Wire wheel 6 rigid spokes began to appear in the Olympic Games and professional racing: these have advantages in specialized applications, such as time trials, but wire-spoked wheels are used for most purposes. The reaction to a radial load of a well-tensioned wire spoked wheel, such as by a rider sitting on a bicycle, is that the wheel flattens slightly near the ground contact area. The rest of the wheel remains approximately circular. The tension of all the spokes does not increase significantly. Instead, only the spokes directly under the hub decrease their tension. The issue of how best to describe this
Flip-flop hub Flip-flop hub Flip-flop hubs, also called double-sided hubs, are rear bicycle hubs that are threaded to accept fixed cogs and/or freewheels on both sides. There are several different types of flip flop hubs available for different applications. Their main purpose is to allow changing between two different size gear ratios on one rear wheel without the added complications of a derailleur or internal hub gear, or between a fixed and freewheeling option. By removing the rear wheel and flipping it around, the rider can switch between the two options. They are traditionally found on track bicycles, but can also be