or speed freaks, modifications began to evolve.

For comfort Jane got new handle bars and a comfortable springy seat. For shopping and touring, carrier racks were installed. Then alloy crank, wheels, and shifters became upgrades. Before our Rhine River trip up to Switzerland, new mountain compatible sprockets were installed. After our cross Europe trip through East Germany and into Poland, where we broke twenty spokes on the cobble stoned streets, I exchanged all of our spokes for heavy duty Mexican replacements…fixed!

A computer, drink holders, and front rack for straddle bags were added to make cross-country touring even better for serious cross-country. The innovations made our bikes into little pack mules. A map holder and my personally designed “save my ass” bike seat came next. I designed the seat to save my sex life and protect my kidneys using light duty springs and special cut high density padding. A compass and two drink holders completed the upgrades.

Our exotic bicycles are robust but roll extremely well.

My bike modifications made me think back to a story my grandfather told me:

One day when I was in his shop he held up a well worn little hammer, and he exclaimed, “This hammer has been in the family a long time, it has had seven handles and two new heads.” That sounds a lot like our exotic bicycles.

Ten years ago I was 62 years old and many times made 120 kilometer days.

Now I am 72 years old and 40-50 kilometer days are enough…it must be the global warming?

History of our exotic bicycles: They were purchased second hand in Florida when we lived there. We loaded the bikes on our camper and traveled across the U.S. from Florida to the Pacific Northwest and California to Maine. In Canada we biked the islands of British Columbia and across to the Maritime Provinces in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. We had a home at Brownsville, Texas, and biked the area there, and then settled in Mérida, Yucatan, Mexico.

Eighteen years ago we loaded the bikes on a freighter with our camper bound for Rotterdam, Netherlands. In Europe we have bicycled with our exotic bicycles from Norway and Sweden to Spain and Portugal and from Western Europe to Poland plus every centimeter of the Rhine River from the North Sea all the way up to Konstanz in Switzerland at the Bodensee, headwaters of the Rhine. 

Biking the rural canal region near Emsbüren, Germany: We are still rolling on our exotic bicycles, and they don’t owe us much.

Click here to read more about our life long dedication to adventures.

More exotic bicycles from the 1890’s to 2011

         This photo was taken seven years before Ford produced his first automobile in 1903.
The above photo was taken in 1896 in Superior, Wisconsin, at a studio on Conner’s Point then known as West Superior. Left is Christ “C.C.” Grimsrud b.1879, my grandfather.  Next is Louis the (adopted stepson of Martin Grimsrud b.1862) and Hans Grimsrud b.1877 and the older brother of C.C. Grimsrud. Christ, Hans and Martin were all brothers born in Norway who immigrated to America before 1895.
The era was referred to as “the golden age of bicycles”. My grandfather Christ, on the left, had a Victor bicycle, the first with pneumatic tires that were glued onto lightweight wooden rims. Hundreds of firms were competing in this intense market of high demand where the typical bicycle was selling for $100.00.
The bicycle in the center is equipped with a carbide lamp, the same type used by miners.

Bicycles Today

Ootsmarsum, Netherlands attracts tourists from all across Europe and most arrive by bicycle. This is the heart of cycling along the German border where each town has its weekly market day and outdoor dining places line the quaint old time streets.

Ootmarsum, Netherlands; this bicycle shop has a steady flow of touring cyclers from all around Europe and many local accommodations are known as B & B’s, that is bed and bike hotels.

 Jane admires a 16 inch British made folding bicycle. These interesting little bikes have evolved into serious transportation vehicles because they not only go fast and are terrific in traffic, but they fold quickly to take aboard trains, airplanes and even into your hotel or office.

 Exotic? German Blitzkrieg, “lightning strike” Messerschmitt Luftwaffe flying machine with its locomotive sized air horn is engineered to make an outrageous statement.

 The German mailman goes in sun and snow and doesn’t burn a drop of fuel.

Parked on ancient cobble stones this relic of the past milk delivery bicycle has enjoyed a long life of service in rural Georgsdorf, Germany and still rolls.

 A city shopper trails a kiddy kart equipped for rain or shine on the quiet and clean streets of Nordhorn, Germany. It is hard to top this place for neat, clean and quiet.

Made in Germany, this alloy three speed folding bicycle comes complete with halogen running lights that activate automatically and run off from an internal generator. The amazing thing is that a tote bag for shipping on an airplane is included and all sells for 200€ or $260.00 U.S.D.  This is the sale price at Aldi chain stores in Europe.

Pedal powered and ecologically friendly freight hauling neatly hits the streets of Germany. This man is keeping the country clean by recycling without burning a drop of fossil fuel.

A happy biker cruises the smooth paved bicycle path along one of the many canals of Nordhorn, Germany, on the latest Dahon alloy folding bike. Folding bicycles all across Europe have recently become very popular for commuters and campers like the man above who has his camper van rig parked at the city’s municipal camping place.

This is Yucatán, Mexico where these exotic bicycles are for the young.

20 inch tricycles make a scaled down shopping cart convenient for short trips. This is Yucatan, Mexico and the price tag is in pesos and equivalent of less than $200 US.

 

This flea-market is delivered and set up using only people powered tricycles or triciclo de carga.

 

This young man in the photo above went the extra mile to dazzle with glitter and glitz.

 

Eligio Chi Perez, pictured above, begins his day before sunup by riding his bicycle seven kilometers from his home in Colonia Bojorquez to the Diario de Yucatán office in downtown Mérida to pick up the newspapers to deliver.

