Originally Posted by
Azreal911
I'm thinking of my next bike but i'm trying to use it for long rides also cause I intend to have only one bike (n +1 doesn't apply at my household and is illegal!) and also intend to use them in 60km+ organized rides. I was down to these two bikes. The verge duo and a two speed brompton with same gearing and fenders only to save on weight. The fold on the brompton is a winner but for me I rarely take it on a train and if I do it's only to ride it back up from downtown for fun (30+ kms). I only need to fold it under my cubicle and that's it. But for our semi crappy roads in my area the 20" wheels would probably go over cracks much better, we're talking about cracks right across the roads which you can't just avoid. I currently own a strida (daily commuter 12km/day) and once I upgraded to 18" wheels I never went back to the 16's (very different feel over my junky roads) which is why I sometimes question my brompton choice there (but it has a mini rubber bumper on the back). Downtown has better roads and bike lanes so it is a different matter there. I read alot of the wheel size debates on this forum but in the end it led to just no real definite answer for me. Just wanted to hear if any of you crazy guys tried brevets on their folders and what's their experience on them? I'd love to hear from 16" wheel users and 20" wheeled users. I know some would probably ask I get more gears but I've grown to really love the simplicity of these two bikes with the minimal amount of needed gears. Being previously stuck on a single speed I can get up some pretty good grades just by pedaling with some momentum and keeping the pace, with a chain drive it's even easier without the occasional skipping. Plus the The Tern and Brommie I can stand on them to get up the hills when needed, commuting daily really strengthens your legs ALOT. Would love to hear what the folding group thinks of the madness of riding long distance on tiny wheels.
verge duo:
no cables very clean look
don't fold as well
brompton two speed:
same weight
smallest fold in the business!
It's possible riding with only 2 gears only in areas that are not very very hilly like in Toronto. But in very hilly areas like in Vancouver, 1 or with 2 gears are very challenging and basically require you to do strength training for the duration of the ride. It's certainly doable, but I would suggest that if you had only ridden 12km on a Strida is to ease yourself into a 60km ride over a series of months so your core will become more developed. Otherwise, if you have weak core strength which holds your pelvis somewhat level, your knees will tend to buckle inwards or outwards depending the sway as your pelvis become unstable and then you're going to have a myriad of knee issues. I've heard from my doctor that some of his new patients came from cyclists who went into the single speed fad and did not realize that it does require a little more training and conditioning compared to the multiple speed bikes which will then allow you to spin at a very high cadence.
Some people can spin at a very high cadence with a 70" gear, but unless you're well conditioned to do that and is a very strong rider to begin with, I would go instead with a Tern internal gear bike, because if you're trying to use it to ride long distance, you are suggesting to me that you are not sure if you have the strength and endurance to ride with a high gear in multiple terrain over long distances. My advise is to get a Tern multispeed bike and then training yourself to ride with just 1 speed. Just remember that not everyone is cut out to ride with a single or double speed bike unless you have conditioned yourself gradually.