Why Dutch Bikes are Better (and why you should want one) 

Indeed, lighter hybrid bikes with stronger breaks and more speeds work much better in Madrid and similar cities. There's a kind of bike for every kind of situation, and no one-size-fits-all.

@Seaworth no, it's because there were no cars when Dutch cities were built. There's also a lot less land per person in the Netherlands.

@Seaworth most cities in the US expanded in the 50s when cars became affordable for families. Most cities in the Netherlands expanded in the 1500s, lol. Also, in the US, people had the option to build outwards because there's a lot of cheap land. People in he Netherlands did not/don't have that option. It has nothing to do with "arrogance" or "peacockery."

@Seaworth Ben, the author of the original comment, lives in the US, so obviously the conversation involves the US.

@Seaworth no, when Ben said "It's not the bikes I'm envious if..." and you replied to him and then I replied to you. The comment, not the videom keep up

@@eliwhite5548 there no cars when basically the entirety of European cities were built - post car cities/towns is mostly a 'new world' thing (Asia, Americas etc).

Grow your leg muscles, Boy

Just add a motorized front or rear wheel and disc brakes, and these bikes become the Kings of the bike world.

@@timothyknight8529 It would add more weight and cost. The Dutch people don't need it. It's an interesting concept though.

@@PeterRoos ... I want to get that Dutch bike with motorized wheel and the disc brakes for a friend of mine who lives in the hill country of western Tennessee over near the Mississippi River in the USA. He has a 33-year-old daughter (Katy) who is extremely disabled, can't talk or walk or feed herself, and he pulls her in an adult trailer (Wike). He's been doing that for about 15 years at least, and he's been pulling it with a $300 GT bike (nothing special but plenty of gears). He says he needs more gears now that he's getting older (he's 60 now). I'm guessing Katy weighs 130 lb and with the trailer and all the stuff that's in it, it's about 200 lb that he's been pulling with just a cheap $300 GT bike that is now on its last legs. I think the Dutch bike would be the brute that can handle that trailer like nobody's business, and he be sitting pretty, and he'd have one gear or maybe three, depending on what's in the hub in the rear, but the motor would get them up any incline he couldn't handle, and he couldn't handle most of them pulling 200 pounds. I'd like to give it a try but I don't know how the heck I can find one of those new grandma's Dutch bikes in America. I'll look around though. Thanks Peter!

That’s why I lusted after “English racers” because they were lighter and had gears. Still vastly simpler and cheaper than contemporary bikes. But the not as sturdy, which was obvious. In Florida main problem was wind, especially on cold days. Can’t imagine non optional use in North.

You mean you can ride it as intended. No 12 year old should ever ride one any other way.

@@daylen577 12 year olds all ride with no hands to show off how cool they are. I admit, I still do this sometimes.

@Mark just clip a playing card to the wheel

Haha goeie

@@DellDuckfan313 I do this on every long bike ride. I can sit upright for a few seconds and relaxe my back, hands and arms, maybe swing them around or put them on the head, arch the back all the way inward. Feels good. In addition you can put on/off your jacket and gloves from/into your backpack while riding. Or unstuck that damn jacket zipper.

If you're Canadian send monthly one of these videos to all your representatives, so they start building the infrastructure needed to feel safe on them as well. ;)

Or American.

AND NORWEGIANS... We watch these videos and cry in Norwegian!. ..

Me, that's me. I'm a sad Canadian in need. Pls donate

@@coffeepot3123 Norway is one of the richest countries in the world. Somebody could get rich importing and selling these bikes. ;)

my aunt has a nice sky blue bike like this and we treat it like a prize possession LOL

because in other countries they dont use bikes like this cause they gonna break in one day but yes for netherlands they are usefull

@@SakuseiMaking Actually "Hollandräder" are not uncommon in Germany either. More so in the (flat) northern parts of course, but they work well enough in slightly hilly areas as well. And they LAST, almost as well as so called "pre-war bikes". But those were built like panzers. ;)

@@AleaumeAnders Thank you for the history lesson mate i really like it :) i am from greece these bikes gonna break in a few minutes thats why i said it

@@SakuseiMaking *nod* I wouldn't want to ride a "street-racing bike" in mountainous Greece. ;)

Exactly, nothing feels more liberating than having a bike and being able to get to your destination faster than a car or public transport could do

@@cosmicreciever how about when it is hot or rainy?

@@dickiewongtk Have you heard of hats and coats

@@m.f.3347 and not having a roof... hot days are a very car centric problem

@@roobern4334 are some people in your near vicinity just getting suffocated by the insane testosterone you exude

I'm not sure but goes back to the days when taking a hit to the jewels made you a man,, while smoking marlboro,,lol

It's because the high bar makes it impractical to ride one in a dress, which is an article of clothing that women used to wear.

@@phirion6341 Mate whenever someone makes it personal it just shows a lack of an argument

@gnilttbs which comment mate?

We call that a "Dutch baptism"

There's a good reason why my dad rode on what in those days was still considered a women's bike.

Guilty as charged. The next day I bought a pull-trailer for my toddler.

WASTED

Well, it wasn't your last memory, so....

Exactly. I live in SF Bay Area and do most of my riding in Oakland, Berkeley and SF. Lots of very steep hills. “Sporty” road & hybrid bikes here make riding so much easier.

