Giant Revive LX

[Chris Lamb]

I was interested in the Breezer. My brother is really into biking and sent
me a link to the new Giant Revive LX. Anyone have a chance to see one in
person and ride it? Curious about the price.

Chris

 

[maxo]

On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 03:26:22 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:

> Giant Revive LX.

whoa, kooky! (not in a bad way)

From your headers, you're in the USA I'm presuming. I don't even know if
you can get this model in the US, but it does appear from the photos to be
a very interesting hybrid between traditionally low recumbent and regular
upright bike, riding a bit higher than the recumbent seems like a good
idea to me for visibility's sake.

I doubt you'll find one easily in a shop in the states, but you should
easily be able to find a bike shop selling the Electra Townie, a
semi-upright I mentioned in my other post. You might want to test ride a
townie, and if your brain says, "hey, I wouldn't mind if this was a even a
little more "relaxed"", then make the effort to find one of these Giants.

The Giant looks pretty wild, but I'm doubting if its pricetag, which
isn't crazy by any means, is really going to be reflected in practicality
compared to a Breezer or Electra at less than half the price. And if you
have to have it shipped without local support or a test ride---that seems
pretty grim.

 

[Chris Lamb]

I wander the US in a motorhome, the joys of being retired. So yes I am in
the US. I am in Boise ID right now headed for Hillsboro OR. There is a
Bike N Hike there that looks like it carries the Electra Townie, Breezer,
Biria, Giant Revive, all bikes I want to look at. The Revive is intriguing
and if you do a Google on it, it looks like it has been well received. But
it turns out the LX is $995. The Breezer and Townie, as you mentioned are
half the price. I like the idea of fenders. I suppose I could stay out of
water puddles but then where's the fun.

I have one of the original mountain bikes made back in 1981 by Schwinn. It
cost $685 at the time, quite a cost for something that back then was
non-traditional. It is in pristine condition and I will never get rid of
it. The problem for me personally is not being able to get my leg over the
bar and not lose balance and fall down. Once I am on it I am fine. Hauling
the recumbent trike got to be a problem with the motorhome because of the
weight. I thought one of the new quasi-recumbent two wheelers might be easy
to hang on the rear ladder.

I'll be in Hillsboro in a couple weeks so I'll check them all out then.

Chris

"maxo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]
> On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 03:26:22 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:
>
>> Giant Revive LX.
>
> whoa, kooky! (not in a bad way)
>
> From your headers, you're in the USA I'm presuming. I don't even know if
> you can get this model in the US, but it does appear from the photos to be
> a very interesting hybrid between traditionally low recumbent and regular
> upright bike, riding a bit higher than the recumbent seems like a good
> idea to me for visibility's sake.
>
> I doubt you'll find one easily in a shop in the states, but you should
> easily be able to find a bike shop selling the Electra Townie, a
> semi-upright I mentioned in my other post. You might want to test ride a
> townie, and if your brain says, "hey, I wouldn't mind if this was a even a
> little more "relaxed"", then make the effort to find one of these Giants.
>
> The Giant looks pretty wild, but I'm doubting if its pricetag, which
> isn't crazy by any means, is really going to be reflected in practicality
> compared to a Breezer or Electra at less than half the price. And if you
> have to have it shipped without local support or a test ride---that seems
> pretty grim.

 

[maxo]

On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 12:23:49 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:

> The Breezer and Townie, as
> you mentioned are half the price. I like the idea of fenders. I suppose
> I could stay out of water puddles but then where's the fun.

A utility bike without fenders is downright silly, haven't owned a bike
without them in years. The only exception I'd make is if I started
racing on the weekends, or off-roading. The Giant and the Breezer come
with them, you can add them to the Townie for thirty bucks. I've lived in
the Pacific Northwest--if it's not raining, the ground's still wet from
the last drizzle, no reason to decorate your rump with a brown racing
stripe.

> I'll be in Hillsboro in a couple
>weeks so I'll check them all out then.

Give a report back, I'm interested in what you think of the Giant. It's
expensive, but given inflation, it's probably cheaper than an entry level
decent ten speed cost in the 70s. 5% of the cost of a Harley Fat Boy, and
cooler, in my humble opinion.

 

[The Wogster]

maxo wrote:
> On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 12:23:49 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:
>
>
>> The Breezer and Townie, as
>>you mentioned are half the price. I like the idea of fenders. I suppose
>>I could stay out of water puddles but then where's the fun.
>
>
> A utility bike without fenders is downright silly, haven't owned a bike
> without them in years. The only exception I'd make is if I started
> racing on the weekends, or off-roading. The Giant and the Breezer come
> with them, you can add them to the Townie for thirty bucks. I've lived in
> the Pacific Northwest--if it's not raining, the ground's still wet from
> the last drizzle, no reason to decorate your rump with a brown racing
> stripe.

Just about any kind of bike, except maybe a track bike where every
milligram of weight saved could mean something in competition. What I
find interesting though, is why do touring bikes and road bikes, not
have fenders, they are ridden in all kinds of weather?. Some road bikes
used to have short fenders, they were about 6-10" long and went just in
the areas to keep the rider from getting the racing stripe.

I can see them not on mountain bikes, because mud and **** could get
caught under the fender, then again they just need to go between rider
and the tire, so it would be possible. It would also add to safety in
dry weather, a front wheel can kick up a stone, that ends up embedded in
one of your shins.

I think the reason bike makers don't like fenders, is that it adds a few
$$ to the cost of making a bike.

W

 

[maxo]

On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 11:54:32 -0400, The Wogster wrote:

> I think the reason bike makers don't like fenders, is that it adds a few
> $$ to the cost of making a bike.

