Just wanted to say how much we are enjoying our new Low kickers. The salmon-orange powdered coated one came out great and now they make a great pair with slightly different setups: a 1x11 and a 2x10. Both are shifted with Rivendell thumbies and I am happy to report the 11-51/Deore long cageDR on the 1x maxes out the entire possible cable stretch but it works without any other hardware!
With our daughter coming out as nonbinary, we became much more aware of gender preconceptions and even the bicycle is no exception...
I learned to ride on my grandma’s step through: when I got a little taller and I could actually sit on it she gave it to me as my first bike. I wasn’t too happy about riding a old “ladies" bike, but my Grandma being an artist would waste no time teaching me how to make it my own: Paint it, customize it: make it yours…
So after first removing the rubberbands on the rear fender (skirt protection of the day) the fenders came off - then a messy bubbly, drippy paintjob and some neon red PVC-foil work…and voila: it felt like my bike and it looked pretty much like my new Low-kicker!
Seems like the bike industry is catching up to more gender free concepts of bike riding: not just old school male racing and comfy lo-geared lady bikes… everything can be anything! Make it your own, be comfortable, sporty or whatever - mix it up… and Velo Orange for sure is an awesome place to get into this!
I love the convenience of the step trough design and how alive the Low kicker feels! Without much knowledge about bike geometry, it feels nimble and just fun, wether goin uphill, downhill - over some light gravel or just cruising on the paved LA river bike path on a sunny California day!
Our 10 year old Chihuahua mix was a little suspicious of our new activity at first but she is getting used to the front basket perspective - as long as we do stop for some walk breaks!
We are looking forward to taking the bikes on longer bike tours sometime soon and hope this is the just beginning to new adventures!