The solution to everything is moving to the netherlands

@jbassmesser183 i ride in tilden a lot so i usually just end up riding my mtb around town and then up to trails up there

I live in the eastern part of the Netherlands where it's a bit more hilly. Still nothing compared to other countries, ofcourse. Bike shops here tend to sell aluminum frame bikes or hollow-steel framed ones instead of solid steel ones. The frame is never the issue when it comes to maintenance, anyway, so swapping out the solid steel for something lighter really isn't that bad when it comes to durability.

Good point. Netherlands are really flat.

As a German it's nice to see someone passionate about simple bikes like this - last summer I spend a day with my parents, to find out, which parts of 3 or 4 of these old dutch bikes are still working and combining them, to get 2 working bikes. they were probably around 70 years old - I don't know when they stopped building handbrakes, that consist of a straight rod with a rubber pad pressing down ontop of the tire. Especially if you keep a bike around for guests, a simple to maintain bike is really nice.

@@ernieee42 A german with 70 year old Dutch bikes? *insert give me back my grandpa's bike jokes here*

lmfao great analogy !

This is such a perfect summary of this entire channel

@ Ernieee42 According to the Dutch, Dutch bicycles with brakes of this kind, actually all bicycles, became rare in the Netherlands after September 5, 1944. And your parents had 4! Perhaps unintentionally, but comments with German and old Dutch bicycles are a faux pas. You will notice.

also the brake power of front wheel is higher, this is true for all wheeled vehicles

@@buioso Yes, but for all bikes it is generally better to use front and back brakes at the same time to maximize the brake efficiency and to minimize the risk of a blockage of a wheel . If the front wheel blocks you will certainly go to the ground (without ABS protecting from blocking in the first place). If the back wheel blocks you might still have a chance. Because the front brakes are so strong you must be careful to not brake to hard. Otherwise you fly other the handlebar.

*"That brake only is a good idea in a flat environment."* Kids do fine with pedal brakes in hilly areas. But a brake on the front wheel is a good idea too. *"Had he be alone he could have made a big drop."* Did he try putting his feet down? Not great for your shoes but you'll avoid injury. I rode a bike with basically useless brakes for a while and just put my feet on the pavement to stop. I have pretty big hills too.

@@richardlinares6314 i love this so much, i used to ride a bike where the brakes did nothing so going downhill just meant hoping there wouldn't be any traffic because i needed at least 10 meters to get to a stop

If his chain came off then it was too loose. In other words: not good enough maintenance/adjusted

Well said. I live in (HILLY) Wales, have an Electric form of these now as I'm 74 and it's my ONLY form of transport. I cycle for pleasure as well as shopping trip's and clock up 100 mile's a week. No Helmet or other "Cycling Gear". I ENJOY the ride / Countryside / Nature and don't do it to "keep fit". That wood bore me.....

The problem is that, at least in the part of the US I live in? These bikes will NEVER be ideal, even if the infrastructure supported it. Climbing uphill in a single-geared, heavy steel bike is torture, and going downhill with just pedal breaks to save you is asking to get in an accident. As long as a simple 5km ride can involve almost 100 meters of uphill and downhill (having at times 30 meters of elevation change in 300 meters of distance) it simply isn't going to be enjoyable.

It’s the type of simple bike I had and loved growing up. Since where I live is mainly flat, it’s the type of bike I would love to have now. Fortunately, bicycling is increasing in popularity here; so, there are more and more bike lanes being incorporated into new roads when they’re built but on many busy streets, bicyclists are putting their lives in their hands. I would simply not be brave enough to ride so close to cars with no bike lane.

@@berneemartin8859 Where you from ? I think many people think / feel that way too. I live in Rural Wales, single lane street's, mainly because of parked car's ! So motorist's can't drive fast & are use to being thoughtful of other road user's {cars}. I believe this is why I feel SO SAFE on the road's. The other PLUS is in this area there are a lot of 'trail's' and we're allowed to cycle on many of the foot path's. I guess there's more than just the "scenery" to be pleased about, living here in such a lovely area of the country.

@@moonmelons They do apparently have multi-speed bikes also - 6:05 - , but yeah, they are probably still heavy. I used to ride my Dad's single speed, 'coaster brake', balloon tired Rollfast bike all over the place, so I remember all the drawbacks. Climbing hills and 'wind in your face' made me want a motorcycle.

Is this a Dutch assumption? Because it would def be the case in Germany. Either it's too crappy or the owner has enough stacks to get another bike easily. People steal the crappiest bikes here

He said "If you see a bike locked like this" with a picture with the key still in the bike. Using a frame lock is actually considered as taking care of the bike.

@@dessertking5240 In the netherlands you bike will always weight 50 kg. Either because it's a shitty bike with a steel frame, or a nice one with a very heavy lock

@@JCGver I love steel frames though, they feel much more comfortable than aluminium frames in my opinion

When starting university the guideline was to spend half the money you paid for your bike on the lock. That would get you on the 'not worth the effort' side of the consideration for most thieves for any type of ride

Here in Canada we keep ourselves warm by swearing against the snow. It works great.

Yes we do this for many kilometers, also the phones will come out of our pockets in the summer. (yes it is illegal now but yeah you still see it everywhere)

in China, they have these weird gloves directly on the handle bars, look funny, but must be quite warm, i guess...

