bâton dans les roues

15:27 Feb 3, 2015 

En français, "ni même de bâton dans les roues" s'applique au plan technique (sans ambages, sans difficulté) tout en suscitant une image loufoque (s'arrêter (culbuter!) en fichant un bâton dans les roues). En anglais, je comprends que "putting a spoke..." ne fonctionne pas parce qu'il y en a déjà tout un paquet de "spokes" dans la roue (les rayons)... d'où l'appel au bâton. Perso, je remplacerais peut-être par "(not even backpedaling!)" qui fait référence au système de freinage des vélos des années 60 et qui suscite une image qui n'a pas de sens non plus.

12:42 Jan 31, 2015 

...in neither language does the figurative meaning of this idiom actually have anything to do with a viable process for stopping a bike — and while the pun may be appreciated in FR and the technical inaccuracy forgiven, the same is not, I feel, true in EN.

I suspect this is one case where Asker is going to have to call on their copywriting skills, and come up with something completely different here in EN, which may lose the pun aspect, but at least complete the list of braking options in a satisfactory and hopefully amusing way.

12:25 Jan 31, 2015 

Agree that it is a joke (though I am more familiar with putting a spoke in someone's wheel). If you need to indicate that it's tongue in cheek why not put something like "not even the PROVERBIAL stick/spoke in the wheel)?

11:58 Jan 31, 2015 

I wasn't familiar with this idiom (I don't care how common it is, we can't all know everything!) or I wouldn't have asked it as a technical sports-related question. But now that I'm getting used to the author's style, I realise that he just loves word plays so I'm convinced this is meant as a joke. I really don't understand all the neutrals/disagrees for François' suggestion - look up mettre des bâtons dans les roues in Harraps Slang dictionary and 'put a spoke in s.o.'s wheel' is the first option (along with throw a spanner in the works). Ditto in an Oxford idiom dictionary I have. Not to mention all the online examples. Works for me as a joky bike reference! Something like: 'First came wireless gear-shifting and now we have brakes without cables or levers (you can’t even/you don't even need to/ put a spoke in the wheel…)' (... indicating tongue in cheek?) Still pondering!

10:00 Jan 31, 2015 

Totally agree with Daryo, it so obviously comes across as a joke/wordplay, and why would you ever consider trying to shove a stick in the wheel of your bike, unless feeling particularly masochistic and in need of pain? But interesting that the question has produced such opposite convictions... :-)

00:44 Jan 31, 2015 

as Tony pointed it out, it's an obvious reference to "mettre un baton dans les roues" (= to throw a spanner in the works) as a figure of speech, and as far as I can remember it's never being used literally - to the point that if someone wanted to say literally that "XYZ has put a stick in the wheel" he would have probably used different wording to make it clear that it's meant literally.

BTW "to put a stick in the wheel" IS NOT a way of stopping a bike - it's a way of wrecking the bike and smashing yourself into the ground - only good for Bumfights movies - no sane bike rider would ever try that.

23:10 Jan 30, 2015 

Agree with Phil there's no pun here at all. It's just one means of stopping a bike with no brakes, like putting a foot on the wheel etc

18:32 Jan 30, 2015 

I'm not saying it's not a joke - of course it is. But as far as I can see, it's not a pun about putting a spoke in someone's wheel or a spanner in the works. That wouldn't make sense. It just means put a stick through the wheel.

17:08 Jan 30, 2015 

is the first thing that came to mind. It can't be serious, can it?

16:35 Jan 30, 2015 

Like Tony, I see this clearly as a joke, someone obviously wanted to add a bit of humour into a technical sort of a description...

16:30 Jan 30, 2015 

It is such a common expression, I can hardly believe that anyone could possibly use it ingenuously — especially as it really isn't a viable or conventional method of stopping a bike!

16:07 Jan 30, 2015 

I'm not sure it's a pun - it's just a literal statement, isn't it?
I can't say I'd be happy hurtling down a hill at 40 mph and being reliant on a wireless signal to stop me...

16:06 Jan 30, 2015 

never even occurred to me that he had his tongue firmly in his cheek!

16:02 Jan 30, 2015 

I think this is a bit of a play on words, with the colloquial expression « mettre un baton dans les roues » meaning to put a spanner in the works or in other words block somebody.

I think the writer is jokingly suggesting that if all else fails, one can stop a bicycle literally by putting a stick through the spokes — but it's really just an excuse for a weak pun!