Swobo Novak City Bike – A Rethink of an Old School Classic

Get  out the  city- inspired  Swobo Novak City Bike for across-town expeditions, and you’ll see the world surrounding  you in brilliant  clarity. Because  an upright cycling position , the Swobo Novak enables you with power to see things formerly beyond your usual  range of vision, while  the subtle  steel frame gluides over  bad downtown  roads. To keep you away from trouser- destroying oily chains , Swobo hooked the Novak up with a classy chainguard—and for the royal-commuter treatment, the Novack is delivered with fenders, a cargo rack, and a bottle-opener-equipped saddle for apres -voyage beverages. 

Swobo’s bicycle  product manager Sky Yaeger says of the Novak  ” I tried for  a modern  re-thinking  of the old school  Raleigh three-speed “. Swobo zerode in on  the draw of that bike, which stayed  in it’s original form  for nearly  30 years after  World War II.

 Representing the company ethos , Swobo’s creation  cannot simply be desribed as a copy but an rethink  with distinct spark of genius.  The 700c-wheeled  Swobo Novak is built  on a steel frame comparable  to the one used on the fixed-gear Swobo Sanchez, with a more  road like geometry inspired by many  of the bikes Yaeger designed  during her 20 -year professional stint  as Bianchi USA’s product manager.

The classic-look swept-back cruiser handlebar of the old  Raleigh has been modernised  with a punkish riser, and a whisper -quiet SRAM I-Motion three-speed internally geared hub replaces  the Raleigh’s Sturmey Archer. Urban  gestures  include full fender and rear-rack eyelets, an antitheft front-hub skewer and a rear light incorporated into the seat post.

The Swobo Novak’s  ride  is sprightlier than that of those staid   cruisers of years gone by . The handling is not for the faint hearted but it is quick; if  this does not sound like it fits your needs try something more subdued, then Swobo’s Dixon is the one for you.

However the qualities I admire in the Novak are the simplicity ï»¿ and zero-maintenance of the SRAM I-Motion 3-speed hub,  along ï»¿ with the smooth ride of classic steel frames, combine them and Novak is the happy ï»¿ result. The 700C wheel size delivers a nippy ï»¿ ride with an urban ï»¿ ï»¿ frame and fork style 

The internal 3 speed gear hub is  really all you need for city journeys. Although  the I-Motion cerates for you a tall jump from second to third, it makes your trips  more fun. Most of the ride you can  travel  along gently in second 2nd gear boost it up to  the “overdrive” gear if you are behind schedule. Just as styles make comebacks, so has the simple  three-speed. With gas prices steadily increasing  , it’s almost back to the 70′s again. You almost certainly  don’t want out dated fashions to return, but as the Novak shows, a few items from the past can be updated  quite nicely. However unlike the  1970′s we much more environmentaly aware as there is increasing concern regarding  environmental polution caused in part  by exhaust gases , especially  in the downtown areas and the detremental effect these fumes are having on the quality of the air.

This is taking it’s toll   on the health of the inner city population with a rise in reported chest and Asthma related conditions. Urban  cycling  therefore  is a practice  that can be pursued by many people not only as a practical and ecomonic means of city  transport  but also as a personal contribution to reducing  global warming

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • Sphinn
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Mixx
  • Google Bookmarks

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

*


You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>