Quote:
Originally Posted by Raellus
I imagine that most civilian bicycles one would find in Central/Eastern Europe c. 2000 wouldn't be suitable for prolonged military use. I reckon that civie bikes wouldn't be able to hold up for very long under the weight of a modern infantryman, with his/her weapons, ammo, LBE, pack contents, and body armor. In the absence of purpose-built military bicycles (were any produced during the late Cold War?), some sort of field expedient structural reinforcement would be necessary.
Another consideration for any mode of transportation/movement (but for bicycles, especially) is the condition of roads in active and/or recent warzones. I imagine that one would have to be very careful whilst riding a bicycle over Polish roads, for example. Many would be cratered, torn up by tracked vehicles, and crumbling from years of neglect. Also, I imagine that a bicycle- even a mountain bike- carrying a fully kitted out soldier couldn't get far off-road, especially if the ground is soft from rain. And pedaling uphill on or off road in full kit would be exhausting, to say the least.
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All I'll say is... spoken like somebody who has never meaningfully ridden a mountain bike.
I'll post this video of a "Walmart special" being used on a downhill course to demonstrate the durability of a turn-of-the-century mountain bike (because the current "low tech" was state-of-the-art in the 90s). Keep in mind, that the abuse these bikes are taking is much greater than you would sustain just riding through the woods... BUT... since a soldier would be "laden" with equipment, the strain on the bike's suspension and rims (the weakest parts of a mountain bike) would be nearly the same as seeing this bike jumped.
The bike in question would have been priced between $500 and $1,000 in 2000. By comparison, my top-of-the-line PIVOT cost me $6,000 a few years ago. Yes, a high-end MTB costs as much as a Japanese dirt bike today.
Anyway, enjoy the video
https://youtu.be/MON3RAap_FU
Swag.