That and the general perception of them as being "freddy". Well, at least
in the United States at least. Most of the rest of the world expects a
"regular" bike to come with fenders, lights, and a rack. In the UK and in
Sweden, you can buy a serviceable hi-ten framed city bike with all of
these features for under $250 USD, steel seat post and the like to save
bucks, but perfectly good transport that's fully equipped from day one.
Wish you could get that type of bike here, where most of the easily
stealable parts are so cheap that no one bothers them, yet they still work
OK.

 

[The Wogster]

maxo wrote:
> On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 11:54:32 -0400, The Wogster wrote:
>
>
>>I think the reason bike makers don't like fenders, is that it adds a few
>>$$ to the cost of making a bike.
>
>
> That and the general perception of them as being "freddy". Well, at least
> in the United States at least. Most of the rest of the world expects a
> "regular" bike to come with fenders, lights, and a rack. In the UK and in
> Sweden, you can buy a serviceable hi-ten framed city bike with all of
> these features for under $250 USD, steel seat post and the like to save
> bucks, but perfectly good transport that's fully equipped from day one.
> Wish you could get that type of bike here, where most of the easily
> stealable parts are so cheap that no one bothers them, yet they still work
> OK.
>

I think it's really a perception of other things in America. In America
a bicycle is often considered a toy, for recreation, when you want to go
somewhere, you need the biggest SUV you can find, prefereably one with a
massive V8 engine, and huge carrying capacity, even though your only
going around the block to the store for a pack of smokes and a six pack.

In many countries, a bicycle is a valid mode of transportation, so a
bike needs to be able to carry a load, and go for a longer trip, and it
could rain during that time, so a rear rack, a bungie cord and a small
tarp makes a lot of sense.

As for stealable parts, that's actually easy to fix. I remember reading
an article years ago, about keeping your car stereo from being stolen, a
drop of solder on the ends of the threads, would do wonders.... The
same could be used for a lot of easily removable bike parts, as well.

W

 

[Chris Lamb]

Will do. I spotted a 2004 Revive on eBay for $450. I am tempted.

Chris

"maxo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]
> On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 12:23:49 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:
>
>> The Breezer and Townie, as
>> you mentioned are half the price. I like the idea of fenders. I suppose
>> I could stay out of water puddles but then where's the fun.
>
> A utility bike without fenders is downright silly, haven't owned a bike
> without them in years. The only exception I'd make is if I started
> racing on the weekends, or off-roading. The Giant and the Breezer come
> with them, you can add them to the Townie for thirty bucks. I've lived in
> the Pacific Northwest--if it's not raining, the ground's still wet from
> the last drizzle, no reason to decorate your rump with a brown racing
> stripe.
>
>> I'll be in Hillsboro in a couple
>>weeks so I'll check them all out then.
>
> Give a report back, I'm interested in what you think of the Giant. It's
> expensive, but given inflation, it's probably cheaper than an entry level
> decent ten speed cost in the 70s. 5% of the cost of a Harley Fat Boy, and
> cooler, in my humble opinion.

 

[araby]

"maxo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]
> On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 03:26:22 +0000, Chris Lamb wrote:
>
>> Giant Revive LX.
>
> whoa, kooky! (not in a bad way)
>
> From your headers, you're in the USA I'm presuming. I don't even know if
> you can get this model in the US, but it does appear from the photos to be
> a very interesting hybrid between traditionally low recumbent and regular
> upright bike, riding a bit higher than the recumbent seems like a good
> idea to me for visibility's sake.

The Revive seems to embody the disadvantages of both -the climbing
capability and weight of a recumbent plus the aerodynamics of an upright.
ATP Vision Recumbents, once a respected recumbent manufacturer, offered
something similar a few years back. It was not a success and the company has
now apparently ceased operations. Quetzal, a branch of Procycle, a huge mass
producer for department stores, has offered the Evos of similar
configuration for a few years. Several examples have since sat languishing
on the floor of bike shops in the Toronto area. Now it appears that they are
trying to get rid of them them as part of a sale. See;
http://www.quetzal.ca/vente.htm#photosvelos

They are probably OK for flat bike paths but for any distance or for
"serious" cycling -no thanks!
Both Breezer and Giant make good products. What about the Breezer Liberty or
Greenaway? Both look fine to me.

See:
http://www.breezerbikes.com/bike_details.cfm?bikeType=range&frame=range&bike=liberty

Cheers,

Roy

 

[Mike Kruger]

"Chris Lamb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]
> I was interested in the Breezer. My brother is really into
biking and sent
> me a link to the new Giant Revive LX. Anyone have a chance
to see one in
> person and ride it? Curious about the price.
>
I haven't read either, but the bike shop I frequent carried
both.
The Breezer is a well designed commuting machine, with
everything you'd want to use a bike as actual transportation.
The Revive didn't seem to fit a good niche for actual bike
users. It wasn't selling well (at least in that shop). It is
slow. It isn't the type of bike you'd ride if you rode a lot,
yet the price point is high for the occasional cyclist.

 

[maxo]

On Tue, 05 Jul 2005 21:50:50 -0500, Mike Kruger wrote:

> The Revive didn't seem to fit
> a good niche for actual bike users. It wasn't selling well (at least in
> that shop). It is slow. It isn't the type of bike you'd ride if you rode
> a lot, yet the price point is high for the occasional cyclist.

I think it still might be a nice option for the OP who I doubt is worried
about extreme speed, just nice tootlin' ability--something I fully
understand. For a day to day commuter, I'd personally go for the Breezer,
but if I was strapping my bike to the back of an RV and using it around
the campground and such, the Revive might be just the ticket, especially
considering the OP's special needs. Plus, it's fairly wild looking, which
is a great conversation starter compared to a bog standard beach cruiser.

Anything that gets ya pedaling is a good thing.