That's how I flew over my handlebars and ended up in a hospital. Whatever you do, make sure you can regain control quickly, don't do what I have done.

@@rouge5140 this one time the snow was talking some real shit and i had to fight it. That showed it whos boss

I find this style bikes extremely uncomfortable, I'd rather ride long distance on a dirt jump bike with the seat all the way down than short distance on an upright bike. hardtail MTBs are the most comfortable for me tho

Was the Netherlands ever present in the area in colonial days? Maybe that's why this style of bike ended up in Vietnam?

@@denzzlinga doesnt have to come up directly from netherlands

Same in India…

@@denzzlinga While the Netherlands (and Denmark) has a bike culture above anyone else, this isn't a *dutch* bike, it's just normal bike stuff internationally which isn't common in North America because of the extensive car culture.

yep, its really justa classic bike

No they wouldn't lmao, they're fun to ride... until you wanna ride on like any trail

@@Nik-ny9ue That comment was pretty good... until you wanna have like want word

@@Nik-ny9ue get you're bmx out the hedge in your garden then!

These bikes seem to be inefficient and you are not in a aero position either.

No they wouldn't. Having a bike is not for a race. Idk why is the guy from this channel denying his country and hating on it for no reason. He gives a bad image of canada while it's like 4 times less dangerous, less poor and homeless people then usa and Healthcare is also free. He shows examples of canada as Ontario but Ontario had a history where ir was and still is highly influenced by American culture. That's why montreal is less grid and suburbs than Toronto. Montreal also has only small highways and didn't destroy whole suburbs like usa and Ontario did. This guy thinks Ontario=canada while it's false.

We have a bunch of them at home here. This type & electric assist also > www.cycle-eirin.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/DSC01632.jpg

way to fkn call it out. yeah. thats true

I love that comment. It's a bit like the desire to live out in the country here in the UK. So that everything you need is a long journey away rather than in your neighbourhood.

I have seriously considered moving to a "college town" because of this. They tend to be small and reasonably bikeable/walkable (though many have sprawled, and any campus built or expanded in the last 60 years forget it). Small towns in the USA that are NOT college towns you are going to encounter alot more "negative" attitudes about cycling.

@@3of11 That's not a bad Idea.

Not wrong, I loved biking after college weather it was my motorized bike zipping around town or my race bike and often riding to the lake to do some timed laps for fun. Everywhere else its suicide.

Just get one with gears and handbrakes, those are still incredibly common while keeping the same general design. besides, omafietsen are made for short trips/commutes inside cities, and cities all around the world are pretty much always fairly flat. So that is kind of a non-issue.

@@bavtie1 No, that is not the case. The cities near my hometown are all very hilly with climbs of 10% and 100-300m in the vertical as they were buit between a river and a fortresse. Flat is only the very centre, but that is so small that you do not need a bike there. You can just walk. On the other hand, most people live on the surrounding hills and this requires always some climbing. Therefore, almost nobody uses Dutch bikes there even if there is quite a number of bicycles. In the 1980s when almost no other bikes existed, people had to walk uphill and ride downhill. The invention of mountain bikes in the 1990s really boosted cycling there. Nowadays E-bikes do part of the job.

@@bavtie1 planned cities are flat. Many cities had disordered growth, people just built stuff on available hills.

@@florianmeier3186 Outside of Limburg, the Netherlands is "flat", the small hills and inclines you are talking about are not comparable to what some of countries outside of the EU deal with.

@@andreworam2844 weather is not an excuse. Check his video about winter cycling comparing Canada to Finland: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Uhx-26GfCBU.html

Those were Soviet bike in 80s and 90s India

@@animecutscenes3414 Maybe yes. But, my point is that they were present at that time

Philips, Hero, Atlas, Avon were brands of these bikes until BSA made headlines with similar yet sporty look and Kapil Dev advertising for it.

that´s how a girl takes you home if you´re manly enough

I live in Japan and it's so sad because it's forbidden to carry a person like this, despite the bike culture here being quite close to The Netherlands. Tandem bikes are also a no go. So weird!

It is technically illegal to carry an adult sized person on the rack in Sweden, also the racks are usually Max 25kg's anyway. (old bikes had sturdyer racks and no weight limit, people used their brains back then)

Our bike racks usually also say they can handle max 25 kg. dutchies like to live on the edge. And sitting on the rack is quite uncomfortable in my opinion. i'd rather cycle with someone else on the rack.

She saw me walking in town and asked me if I wanted a ride. I said 'Yes' and she said 'Well hop on then'. I did and held on to her for dear life. She felt good and I kept holding on to her for 50 years until she passed away.

This is equaled by eBikes

I have an English-made bike that's this style and I can assure you I take over road bike users uphill more than on any other terrain.

Lots of hills and bikes in Tokyo.

"Rarely touched on", this comment pops up in basically *any* video about dutch bikes or the cycling infrastructure.

@@crashmatrix never by this guy making his biased videos

You also have electric granny bikes even with disc and beltdrive and multi gears and different sizes! This video is not so accurate!

Yeah and then you get one of those talk backy kids,.. "well they can have mine!"

