story
The inner city bike was designed by JRUITER + studio in 2009 as a project asking questions about ultra short inner city travel. What is needed, who is riding, and how far are they going. At first glance it was a fun aesthetic opportunity in new trends, color, and materials. Our target lived / worked in an inner city environment with minimal space. Bicycling at this level can be more about fashion and culture than speed and performance.
“After the first few brainstorm sessions we knew there were bigger opportunities. The project rethought what a “frame” meant, getting rid of basic key components, and creating a new type of compact bicycling. Inspired by the “hobby horse” from it’s simplicity and the cafe race scene. Each is an exercise in stripping something down to its core.
The final design came down to a frame system and a free-wheeling unicycle hub. Everything else is rider preference.
Before all of the bike fanatics get all fired up, we know this bike doesn’t solve everyone’s personal transportation dreams. Performance wise, the bike is on the slow side, quirky, and fatiguing over longer distances. Consider it a cafe racer with the performance of a beach cruiser. The positives are easy quick turns, huge power to the rear wheel to go over curbs and up hills, and great start / stopping / sitting situations.
We rethought everything 2 wheeled with simplicity in mind. This is as stripped as you can get.”
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no chains please.
A no chain bike solves many issues but keeps the speeds on the low side.
No grease exposed, no pant leg grabbing, and no maintenance required are some of the benefits.
Traditionally we look for speed on a bike. The inner city bike is geared low with a 1:1 ratio at the rear wheel. For every complete turn of the pedal the wheels turn one revolution. This allows the inner city bike to crawl up hills easily but not set any speed records.
Speed-
The 29” wheels can creep at a walking speed or reach up to 14 mph (23 km/h) on the high end.
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our model maker, Kurt.
1980-something
Kurt (last name not mentioned to keep the ladies away)
We never knew how he can fab up such great prototypes, maybe it’s the historic perm that still guides his thoughts.
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ugly prototypes and test rides
One small change means a lot of trial and error. Messing with traditional ergonomics, frame geometry, wheel base, and gearing standards, can be a bit challenging.
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fenders
fenders and flare-
Believe it or not, the inner city can offer rain at times.
*Flat black fender option shown.