cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/20804245
Bikepacking on the Buffalo Bicycle
Nice read about a trip on the buffalo bicycle (which was posted about here some time ago), with an interesting view on the “world bicycle relief”.
To comment on the bicycle itself, the 2 chain thing is cool. I don’t exactly know how it works, but I have already seen retro-direct setups (1 chain + 2 freewheels, with-or-without a jockey wheel) and it is something that has interested me. The big difference here is that with retro-direct, you keep pedalling backwards for the other gear.
I imagine retro-direct could be done with 2 chains for the redundancy, perhaps even with different types of drives for each (like some cheap geared belt for the low gear, normal chain for high gear). Though this would be more suitable if swapping out gear combo was not too difficult, to adjust to rider fitness.
EDIT: I should say with chain vs belt I mean whichever gear you expect to require the most force which may in fact depend on cargo weight+hills. Though the chain being the smaller one might just be smart to reduce wear (esp. w/fully enclosed chain case, exposed belt).
I’m not a fan of this article, mostly because Evan Christenson contemplates the darker side of charities working in underdeveloped countries without actually exploring them beyond criticizing WBR. It’s, likely unintentional, FUD propaganda.
It should not be a shock to find out that charities have overhead and many of them have unfortunate side effects. For example, Evan brings up Doctors Without Borders as a charity with lower overhead and a leader less compensated. That’s true, but did you also know they sell your personal information when you donate to them? That’s part of how they lower their costs. Also they provide doctor services for free. What does that do to the doctors who are there trying to make a meager living? DWB is undermining what little medical infrastructure the country has.
Is that a bad thing? Is it a good thing? That depends on you, the donor’s, perspective. Selling my data to provide more doctor is fine with me. Same with undermining the countries’ medical market because it’s a temporary thing and usually in a crisis where not providing help is definitively worse.
I’ll continue donating to WBR because their expense ratio is acceptable, even good, for physical good imports given the shipping overhead (aka bribes) in Africa. Admim is ~15% and fundraising is ~23%. Everything else goes into the bicycle and into families with kids who cannot afford one. That’s a lower margin than buying just about any good from your local shops, and it’s lower than many other charities working in Africa!
Thanks for your perspective on the admin and overhead cost on charities, I clearly does not know as much in the area.
The main concern I have with WBR, from the information provided in the article, is that there are already cheaper bikes (Black Mamba) and LBS in those areas. W/ Black Mamba I am not sure what the Buffalo is gonna solve. The LBS’ perspective is quite interesting, that WBR wants to build their own “ecosystem” for Buffalo bike repairs and exclude the LBS. It is just weird how they operate.
I’m unconvinced. The LBS can still work on Buffalo bikes. They can still repair tubes, true wheels, fix pedals, replace spokes, fix chains, change brake pads, etc. They may not have unique parts, like the AK2 freewheel, but it’s far from being unable to repair most bicycle failures.
I think Evan found an upset businessman who’s in the business of selling Black Mambas. They’re in that same situation as a local doctor that’s been displaced by Doctors Without Borders. And they’re upset that they have to compete with WBR. The complaint is understandable yet it doesn’t absolve them of their own failures.
No bicycle donation program is going to survive on a single LBS or two near a city. If I were to buy a kid a Black Mamba and it breaks down, then the kid has to take it into the city to repair it at that one shop with high repair prices. What’s far more likely is the kid will stop using the bike and sell it. Kids-in-school objective failed.
Note, this is also why WBR only operates in places where there is insufficient bicycle support. There’s no need for WBR to donate and sell bikes if there’s already a healthy local bicycle market. You can’t buy a Buffalo Bicycle and WBR doesn’t want you to have one. Instead go buy a Surley or a SOMA or a Rivendell. We have a robust LBS network. WBR operates where there’s nothing.
And, IMHO, the Black Mamba isn’t a great rural bicycle. It’ll work but it’s far from ideal. By donating to WBR, I know it’s the best bicycle that will go to some kid. I know that it’ll survive long enough for that kid’s few more years of school. I know that it’ll be strong enough to be passed down to their little brother or sister. And I know their village has a dude with a wrench to fix a flat and adjust a pedal. Such robustness is worth the extra $50 over a Black Mamba.
I have no doubt the S2 is a good bike for its role, but there are a lot more nuance to WBR’s projects in Africa…
