Gary Fisher commuter bike

Arleigh went to Trek World in Madison, WI, where she snapped lots of bikey photos. Dr. Logan noticed this prototype Gary Fisher Commuter bike in the photostream.


This Gary Fisher commuter bicycle has Shimano's Alfine shifter, Bontrager Satellite Plus reflective sidewall tires, a huge basket on the front, separate fender and rack mounts on front and rear (!), leather saddle and handgrips, full front and rear fenders and a chainguard. I don't believe Alfine comes with a Coaster brake, but I don't see a brake cable going to the rear so they must use something else for the internal gear hub in the rear. A hand brake controls the rim brake on the front wheel. Trek's designer sensibly put a forward facing rear fork end on this bike for easy rear wheel removal.

Guitar Ted talks a little about this and another commuter prototype that he saw in Madison. G-Ted writes:

Fisher was showing off two prototype "townie" type bikes with a retro-ish/hand made flair. Sporting wrap around chain guards, full fenders, and internal gearing, these bikes were quite different and maybe even a bit out of place at the show.

I got a chance to chat briefly with Gary Fisher himself and I asked about these bikes. Were they something that Fisher will actually produce? I got a resounding "Yes!" in answer. It seems that we will most likely be seeing more of this type of utilitarian, work bike coming from Trek and Fisher in the future. I applaud Trek and Fisher for making an effort in this area and the bikes are certainly looking great so far.

In fact, I might even go so far as to say that they look every bit as cool as anything from the North American Hand Made Bicycle Show, where these would have been right at home.

Please remember to click the Digg and CycleCluster links if you like this article.