Style on bikes: Toronto Life
From Toronto Life: style on bicycles:
With a new DIY attitude came one crucial summer accessory: the bicycle. Cheaper than driving and more individual than a new pair of jeans, it seemed like everyone from Bay Street’s suits to bespectacled Queen Westers to new moms in Leslieville was sporting two wheels. Whatever the style, there was a bike to match. Here, a look at eight Toronto cyclists who did it with aplomb.
I particularly like Feleepe, whom I've seen riding around. The highlight of his bike is the oh-so-comfortable steel seat. Form over function?
This gussied-up Belgian track frame, nicknamed “Silberblitz,” is more than just eye candy—it’s also Feleepe’s mount for bike polo. This ride cost $1,500 to assemble, including the homemade metal saddle. A carpenter-cabinetmaker by day, German-born Feleepe cut the seat out of a sheet of 18-gauge stainless steel. He insists his design is comfy, though “not so much for women.”
Far more interesting than the depressed and abused Canadian tire special or high-end racer boy bicycle which sits equally neglected resting against an apt. wall. Anything helps to get people out of the false-dilemma(cheap hybrid or race bike) when buying a bicycle.
Not sure about a solid metal seat though, might be a pretty cold surprise in the winter... anyways... Hard saddles can actually be quite comfortable. Once your butt becomes desensitized to the saddle a bit(not talking numb nuts here), in fact I'd prefer a harder seat than one of those mushy gel specials. A love channel® is probably something Feleepe should consider designing into his next one.
I love the idea of a custom metal seat like that. I don't quite understand why he thinks it's bad news for women though...
I rode a beater bike for a year that had a seat that had been stripped down to the metal plate. The thing was totally fused to the frame so there was nothing I could do about it. It didn't take long to realize that I really didn't have to do anything at all other than spray some sealant on it so I wouldn't get rust all over me. Comfortable as anything else I've tried.