Nachoman

I ride my folder now just a few times a year. I use it primarily for travel and on rare occasion it's used as a back-up, to my back-up bike.

1nterceptor

Had a great time at Cabrillo Natl Monument. I was exploring the place while my nephews were waiting
for low tide. That they charge for cars entering didn't surprise me; it was charging bikes that did.

linberl

The parks depend on the 80% of entrance fees for their survival. They don't charge for "bicycles"...it's an entrance fee for walk-ins and cyclists with a higher fee for people in cars. If you park your car outside and walk in you will pay the same as a bicyclist.

BassNotBass

I still have several big wheeled bikes but I rarely ride them. My Brompton and Bike Friday are the two I reach for.

Azreal911

For daily commuting or 95% of my rides during the year would be my folders. My one big wheeled bike is mainly used for our once a year long distance rides where we have to pick up speed. All my folders are single speed so there's a limit how fast I can go or how hilly I can handle. Else it's totally awesome for commuting cause maintenance is super minimal with that setup.

EDIT: oh but two of those years for our long distance rides I completed them easily with my single speed folder. Just these days I wanted to push the group faster and the big bike with 2.35 fatties just rolls along like a truck.

prathmann

The fee is higher for people in cars only if they are a solo occupant. The fee is $5 per private vehicle regardless of number of occupants - so 6 people in a car still only pay $5. OTOH, 6 cyclists would be asked to pay $3 x 6 = $18.

WRT the original topic, my folder was never my only bike, but it was my primary one for a number of years - i.e. used for club rides, commuting, and shopping trips even if the folding feature wasn't required. But these days it tends to only be used for trips where its ability to fit within the airline limits for regular checked baggage is needed. Performance is pretty close, but the folder has substantially higher tire costs.

paulthomson

I own an older Brompton but also imported a montague paratrooper pro from the states for when my track is muddy or if I fancy doing a bit of off-roading. Both are amazing bikes and great to ride.

Sangetsu

My folder (a Birdy) is my daily commuter, I ride it 5 or 6 days each week. My "main bike" is my old team-issued Gios Compact Pro, which I have been riding for nearly 20 years now. I will take the Gios on longer or faster rides. In terms of comfort, both bikes are about the same, both have the cockpits adjusted identically, and both have the same type of seat. The Birdy has the benefit of full suspension, while the Gios has the benefit of a beautiful steel frame, which absorbs bumps and road imperfections without being flexy. The Birdy and the Gios both have 10 speed drivelines, and both bikes weigh the same, but the Gios is still by far the faster ride.

osco53

I ride a full squish mtb,
a LWB recumbent,
a Delta trike,
and my Dahon speed P8,, when I am away from home all day and have time to kill, I take long lunch rides.

FoldMeSideways

My main bike is a 1974 Raleigh Sports, but it is getting equal riding time to my new Citizen Tokyo I picked up. The Raleigh lives in my bedroom and only leaves for planned trips, the Citizen lives in my trunk since it takes up little space, always ready for an impromtu adventure.

plc1fp

My main bike is a Dahon Mariner, I own two of them plus a 1988 Dahon Classic III. The Classic has a 3 speed IGH for winter riding. I have given away all my full sized bikes. I am 68 years old and ride the Dahon's 3000-5000 miles per year. I fell on my full sized bike and ended up with bursitis, so find the folders safer to ride. I am 6'3" tall and find them very comfortable for me. I bought my Grandson a Tern D8 that he could adjust as he grew. Folders Rock!

tds101 

I just added a new tech toy to my stable. It's an I-Max S1+ Electric Scooter. Fun,...first ride was this evening to go pick up my prescription at the pharmacy. I realized a helmet isn't a luxury,...it's 100% REQUIRED!!!

iamclaus

My only bike is my folding bike, a Breezer Zag8 (frame by Oyama). I live rurally and riding locally doesn't interest me as the roads are narrow and traffic is unforgiving. I work in a nearby city, and after work I get the bike from the backseat of my car, go for a ride before heading home. I could do the same with a 'real' bike, but would be left dealing with the burden of a roof rack and the security issue of leaving a bike on the car for long periods, day in, day out. I've come to enjoy how the folding bike rides and find a regular bike to be uninteresting and clumsy. If and when I wear this bike out, I fully expect to buy another folding bike.

keyven

As a relatively new cyclist - starting in early 2014, my current stable consists of:

- Brompton M3E 2014 (wife's)
- Brompton S2E-X 2014
- Fully customized Santa Cruz 5010

Few bikes are as useful or as eye-catching as a Brompton, especially when I'm wheeling it around the supermarket. I'm always planning how we could use it when we go overseas.

roadrunner08

I currently own 6 bikes that I can ride. My carbon road bike, my schwinn road bike, my blue stingray, my red stingray, my downtube 8FS, my downtube 9FS. I also own three other collectable schwinns.
I am planning on selling my downtube 9FS soon, since I purchased a new downtube 8FS. I love bikes!!!

jimboach

I own a tern verge x30h that is basically a no compromise high end touring/road bike. I also have a dahon vector x10. My fiance had a dahon ciao d5. I've ridden my brother's trek hybrid and I've never really ridden a full size high end road bike and I have no reason to. I love my folding family. The folding bike stigma is truly undeserved at this point in bike technology.