Hahaha 🤣👍

i would hate to ride to school on these kind of bikes, you cannot ride fast or do anything other then ride slow and leisurely, i know this comment was a joke, but it is fun to ride to school, then after school go on a bike ride with your friends, or make a jump in the back yard and spend a hour hitting it

@@noahwiebe2558 that’s why I daily my mtb

@@noahwiebe2558 Well, if you want more speed: buy one with gears/paddle harder if you want th ramo thing... I don't think you realize how dutch "beat up bikes" get beat up XD honestly on a reasonable bike the average speed is like 25-ish KM/H for me, and if it's a REALLY good bike you can throw all kinds of abuse at it without it taking any significant damage

@@marcelblomme7538 apart from being an extremely poor, barely even paid grad student, I wasn't used to paying more than 50-60 euros for a bike, let alone paying that just in shipping xD .

There are loads around where I live, but then I do live in Cambridge!

@@tamsynroberts4860 whereas I had the misfortune of living in Southampton xD .

@@Chyrosran22 ah yes, my brother lives there. Not many Dutch bikes going around there! Or much biking in general whenever I've been.?

@@tamsynroberts4860 No, there isn't, and people didn't expect cyclists on the roads either, so it was kinda dicey. I always anticipated them cutting me off though, so I never got into an accident or anything xD .

Yep. He just spent 10 minutes describing an American bike from the 60's. Great if you live in dead flat terrain like there, otherwise a huge pain to ride.

Nostalgia waw

My father donated bikes which he used to drop us at school I wish he cud have kept with us

I come from India and it really does feel awkward to see a youtube video about foreigners fan-girling over bicycles which are considered cheap and old fashioned in your country 😅

God I wish I lived somewhere I could use a bike. Where I live in texas, I literally HAVE to have a car to get anywhere.

that's impressive... Keeping a bike for that many years, that is. Usually mine get stolen after at least a 2-3 years. Even the crappy ones.

Because women had skirts on (1970's and before that) they "coulndt" ride on that style of bike. You would have to flash people to get on. Thus it was the mens bike.

​@@zhiled9534 Thank you! That's an interesting piece of trivia.

decades

And they're not very fun to hit your lady parts on, either. I know.

@@zhiled9534 but why is the men's bike even produced . It's as if manufacturers are trying to lower birth rates .

The same is true in Spain, too. Back-pedal brake bikes are not legal here on public roads, either. You can ride them if you add at least a front or back wheel brake.

The ''Woman bikes'' are from the old day, when trousers or jeans were not a ''woman thing'' to wear. Most woman wore skirts or dresses and having to lift your leg over your seat to get on your bike could show your underwear. But all meanings aside, me as a Dutch male do prefer myself a woman frame, just because it makes life considerably easier.

@@willembmx klopt, in veel gevallen is een damesfiets goed genoeg. Alleen in sommige gevallen kan een herenfiets handiger zijn omdat het model steviger is. Daarom zijn renfietsen standaard een "herenmodel"

Every 12 year old boy has said that at one (painful) time or another.

basically the "men's" bikes are a stronger shape that's no longer necessary thanks to modern engineering and materials but modern men have very fragile egos (especially in the USA) and can't be seen being "feminine", whereas women's bikes were made to accommodate skirts but weren't as strong

I've hit my nuts many times on so called "men's bike".

Especially since you don't need your hands for the brakes!

yeah lol

Maginal gains!

@@jlammetje It's an unwritten rule you cannot graduate middle school if you can't ride without hands

@@GrimOakheart well, I have some issues with my balance ;). Not really impacting my life or anything, but cycling with no hands is impossible for me. Things like standing on my toes and such I also find very difficult. Still passed middle school though!

I heard that people in the Netherlands sometimes (jokingly) ask people from Germany where their bikes are. Or just shout "Give me my bike back!". Is that true, do people still joke like that?

@@MGSncB Lol, didn't know other people knew about this. It's true, sometimes we make jokes about this.

@@koen5333 I'm just curious about the world. The Netherlands is sort of a prominent country for me.

These types of bikes often have gears, allowing you to scale modest hills without much issue.

Here in Finland (another place where frame-locks are actually pretty common), it's not too difficult to get an off-the-shelf city bike with mudguards, dynamo lights, luggage rack and a 7-speed hub gear. The latter yields as much gear range as a generic 10-speed or 12-speed derailleur, but is usually set lower (say 25-80" instead of 38-100") so as to be more useful in climbing hills than going fast. Finland is fairly low-lying, but very much not flat; it was formed by glacial erosion, not sedimentation, and there are some significant elevation changes even within major cities like Helsinki. One of Helsinki's tram lines requires special trams with all axles driven, due to a 10% gradient on one street. What I ride, though, is a 24-speed hybrid. It has the sturdy, over-built steel frame (which has lasted 15 years so far), all the necessary accessories, and a fairly upright riding position (which I'm trying to adjust to *more* upright, once I can unstick the handlebar adjustment bolt), but it also has more gear range so I can both go relatively fast on the open road, and yet still grind up a hill with a loaded rack and trailer. Now, if only I could just get the front derailleur properly adjusted after changing the crankset…

Je possède un vélo datant de 1970 qui possède deux rapports de vitesse dans le moyeu arrière qui permutent en rétropédalage, juste avant l'action du frein . Une fois qu'on a l'habitude, on peut aborder des montées, ou prendre de la vitesse....

I walk my bikes up hills lmao

@@gerardgeb7500 Ah yes, I've heard of these "kickback" hub gears. They can only have two gears, so they're not as flexible as even a 3-speed. Better than nothing, perhaps.

