A good bicycle as part of a SHTF strategy.

[jdwhitak]

I've been into riding for years, but recently decided to incorporate it into my SHTF strategy. No need for gas. Can go places a car can't. Better than walking!

 

[snapping turtle]

Might look for a good deal on a cart or one of the baby carrier things to go with it.

The bike baby carriers can be found cheap once the kids outgrow them and hold stuff better than babies.

 

[blamecharles]

 

[togden812]

Pretty similar to mine except I have the MK19 version. Makes going uphill really tough, but downhill is a blast.

OP, I would suggest a mountain bike. You can get saddle bags for it if you want to carry smaller items. I have a Diamondback that I got from Dick's a few years ago for a couple hundred bucks. No problems so far and it takes abuse very well.

 

[jdwhitak]

Already ahead of you togden812. I recently ditched my 10 year old mountain bike for a brand spankin' new Trek Mamba. Hydraulic disk brakes, 18 speed, 29" tires, oh my!!! I don't know if I'll add saddle bags, etc to it. As a matter of fact probably not. My BOB is a 5.11 Tactical Rush 72 bag and fits me pretty good. I'll just use it if SHTF.

 

[RobbyMaQ]

I've been looking into this. Albeit I can't jusity getting the latest greatest composite bikes with whizbang components.... Hell a unicycle would be faster than walking for me. for that matter a pogo stick might do the trick lol. I'm interested in what others may say here though (ie best bang for buck as long as it ain't chinese)

 

[jdwhitak]

I go riding on a regular basis. So, this isn't something that is going to collect dust waiting for a SHTF situation. It will definitely be part of the strategy though. Some of the bike's features will be beneficial when SHTF. If you are buying just for emergencies then spend as little as possible.

 

[1988-4551]

Their mentioned and used quite extensively in Alas Babylon just make sure you get extra tubes and tires.

 

[Blackhawk2001]

I would think any medium-framed street or mountain bike would work fairly well as a SHTF vehicle. Extra innertubes, patch kit, tools and tire pump are mandatory accessories. Rear carrier and front accessory bags are relatively inexpensive. Riding a bicycle with a pack on is a bit of a challenge; strapping a BOB on a rear carrier may be a better solution. If you don't ride your bicycle on a regular basis, plan on a really sore butt and thighs for awhile as you get used to riding.

 

[Electronrider]

I have a bike stashed at work in case I would ever need it to get home. Would turn a long ass walk into an ass busting afternoon

 

[CountryBoy19]

I have a bike stashed at work in case I would ever need it to get home. Would turn a long ass walk into an ass busting afternoon

That's actually a good idea... seeing as how I live 20 miles from my regular place of work, it would turn an all night event into a couple hours event...

 

[indytechnerd]

I've thought of stashing a bike in the bed of my truck (tonneau cover conceals it) as a JIC kinda thing.

If you're looking at them as a BOV, I'd consider a hybrid style or a dual sport, something that you can use well on the road but won't dump you if you have to hit the dirt. Additionally, the child carrier trailer would be the way to go vs. panniers and racks on the bike itself. You could cache the trailer if you need to do some quick recon, or just GTFO. If the bike itself is weighed down, you'll have that much harder of a time.

 

[Liberty's Teeth]

If it was only me I had to worry about that would be my method of choice.

 

[TB1999]

bikes can also offer lots of parts should you need to disassemble

 

[bwframe]

bikes can also offer lots of parts should you need to disassemble

A lot of "ranger bands" there, eh?

 

[CA expat]

A twist to the question, mountain bike or road bike?

I am leaning towards my mountain bike (novara terraro) in shtf scenario. It is rugged and I can ride over all sorts of terrain. I have a trailer that i pull behind it and while it makes it sluggish the 21 speeds allow me to find a comfortable resistance.

But the speed and efficiency of the road bike are give it a significant get out of town advantage.

Any thoughts?

 

[seedubs1]

You don't need to spend a ton to get something very robust, durable, and useful. I found an old Schwinn Collegiate 5 speed for $25 on Craigslist. It's got really overbuilt components all around. It's a friction shifter with only a rear derailleur (no front derailleur to screw with and no index shifting to go bad, just a robust lever that you manually adjust). It's actually my bar hopping bike, but I guess it would be suitable for this scenario as well...

All you need is a little mechanical know how and tools. That bike was a bit rough when I got it. Everything squeaked and it needed new brake pads, cables, tubes and tires. I pulled all of the bearings and surprise surprise, it was only running on a few bearings per race, so a shade tree mechanic had "worked" on it a few times and decided the bike didn't need bearings for some reason. To this day, I have no idea who would go to all of the trouble to get to the bearings and clean/grease them but not replace them if they lose them. It makes no sense... So I replaced all of the bearings, cleaned up the races, and added new grease. Installed new cables, brake pads, and tires and tubes.

It rides like a new bike now after an overhaul. I've only got $75 in it total, and it rides better than any of that Walmart crap. And the bike will outlive me with a little standard maintenance.

If you're not riding for sport or competitively, this is an awesome way to go if you like wrenching on stuff. You'll end up with something great.

I've been looking into this. Albeit I can't jusity getting the latest greatest composite bikes with whizbang components.... Hell a unicycle would be faster than walking for me. for that matter a pogo stick might do the trick lol. I'm interested in what others may say here though (ie best bang for buck as long as it ain't chinese)

 

[gummergif]

Just for the sake of offering a counter-point... it's going to depend on the scenario.

Even a good mountain bike isn't going to get you too far through wooded terrain without a trail, especially with a trailer on it. Without the trailer, I feel like I could carry a lot more on foot than I could on a bike, and for longer at a standard walking speed. Depending on terrain, you could easily find yourself carrying the bike more than you were riding it.

While I'm not as fast on foot as on a bike, I feel like I could evade, if need be, much better on foot. Much easier to cover your tracks on foot, and should I need to hide, I don't have to worry about hiding the bike as well. A recently dumped bike would be like a flashing sign to anyone trying to track you.

Also take into account added gear you need to carry - bike pump, tools, parts... that's a lot of extra weight. To me, it just doesn't feel worth it for the extra speed. With a regular cardiovascular regimen, you won't get the speed, but you'll have more manuverability - you can get a lot of places on foot that you can't get to on a bike.

I'd personally rather trust a sturdy pair of boots.

Obviously, it depends on the scenario, and to each their own. I just wouldn't suggest hopping on your bike during serious SHTF without thinking long and hard about the pros and cons, first.

 

[KittySlayer]

A bike is a good way to quickly put some miles behind you as you evacuate then dump it and walk. Just spent a week on a cyclocross bike hauling a BOB trailer with 40 pounds of gear. Self supported camping trip on trails covering 300 miles in six days. Adding distance helps with evading trackers. Spare tubes, tires and pump are nominal weight compared to mechanical advantage. Be sure to practice some otherwise you might as well just walk.

 

[Blackhawk2001]

To answer a couple comments here: Think about it: if you're getting out of Dodge and you're doing it on a bicycle, how likely are you to be able to use the roadways for riding? Some sort of off-road bicycle will likely be better for most surfaces and the larger-width tires will support a heavier load than a tire optimized for light-weight road riding.

As as to the comment about being able to carry a larger load on foot than on a bicycle: Have you ever seen pictures of Vietnamese women transporting 100 lb bags of rice on a bicycle? If your goal is to get a heavy load across country, you can likely do it through most terrain much easier if you place your load on a bicycle and walk beside it.

Just some food for thought.