A Furry FAQ

I've written up a "Frequently Asked Questions" text file and posted it to the google group http://groups.google.com/group/furrybluecycles?hl=en

I'm duplicating a portion of the FAQ in this blog posting:


Who is Furry Blue Cycles?
Furry Blue Cycles is Sharon and Michael Gordon.

? What's Your Mission?
Our mission is to bring to market hand-made steel bicycles that are not commonly available, and that reflect our taste and the kind of bicycle riding we do. We live in bicycling paradise in the San Francisco Bay Area and go for recreational road rides around Stanford University.

? Where does the name come from?
Our son is an aspiring puppeteer, and in brainstorming ideas for the little company we suggested "puppet cycles" since the bicycle is an inanimate object controlled by the rider. Our son didn't like that name and instead suggested his favorite blue furry puppet.

? What kind of bicycles do you make?
Short answer: our bikes are closer to a road bike than a mountain bike, but are in-between in the following ways: they may use smaller wheels than the 700C wheels of a road bike, they are intended for medium width tires (say 1 1/4" to 1 1/2"), and they may be designed for flat or swept back handlebars and a less bent-over position.

? Isn't that a long winded way of saying Furry Blue makes hybrid bicycles?
The typical hybrid bicycle these days has a stiff aluminum frame, a heavy gauge steel fork, and comes with stiff/heavy 700C medium width tires, has a somewhat "slow" steering, and is built higher off the ground to avoid pedal strikes on uneven surfaces. The Furry Blue bicycle is more of a road bike in the frame design - it has a light gauge steel frame, lighter road fork, is built lower to the ground for stability, and has a quicker, more responsive feel to the steering. It is not necessary to have a wider tire be thick and heavy, and a Furry Blue bicycle is intended for supple, medium width tires that complement its lightweight construction and frame geometry.