😂 me too... but in the end , I was just wondering : isn't all this normal ? 😅🤣

@@florentinatoma4397 man I wish! Now I need to have one of these for all the reasons in the video

Swede here. I was also curious. For pretty much every feature he points out about the omafiets, I think "Is that really uncommon? Every bike I've had has had that." Definitely a change of perspective!

Swede here too. I was super confused when my hubby bought a sports bike and he had to buy all these extra parts to it like fenders and a kick stand to an already expensive bike. Like don't bikes just have those features from the start?!

ill take a few shipping containers in the good ol' usa

They do exist. I got an old bike that was sitting in an attic for decades, probably from the 70s or early 80s. Ever since I got it the only thing that goes wrong are the tires popping due to age. 3 speed hub transmission, and it's so easy I can carry the whole thing in one hand when I have to store it.

get some midriser handle bars for your mountain bike please, the face plant position is for racing not riding.

😂🙋🏻‍♀️

I'm an Aussie and I have no idea why I watched this either. It was interesting but a bike isn't a mode of transportation I can really use where I live.

Totally. My partner and I both have bikes like this. We live in New Zealand. Word travels fast. lol

Its fun to watch as much as it is to read the comments below : D

As a fellow Dutchie I really enjoy these foreign perspectives. I dated an American girl for a while, and when she was here I started seeing the Netherlands with a fresh pair of eyes, basically. Knowing how shitty bicycle infrastructure is in the US really makes me appreciate what we have here.

I'm a bike mechanic and it makes me very happy that people other than bike nerds ride vintage bikes one of my favorites is a Schwinn from the 60's that I bought off a dude you rode it at repack. also sorry about your grandfather. another thing hub brakes do that they don't need service often and all they usually need is to be repacked with grease but please don't go over the recommended limit on those pads because the way hub brakes work once those pads wear through you instantly have no braking power and have to do the sketchy foot slide brake. the manufacturers put the warnings on for a reason you won't feel the difference in braking power until it's too late, have fun but please be safe

Speaking as a 100kg male that tends to heavily abuse his bikes: The step through frames are still structurally less sound than the diamond frames, though I've usually broken several other parts before that becomes a serious issue. The order is usually this: Bell gone (don't care) Lights damaged (don't care) Inner tire flat (FFS I just got this!) Inner tire flat again chain drops off (Oh no, not again) chain drops off (Dammit!) chain drops off (FFFFUUUU) Get frustrated, "accidentally" destroy chain guard, when I get home finally bother to tighten the chain properly flat tire again though now the outer tire is worn down too pair of pants torn by the chain another pair of pants torn by the chain Small hole in seat (if I get a wet butt I replace it) wheel crooked gear teeth worn to nubs Kick stand bent By this time I give up and get a new bike. both wheels are missing spokes and are slightly bent, the frame is slightly bent, the saddle is worn but usually still comfortable, the bell and lights have been missing forever, one of the handles is loose, the gears are slightly worn, the chain is not worth salvaging, and occasionally one of the pedals is bent. The tires are usually recently replaced, but of a slightly different size than the next bike so saving them has little point. This takes me between 2 and 3 years. I should really stop getting the cheapest bikes I can find. And some timely maintenance wouldn't hurt either.

Actually, in the early days women wore cycling pants when they were on a bike. But people weren't ready for women in pants at the time so the step-through frame was invented.

@@bramvanduijn8086 Yeah, maintenance makes all the difference, chain guards and all the other good things about Dutch bikes reduce the need for maintenance, but don't eliminate it, proper chain tension and eventual replacement of the chain and worn out gears is inevitable. It makes me sad to see so many bikes here in the Netherlands in such a sorry state when an hour of work and a few euros worth of grease would fix them right up, but most people don't have the skills or intention to do the work themselves anymore and I can't save them all. Bicycles are often very much disposable when they don't work properly anymore. I still have the bike I got 25 years ago for my 12th birthday, a 3 speed hub gear steel diamond frame bike and I've replaced a cracked rim, brake cables (inner and outer) the dynamo lights for battery powered LED lights because in the snow the dynamo would slip, kickstand, and inner and outer tires a couple of times. Due to an injury I don't ride it much anymore and I welded together a recumbent trike that doesn't put pressure on my injury, but it needs some repairs because, ironically for someone who knows about the strengths and limitations of steel bicycle frames, I cracked the frame in an expected weak spot.

@@anamore you are entirely correct, it was a huge thing, but cycling for women only stopped being controversial after the step-through frame, and with that became very popular. Also cycling was liberating since women didn't need to be taken to places anymore, but could go by their own power. It was an often overlooked part of the early women's movement.

I agree. It should have been the first point made. It is flat in the Netherlands so this type of bike makes sense.

Yes, same here in Christchurch NZ! 😀 Fabulous place for biking!

I live in Norway and it's not flat at all. So I solved it and bought a batterybike:)

here in southern germany these bikes don‘t make much sense as well - so I stick with my old road bike

Yeah before even starting the video I looked at the thumb and I'm like "oh right, yeah, upright comfortable bike makes sense for a flat country, and even more specifically cities you can ride across in half an hour".

this cannot be made any clearer

เป็นความรู้ลึกซึ้งมากครับ หายโง่ไปเยอะเลย

Ebikes!

