Re: Convince me to buy a coker.
Just in case you’re not convinced yet; You need a Coker for R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
I still remember my first 10 mile ride on the local bike trail. When you’re cruising at 10+ mph even the spandex clad roadies give you thumbs up.
When you ride do you use the word “miles”? If you do, buy a Coker. The biggest question is whether to go for the airseat and fancy rim upgrades, this depends on your marital and bicycle status. Also consider where you will be riding the Big One. Access to lots of trails demand the upgrades, a level track of five miles does not. I don’t ride mine in traffic, ever. carjug
This is the conversaion I just had with a biker on the local bike trails. (I am U, he is B)
B comes up on a resting, but just geting ready to go U…
U: ‘You may as well go ahead of me, because [chuckle] if I can keep up with you, you’re ready for some more training!’
B: No, really, I would like to ride behind you and watch…if that’s OK’
U: 'Sure that sounds fine (I really like showing off)
U checks his watch…8 minutes have passed since this previous conversation…B is nowhere to be seen.
U waits for a while, shrugs, and rides off alone
Hmmm. I’ve posted on this before, but don’t expect me to be consistent…
It has to be good for MUni/cross country. It has to be safe around crowds and light traffic (back lanes etc.). It has to be safe to idle. It has to be good for a few basic ‘freestyle’ tricks, and useable in Morris dance performances/parades. It must be capable of 10-15 mile rides without being ridiculously slow.
So I’d go for a good 24, with a fat tyre, and flat fork crowns. Probably no ‘handle’, and (assuming I’m only allowed one set-up) 125mm cranks.
If I was allowed to have a range of cranks and a range of tyres, I might go for the 28.
But the Coker would definitely be one of my ‘only two’, should the circumstances ever arise.
Someone else posted to say you need the upgrades if you ride lots of trails. No you don’t. Mine’s bog standard. I don’t do jumps and hops or drops, but I ride trails, fields, tracks, wasteground and the odd bit of purpose made off road course, and there’s no problem. (Treat the uni with respect; let the wheel roll; read the trail - get there because you’re a good rider, not because you threw money at the problem.)
yeah, my favourites the 24" as well cos it’s good for trails, streets and I feel that it’s safe to ride thru crowds as well.
I’ve only had one very brief go on a Coker- how safe do you reckon they are on a road; I’ve heard that they can roll 50 ft if you come off them?
.
<-------------------------------That one (or, rather, those two).
I write as one who has been there, done that, and torn the T shirt!
You may also have heard that swans can break a man’s arm, but it doesn’t put you off walking by the river.
What happens when you UPD from a Coker?
If you UPD forwards, the seat hits the ground hard. The angle of impact is much steeper than on a smaller uni, so the top of the seat may tear. However, it does act as a brake, and the Coker will usally stop within a few feet. The rider goes much further than the Coker!
This only happens if you are riding somewhere near your maximum speed. Otherwise, it’s just like a UPD on a normal uni, and you can usually catch the seat with your hand as you step off.
But the ‘There goes my Coker!’ dismount is very particular to Cokers, and is mainly a problem for new riders.
It ONLY happens when you try to slow down or stop the Coker, and you fail. So it COULD happen on a very steep down hill, or it COULD happen if you tried to stop too quickly.
What happens is you fail to allow enough time for the wheel to stop. You try to stop in 2 wheel turns instead of 3, or 3 instead of 4. You misjudge it, and the rising pedal ‘flicks’ past top dead centre, and as your foot was exerting maximum downward force on it, your foot kicks the Coker forwards. You UPD off the back, and the Coker sets off on a frolic of its own, dragging its seat behind it. This can also happen on a smaller uni with ultra short cranks, but the Coker definitely goes further.
This has happened to me approximately 3 times. Two of those were when I was very new to riding it; one was when I had a particular reason for dismounting from high speed - it was the end of a timed distance ride.
In normal use, once you have learned to gauge the stopping distance, the situation will never arise. Do NOT let it stop you buying a Coker.
How safe in traffic? Dismount for any junction where you have to give way. Don’t rely on idling. (It can be idled, but I think not reliably enough to be safe on the highway.) If you stick to fairly quiet roads, don’t go for silly speeds, and use common sense and dicretion, it’s safe on the roads. For pure road use, I prefer the greater safety and manoeuvreability of a 28.
idling a coker is fine as long as you practice it a bit and have normal lenght cranks, also you can do little hops at junctions. Everyone should learn to idle their coker, it’s one of those things that there’s a consensus that it’s difficult / impossible which means that people don’t bother to learn it properly. However at junctions I’d only idle if I have to, there’s usually a lamp post or sign to grab on.
I still prefer the coker for road use, but use the 29er for anything where I’ll want to do much offroad.
Mike is right about the coker flying dismount, once you get good at cokering, all your dismounts will be you flying rather than coker flying.
Joe
WOW! Nice one John. I might just have to use that as my signature…
I find that when I come off the back of the Coker (which is very rare) it is only as I am slowing down, so I am going slowly enough to just step off and stay standing. If I fall off when going fast, I always come off the front. I think this maybe an automatic reaction to protect my backside (I have landed on it far too many times) and I have trained myself that if I fall, i throw myself forwards. Then I let the kneepads and gloves slow me down as I skid face first along the tarmac.
Oh and all these people who say cokers are just for showing off, I frequently get people laughing at (not with) me, but I still ride it almost everywhere.
I stole that phrase too.
In general it goes “blank is like potato chips – you can’t have just one”
For example:
Self-piercings are like potato chips – You can’t have just one.
Beanie Babies are like potato chips – You can’t have just one.
etc…
Try the following Google search to find more variations
<http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=like-potato-chips+you+can't-have-just-one&btnG=Google+Search>
LLamas are like potato chips, you can’t have just one 
Incidentally, my email address is i_love_llamas@hotmail.com
I bought a very slightly used Coker last night from a local juggler. Thanks everyone for helping out.
Now on to mastering a free mount.
-Eric
Our work here is done.