The Taskmaster

Definitely hooked on the folders, to the point of wanting to sell my last conventional bike. The Brompton is my go-to for any distance, but my old Dahon Espresso gets the job done as a beater/grocery hauler that I can occasionally lock up outside. It creaks like the cots at a youth hostel, but nothing Important has fallen off yet. I also have an odd little thing called a roll-n-fold which I picked up for $20 at a yard sale, it only sees daylight when the nieces and nephew are over (along with the Adams trail-a-bike). I once had an old Steyr Auto-Mini as a pub bike, but between the tiny 160 cranks, non-standard BB, and odd geometry I just couldn’t make it work for me; when a friend’s son had his bike stolen, that bike found new purpose in life. I’m on the lookout for an older, cheaper Downtube 8H or similar for my trips to Florida. My girlfriend loved the looks of the Citizen Barcelona, but when we checked out a used one up close the build quality and components were a bit disappointing. Perhaps we'll look at the Dahon Briza or Ciao next, though the more she rides my Brompton the harder it becomes to rule out another on price alone.

FedericoMena

My folding bike is not my only bike, but lately it may as well be. We have construction going on in our house, and there are some plastic sheet barriers to prevent the spread of dust. The sheets make it really cumbersome to take my big bike out of the workshop, which is in the back of the house, to the front door. I'm keeping my folding bike upstairs, and it's easier to navigate through the sheets with it folded. So I've been using it almost exclusively for the past couple of months. It works great!

Saintly Loser

Right now, my folder is my only bike. I use it for commuting and pleasure riding in New York City. It's kind of an oddball -- it's a Giant Halfway. I don't think it's available anymore, at least not in the US. It's one of the few folders that will comfortably fit me, at 6'2". It's a great bike.

I'm going to buy another bike this spring, though. I need a full-sized bike so I can put a baby seat on the back. My two-year-old daughter will love it (I think). Nothing fancy, just a sturdy three-speed will do.

bmxfolderbike

Hello, new here to the forum.

My other "real" bike is a WTP BMX. But it's meant for street tricks n short distance travel. My other bike is a Dahon Mu Uno I purchased barely two months ago. I spend more time with it. It's a joy to ride, I smile right away from the first pedal.

Occasional questions arises: did you convert that to a fixie? How do you stop on that thing? Can you fold it now?

And that's how I got my nickname.

plc1fp

Another child carry option is a burley bee trailer. I have carried 2 grandchildren in one while towing it behind my Dahon Mariner☺

7up

I have a few bikes I can go to for different types of rides.I purchased a Dahon s18 and the wife commandeered the folder as her bike period.Now i have to purchase another one to add to my stable.

RayB

I also have a few bikes. Tern UNO that is my go to bike for hopping around the city or jumping on a train for some sight seeing. My full size is a Civia Bryant that I can't seem to bring myself to sell. It was used mainly for commuting and touring but I no longer have to commute to work so am seriously considering its sale .... Other than those also a Brompton M6 that I sometimes steal from my wife when I'm feeling brave or rebellious.

Steely Dan

no, my folder is not my only bike. my current stable:


2007 Dahon Speed P8 - steel 8 speed 20" folder. it has some mechanical issues right now, i don't currently ride it.

2010 Motobecane LeChampion SL - titanium ultegra group road bike. my super-fun go fast bike.

2011 Scott SUB 10 - aluminum alfine 8/disc brake hybrid. serves as my dedicated winter commuter with fenders and studded tires.

2014 Motobecane Fantom Cross - aluminum disc brake Apex group CX bike. serves as my everyday commuter with slick tires, a rack and fenders.

2015 Dahon Mu Uno - aluminum SS 20" folder. i purchased it last may to replace my Speed P8.


of the 4 bikes in good working order, my cyclocross commuter by far sees the most miles, followed up by the winter commuter (but not so much this winter, thus far ). i use my folder sparingly (maybe once or twice a month) when multi-mode commuting makes sense or when there's some other compelling reason for maximum compactibility. and since getting married and making babies, my recreational riding has taken a serious nosedive, so my titanium rocket doesn't get ridden nearly as much as it used to, but i do occasionally commute on it with a backpack when the forecast calls for 0% chance of precipitation.

WillAdams

Yes. Montague Swissbike X50 --- it's my commuter, and eventually I hope to start riding it for other things.


It's been interesting setting up up and fitting it out, though I'm still looking forward to replacing and upgrading parts to bring it more in line w/ the Paratrooper Pro which I wanted.