*cries in San Francisco"

ah good memories of delivering not-so-round-anymore pizzas up constitution hill and redland road

I think, which means I'm not sure but I may be almost correct, the higher crossbar gave the old frames more strength without much engineering effort. Women's bikes cost more years ago as I recall.

@@LuvBorderCollies and if you put some engineering effort in, a diamond frame will be significantly lighter than comparable step thru frame

Yup, even now if you are planning on hopping on and off a lot of sidewalks it's best to have a men's model (sometimes called 'opa fiets', although that's a name I haven't heard in a while). It just means you bike might last a few years longer. About the potential of kicking a child: Just learn to swing your leg when it is bend instead of straight, then your foot only passes over the sadle and doesn't hit a child.

To be fair, his exact words were "I don't understand why we *still* call these men's bikes", meaning imo he knows the history, but wonders why we still differentiate them as such when the obligation for women to wear ankle-long skirts all day died out about a century ago.

@@cyprel Because they are basically only used by men. The author is right that it is becoming more common for (young) men to use a step-through frames (woman's bike). But the other way around is virtually non-existant. Also the need for padlocks is mostly limited to the bigger cities and train stations. In my town (pop 40.000) I have more than once forgotten to lock my bike altogether when going shopping in the town center. It was still there when I returned.

Just a quick search shows that there are probably more bikes in the canals than there are residents. "Current estimates suggest that there are approximately 881, 000 bikes in Amsterdam, compared to around 851,573 permanent residents."

@@VancePetrol I'm glad about those numbers, we don't need to put more residents in the canals.

@@VancePetrol There are more bikes than residents in the Netherlands, but don't worry, the majority of bikes are not underwater

@@orvvro Whoops, yeah, got my facts mixed up there. Don't know what happened, but somehow ended up typing a bunch of nonsense. Must have been in some kind of fugue state. Doubly embarrasing since I was born and raised in Amsterdam.

The canal this is totally true Though they might be a bit rusty

You should escape!

That's rough!..

At least you got roads to ride a bike . In my city even new asphalt roads are designed for off road challenge that makes your life worse . Sometimes the grass or the dusty roads are more comfortable and plain compered to asphalt roads . Don’t want to talk about how other drivers . They are afraid of big trucks but they don’t consider bicycle riders as a human being . There is no normal person out there . Sometimes pedestrians decides using the roads that actually made for cars but it is pretty common in my country . Driving or riding or walking .... every thing is challenging because of these people .

@@Moses_VII Turkey . People don’t give a damn thing about what they made . Laziness is literal disaster in here . For example you are constructor and I wanted you to build a house for me . You took 1000 dollars for this work . But you are lazy but laziness isn’t a obstacle for gaining money . You call a another constructor to build that house . You payed 800 dollars to this person . But he is a lazy person like you . He calls a another constructor to build the house . He payed 600 dollars to that person . And it is goes like this until someone really built the house for 200 dollars . In the end . You payed 1000 dollars for a 200 dollar house .

Same. I totally relate.

Like most things invented in Britain and used all over the world.

I think they're common across most of Europe (here in Sweden too) just not North America. They're the standard in Japan as well

We also use them here in Belgium. In Flanders we also call them the omafiets

@@h3rteby yeah I was going to say that's what I had when I did my year abroad in Germany

Having been to Italy on vacation I know that the country is anything but flat. How well do the italians do with driving them uphill?

It's mainly for decoration tho, it's not being used like in amsterdam.

@@kiminah7487 Really? It's been a while but I remember seeing plenty of bikes in Jakarta and Jogja. Maybe my memory is failing me though...

@@chrisrootnick9755 they are being used but far less than Amsterdam

Wow, I'm from The Philippines and I'd totally try to go out of my way to find some of those, probably better than trying to import from the Dutch directly.

@@kiminah7487 no, people still use them but mostly in low income areas. Rich people only use mountain bikes and/or expensive folded bikes.

Many models of soviet bicycles also were rather similar to these dutch bikes

same situation in China

@@painandgain1163 it's sad that cycling isn't so massive in China as it used to be in 80s. I guess, same goes for post soviet countries. Back then cars were produced in low amounts and streets though wide were mostly empty and could be used by cyclists and pedestrians. Neither China nor Russia were ready for cars to be so accessible, so our cities became disrupted with huge amounts of motor traffic. Hope in next years cycling enthusiasts and urbanists would be able to promote cycling not as a recreational activity, but as everyday transportation tool like in the Netherlands and our cities would become less polluted, more walkable and suitable for life without individual car

@@user-kp1js6cb2s Yes I can not agree more😁

same!

Lord knows I've said the same for Decades.

Hahaha that wheeewheeewheee you heard was from your crooked front wheel and the dynamo trying to stay in contact with it

My bike has both a dynamo and a constant rithmic ticking sound so you could say it is a complete orchestra. I have gotten used to it but people will usually actually comment on how loud my bike (it's over 40 years old) is when they hear it for the first time.

I live in Vienna. It's way more hilly than Amsterdam. I finally bought a bike to ride to uni every day back in 1991 when mountain bikes first became affordable to me. I didn't want a dynamo because of the friction and because of the flicker (back then, there were no capacitors in the lights to even out the flicker and keep the lights going when you were stopped at a traffic light). Battery lights weren't really a mass market thing back then. So I built my own system with a small pack of 4 rechargeable AA batteries that were attached to the underside of my saddle in a little pouch and had 2 cables running to the lights in the front and back. You'll never force me back into using dynamo lights, brrr.