Each day his delivery of 175 newspapers takes him as far north as the Grand Plaza area, eight kilometers from downtown.
Still smiling seventy-one year old Eligio has faithfully made his rounds for the past fifty-two years.
Amazingly he has only worn out two bicycles in the process and not burned a single drop of gasoline.
A special congratulations to one of Yucatán’s most ecologically friendly citizens, Eligio Chi Perez.

Ready to roll home when the work day is finished this home made tricycle converted to a fruit drink bar expands into a curbside business.

 

A portable welding shop hits the streets of Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico. These tricycle’s are pressed into service for everything from taxis to mini-restaurants.

This bike started life as a conservative Schwinn but when Carlos *Cherli” Dzidz Chí got it, he has 'mexicanized' it with reflectors, ribbons and fancy do-dads. Now it is exotic.

Biking on the streets of Yucatán; one kid to steer, one for locomotion and a passenger aft.  A device called a “diablo”, or devil is fastened to the axle shaft ends and is designed to stand on making extended passenger carrying capacity possible in the land where safety is an option.

Cross country in Yucatán on our Dahon folding bicycles - with our starting point far off in the distance of the Puuc hills, Jane and I halt on a hill top to collect our breath and hydrate.

©2011 John M. Grimsrud

For more on bicycling Yucatán, Mexico, and Europe check out our website at
www.bicycleyucatan.com

To read more about the golden age of bicycles, I recommend The Lost Cyclist by David V. Herlihy.

EXOTIC BICYCLES

They evolved over the years to meet our changing needs.

Leaving Netherlands along the Amelo-Nordhorn Canal and entering Germany on the paved bicycle path known as the “Grenz route” or border route we enjoy the friendly open borders of the Euro-zone.My wife Jane and I have been bicycling together for over forty year’s extensively in North America and all across Europe.
After all these years we have found that our most pleasure is in exploring on quiet paved roads. The slower we go the more fun we seem to have.
Having said that, we now own twelve different bicycles and they serve a variety of our needs.
This motley amalgamation or collection of cycles has filled the gap in our amusement, entertainment, and shopping requirements. After all these years we still roll along on our oldest machines that we refer to as our exotic bicycles.
For the past ten years we have not owned any motor vehicles and all of our travels are either by bicycle and public transport.
Jane’s sister said; “how can you possibly live without a car?” Well, I assure you that not only can we live without a car but our standard of living has actually been richly enhanced without one.
A word about our exotic bicycles; Jane over forty years ago purchased a used 27 x 1 1/4 inch Swedish go-fast bike as her second. At the time it was the most spirited bike I had ever ridden.

Not being racers or speed freaks, modifications began to evolve. For comfort Jane got new handle bars and a springy seat. For shopping and touring, a carrier rack was installed. Then alloy crank, wheels, and shifters became upgrades. Before our Rhine River trip up to Switzerland, new mountain compatible sprockets were installed. After our cross Europe trip through East Germany and into Poland where we broke twenty spokes on the cobble stoned streets, I replaced all of the spokes with Mexican industrial heavy duty. That was the end of the problem.
A computer, drink holders, and front rack for straddle bags or panniers were added to made cross-country tours even better.
My bicycle is a total make over; the only original parts are the front fork and handlebars that I inverted.
I originally started with a frame that was a tad too big. Forty years ago I was a lot more nimble and couldn’t resist the super-light all alloy bicycle. As the years went by that over sized frame began to be a problem. One day at a bicycle shop in Netherlands I purchased a smaller French frame and went home to our camper, swapped out all the parts and the net result was a frame size that I could handle.
For serious cross-country and shopping, fore and aft luggage racks fitted with packs and panniers made our bikes like little pack animals. A map holder and my personally designed “save my ass” bike seat came next. I designed the seat to save my sex life and protect my kidneys using light duty springs and special high density padding. A compass and two drink holders finished the innovations.
Our exotic bicycles are heavy but roll extremely well.
My bike innovations made me think back to a story my grandfather told to me;
One day when I was in his repair shop he held up a well worn little hammer and exclaimed; “this hammer has been in the family a long time, it has had seven handles and two new heads.”
That sounds a lot like my exotic bicycle.

Ten years ago I was 60 years old and many times made 120 kilometer days.
Now I am 70 years old and 40-50 kilometer days are enough…it must be global warming?
We still see people spending mega-bucks on ultra-light bikes and then strapping or bolting on so many extras that they are as heavy as discount store clunkers.

A brief history of our exotic bicycles.
Both were purchased second hand in Florida where we lived in five different locations over a period of twenty-two years. We even took them on a five month long junket aboard our commercial shrimp trawler Secotan where they were stowed in the fore-peak.
Next they were transported on carrying racks aboard our camper van and traveled everywhere across the US from Florida to the Pacific Northwest and from California to the state of Maine.
I still remember biking down Las Vegas Boulevard and pulling into the Mirage where the valet parked our bikes.
In Canada we biked the islands of British Columbia and across to the Maritime Provinces in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
We eventually had a home in Brownsville, Texas and biked the border towns there. Next the bikes came to Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico.
Sixteen years ago we loaded the bikes aboard a commercial freighter along with our camper van and headed for Rotterdam, Netherlands. In Europe we have bicycled with our exotic bicycles from Norway and Sweden to Spain and Portugal. From Western Europe to Poland and every centimeter of the Rhine River from the North Sea all the way up to the Swiss Alps in Switzerland at the rivers headwaters and everything in between.

In Netherlands outside the old town of Ootmarsum where numerous well maintained bicycle paths meander through stately forests and past medieval castles…picnic tables abound. It is a bikers paradise.

Biking the sparsely populated Dortmund-Ems Canal region near Emsbüren.  Quiet paved roads and immaculately clean bicycle shelters make Germany as good as it gets.  We are still rolling on our exotic bicycles and they don’t owe us much.

© 2010 John M. Grimsrud