My 30? year old bike still has the wheeee dynamo that slips when it's too wet outside... it has one handbrake and a backpadle brake. The backhandbrake gave up years ago, as did the gears, when the whole wheel gave in... My chaingard is hold together by ducktape... and so are the handles and the front light. Who gives a f... It brings me from a to b, can carry 2 people and never lets me down. (except that 1 time years ago when the wheel was not salvageable😉) I love my old bike.

I still have a dynamo on my brand new bike. I prefer it over the battery light since I always forget to turn those off and end up with no light at all

There is a high demand, but an even higher supply, so prices stay low. I bought a new "Commuter" bicycle (the canadian type in the vid) for just €137 which included a free checkup after half a year of use.

And on top of the high supply there are a lot of secondhand bikes, especially for kids. I don't think I've had a first-hand bike since I was 10 or so. And both my bothers together had only 2 bikes in their life that weren't mine before that. We gave the very first bike I ever had to one of our neighbours, but you can also get second-hand bikes in most larger bike shops. That means that a lot of the bikes are being bought and sold well under the price the manufacturer got for them.

Supply defines prices, so, it´s always a good bargain, since the quality is very robust, to say the least (too heavy-built for my weak constitution... ;-) ... Even in Germany, half of them are holland-bikes, cause they survive decades of use...

@@klausbrinck2137 i cannot not say this, but glad to see that they are still working properly since ww2 :p

or you buy a new one but just keep it your whole life. mine is 15 years old, got it when i was twelve.

I can 100% confirm this. I cycle on average around 25km/h and my legs are quite a bit stronger than the rest of my body, lol.

@@ptsg I live in London and have a "hybrid" bike I have to keep indoors (nowhere else to put it) and carry up / down two flights of stairs each day. So it's a full body workout each time I need to ride somewhere!

Absolutely! Due to the lockdown I've been working from home for a year now and cycling to and from my work was all of my exercise routine. I'm really feeling it that it's gone atm. Once this freak snow storm is gone I'm going to have to start biking just for the exercise... D:

@@korenn9381 I found that having a dedicated mtb and some nearbye 'singletracks' help a lot with trying to keep some level of fitness. It's outdoor, you can do it on your own or in pairs / groups ( just keep your distance ofc ) and if you're a little bit handy you can do most if not all maintenance on your own. The couple of things I'm still not able to, like trueing a really bend wheel or fixing a wheel which has to many spokes with the wrong tension, do a full fork maintenance ( replacing seals, vork oil, grease springs ) ect aren't that expensive to let the bikeshop handle, just call ahead if they have time and make it easy for them like incase of a wheel, don't bring the entire bike just bring the wheel which needs to be trued, or for vork specialist well you get the picture. At first I was a bit scared, you see all those 5k+ mtb's in the shops and online and you might think that's really needed but it isn't. I got a second hand, 26'' Giant XTC2 from a decade back which was pretty abused and slowly fixed/upgraded it. Sure, sometimes you get one of those snobs on their full suspension downhill mtb's with 180mm travel in the front and rear and they sometimes give you that look... right up to you actually overtaking them since those bikes might be well suited for terrain you might find if you live someplace with actual elevation, here in The Netherlands you're perfectly fine with a hardtail and a decent 100-120mm fork. All tracks here are basically XC and you don't need much to ride them. Sorry got carried away a bit I notice, just I would love to get more people to give mountainbiking a try especially people who never thought of it as an viable option 🤘🚵‍♂️🤘

Now I know why there are so many vicious kickboxers from the Netherlands.

The Atlas Bike Company?? I have one of their bikes here in Germany..

Yes but they're getting increasingly rare as people move onto buying commuter motorcycles instead which is understandable considering how tiring and sweaty it gets pedalling in the subtropical climate of India.

You can get quasi Dutch style bikes in the US, they’re called Electras

​@@shawnjoseph4009 You mean the Electra Bicycle Company 2021 Model 581033 Loft 7i EQ Step-Thru listed in the Netherlands for € 849,00 - Over twice as expensive as an AMIGO Bright 28 Inch Dames 3V V-Brakes (319 euro, no front rack), and 50 euro more expensive than a AMIGO E-Pulse 28 Inch 50 cm Women 3SP Coaster Brake (799 euro, e-bike), both with more bent handles and bigger guards. Our Lidl sells a 699 euro COLORADO® E-bike Arrow 28" online with 50 euro shipping.

@@CTimmerman IDK about the specific model name, but you can get them for pretty cheap in the US starting at about $200 or so. They’re definitely not that expensive though

You'd be surprised what we refuse ourselves, in our ignorance.

I went to Belgium as a student from the US and remember quite a few bikes there.

It is the same for Northern Germany and Kopenhagen/Danmark. In The South of Germany these bikes are less common as they are less comfortable, if you have to climb hills. We prefer Trekkingbikes, which are a compromise between Omafiets and Mountain-/Roadbike. You can carry heavy stuff, but you have also several gears to climb.

In the US, bikes have historically been for sport or for children. Teens learn to drive at 16, and there are little to no provisions for safe bicycling. With few exceptions, North America is built around the automobile. It's awful.

@@jimjungle1397 yeah but in belgium its a danger to ride it hahaha my mom lives there and its not bike friendly on al places hihih but yeah they have them there.

new tree bikelock discovered

@@pespsisipper yes, but you’ll need to be EXTREMELY patient 😃

As it should be

Golly.... That's so valuable in so many ways! Part of me wants to rescue the bike to continue its usefulness. Another part of me wants to enshrine such a sentimental phenomena.... The man has been gone for over half a century, and old faithful (the bike) is still standing through the tests of time. I feel so nostalgic for these bikes suddenly. I need to import a used one to the US!

Picture please

Yes! The bikes in Japan are great. That's cool that you were able to get one.

Ironic to think that rough shape of the frame probably dates back to British "roadster" style bikes, yet they are so rare in the UK! I think the only manufacturer there that makes bikes of that style is Pashley now. They are not the mass market, dirt-cheap commidity that they are in the Netherlands.

Ah yes, the Mama Bike, my favorite kind of bike.

Now I wish I was Dutch, THANKS INTERNET!

@@GG42069 Japanese and Danish are also good cycling nationalities if you are shopping around for a new one. Dutch is best in my opinion, but I don't want you to limit your options :)

ooh yea that happened to me in germany as well, we had to show we knowed all the rules and that we knew how to ride one. They gave us a little bike license afterwards lol

I thought Fahrrad

In the Netherlands we call German bikes “you stole those from my grandpa could you give them back please”

yes, and they became increasingly popular but I kinda hate riding them ;) I think I have to get used to it..

Well, as the Dutch like to point out, historically, they WERE aggressively exported to Germany.

@@Nielsly ah yes, one of the only German phrases I know: "Gib mir mein Fahrrad zurück!"

i had to go out of my way to find a similar bike in ukraine :( eventually i got my hands on a good kharkov one

Evolving, backwards

D: sounds kinda regressive...

Even being a pedestrian in Russia is dangerous nowadays...

@@tartrazine5 The economy of Netherlands and Germany is doing far better than current day US. Very much a "functioning market economy"

Steel can be fine if you've got hill-friendly geometry and gearing. (Source: recently rode a steel gravel bike all around the mountains of Vermont, found it not noticeably different from my dad's fancy carbon bike).

ouais, il fait chaud a Lyon aussi, ca se comprend haha

45-60 is good as well. My bell is 4 years old (same age as my bike) and there's not a single spot of rust

Robberts your fathers brother

I was born in the Netherlands and have lived here my entire life. I never knew about this until now.

Thanks for advice

Or you get a bell where the top part slightly overlaps the bottom part.

Would you mind telling us the name of the e-bikes?

@@gunwantatwal1074 LECTRIC is the brand name. Though the step through and square tube "scooter style" Ebike is pretty common under other brands as well

I also have a LECTRIC, the square tube, which is very easy to step through. I have a trailer that hitched to it for grocery shopping, and my dog rides in it and it does great (I'm a featherweight) My first Ebike is a smaller folding version by a company called SWAGTRON. Packs up nicely in a trunk(boot) of a vehicle/ride share. To add to that, electric kick scooters(not Razrs) are pretty compact, powerful, and good quality these days.

From my experience of working there for about 6 years in various parts of the country the Dutch are a funny lot

A bike-share program on the no-honor system, seems like it would work anywhere.

I know a bloke who lived in Japan for a while they have the same attitude.

Zwarte fietsen systeem lmao

Sounds like with green bins around here.

For dads: 3rd one on the crossbar (with a tiny crossbar-mounted saddle). I've seen it a few times, but I wouldn't dare myself.

I have children, I always had 1 on the front, 1 on the back, and bags with grocery shopping on the handlebars. No problem

@@mariadebake5483 You're my heroin!

@@martinbladelvan1949 😊

One on the front, one on the back, and panniers stuffed to the brim = parenting goals I actually can't do that; my oldest rides his own bike and my youngest doesn't sit well enough yet.

I mean xD It's true though! I have one very nice, expensive bike at my parents, where I'm not often but it's the only place I bike distances over 6km. In the city I live and study I have two crappy "studentenfietsen", literally translated: "student bikes". Old, rusty, ragged bikes that are worth nothing but still work. I think either bike is double the age of me xD

I always thought Dutch city bikes were designed for throwing in and clogging up the canals.

@@michaelmumby2328 thats when you are to drunk to find your keys, pick a random bike to go home, crash a few times, and then throw it in a canal to get rid of the evidence...

I had a "too crappy to steal" bike- it got stolen overnight. I spent the next day looking for it and on Day 2 it reappeared! When the thief saw it in the light he must have decided I was worse off then he and took pity.

I had one of those but it was a Walmart level "mountain bike". I could not get a buyer. Neighbor kids didn't need a bike. So I left it on the front lawn by the sidewalk hoping somebody would "steal" it. 2 weeks go by and still no takers. Its just frustrating. LOL

According to google maps I’m only 25 minutes away from my university by bike, but there’s basically no sidewalk for most of the way there. We are not a very bike-friendly nation sadly :(

I totally understand. I just found a new job and I cycle to work, it’s 5,8 km. It feels so free going to work on a bicycle without using gasoline 👌🏻💪🏼 so many thing about my country I don’t like, this thing… I really like 🤣