Fear&Trembling

https://www.smithfieldnocturne.co.uk/foldingbikerace.htm

I'm sure there will be a few ringers...Any takers?

spambait11

Website quote: "Expect fierce competition, barging and even a little cheating as our commuters race to prove their skills and we’ll finally see which brand really is the fastest."

How are they able to say "even a little cheating" and "we’ll finally see which brand really is the fastest" within the same breath, let alone the same sentence? If that's the case, I'd use one of Wav's Cyclone-equipped Downtubes; no restrictions against using external, non-human produced wattage, I see. Worth the prize of a MuSL imo.

Fear&Trembling

What we'll actually see is a Cat 2 racer enter in order to win the prize, which he will then flog on ebay the following day - or am I just being cynical?

If I entered, I just know that I would be beaten by a shaven-legged "Strida rider" - I have already had nightmares...

spambait11

You're being cynical. It may take a few days to ride it around a bit for fun before boxing it for eBay. A Cat 2's @ss on the saddle is worth an extra, what, £5?

Bacciagalupe

Methinks it's pretty clear the race is primarily for entertainment value, as apparently the riders will wear suits and ties instead of team kit. The Smithfield is a PR event for the prologue stage of the Tour de France, which is in London this year.

Besides, I'd expect the REAL cheating will occur in the Smithfield Messenger Race.

spambait11

NO! It's NOT entertainment when a MuSL is at STAKE! And I hear they're worth (ok, cost) more in the UK to boot!

The real entertainment will be seeing the video of F&T being beaten by a shaved-leg Strida rider.


Hm. What's the prize? (And don't say the Strida rider).

Bacciagalupe

Looks like the only prize for the Messenger race is "bragging rights." Lame. (Or whatever the equivalent British slang term is)

https://www.smithfieldnocturne.co.uk/messengerrace.htm

Fear&Trembling

The winner of the Folding race was riding a Swift...

Quite a few pics of the folder race here:
https://www.flickr.com/search/?q=smit...ne&w=all&s=int

Start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slMqxvYNtdU

LittlePixel

I'm quite surprised the Airnimal Chamelion didn't win. Ooer - bit choppy in the wet though.
Tempted to enter next year - if I've got my Twenty onto some bigger wheels. Or my Merc/Bromton into the negative weight threshold.
h

Bacciagalupe

I assume the winner had as much to do with the rider as the bike.

Either that, or the guy on the Swift was better at cheating.

jur

Any photos about of the Swift winner?

OldiesONfoldies

It will be interesting to see how the new Bike Friday Tikit will perform in this race. Its folding/unfolding capability is awesome...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQscB...related&search=

pm124

I came in second behind a Swift in a local race. Of course, I'm 41 and still not...um...perfectly flat in the abdomen. The winner was a 20 something track racing champion not so covertly inserted in the race by Swift.

But try doing this on a Swift:

https://64.233.179.104/translate_c?hl...%3Den%26sa%3DX

Even speedy boy would be ass-less by the time he hit the bottom.

Here are all the translated touring links:

https://64.233.179.104/translate_c?hl...%3Den%26sa%3DX

pm124

Whoops. The translation link always dies. Try this instead: https://translate.google.com/translat...ari%26rls%3Den

I especially like the "Do not try this at home" disclaimer on the bottom.

mpchi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slMqxvYNtdU

Can't believe many of the folders unfold so slow in the race. I am no expert, and have only been riding a folder for less than a month. But even I can do better than that...just the unfolding part of course. Not the race

As of the Bike Friday Tikit, the video looks awesome. But makes me wonder if the bike frame locks securely enough, as the folding and unfolding is so fast, the guy don't even need to mess with any quick release levers seems like.

pm124

Hate to disappoint, but I had a chance to closely inspect a Tikit, and it was a bit disappointing. It' is very cool looking, with the twisted metal bits giving it a warped appearance. It also folds fast. The mechanism feels *very* sturdy, but doesn't look it. I would be worried about the cable that holds everything together becoming frayed. It's also heavy, folds into a large package, and rides very hard (unsuspended tiny wheels). That said, there is a video of one going over 40MPH.

Speedo

You know, I've watched that video, and from the cadence of the rider, and the rate of the scenery passing by, I just don't believe that they are going anywhere near 40 MPH.

If you listen to the narrator, she says. "We're going at 24 mile an hour!". Then later with the scenery seeming to pass at the same rate, she says. "We've just hit 40 mile an hour!" The narrator is Australian Lynette Chiang. I'm wondering if her odometer is set for kilometers. If that were the case then going 40 KPH converts to about 24 MPH. Maybe she just forgot to do the conversion the second time.

From the video, it doesn't look like there are any strange gears on the Tikit. So lets say that they manage to have 95 inch top gear. To go 40 miles an hour the rider would have to run a cadence of over 140 RPM!

No, I'm just not believing that claim.

Speedo

Bacciagalupe

+1

Note: I haven't seen said video yet, but anyway....

40mph on the flats is basically the speed for a racing sprint. You'd have to be a very, very good athlete to hold that speed for more than 30 seconds on a bike with racing geometry & position, as the amount of drag is tremendous. Even 24mph is pretty fast for a commuting bike / commuter.

I'm sure the Tikit will ride about as fast as any other folder out there, though.

Speedo

Yeah, I'm not bashing the Tikit. It will rise or fall on its own merits. It's just that I've seen that 40 MPH comment various places, and after viewing the video, I'm just not buying it.

Speedo

makeinu

...unless, of course, you're going downhill.

Speedo

Yeah, but then why make a big deal about it? Give me a single speed Huffy cruiser bike and the right hill and I'll get it going 40 MPH too.

Are they saying: "Hey, look at us, we took a Tikit up to 40 MPH on a hill and it didn't disintegrate!"? That's not much of an endorsement.

Speedo

Bacciagalupe

After viewing the video, I think she just mixed up kph and mph. Almost any half-way decent bike could do 40kph. Not every rider could do that in the middle of the desert though.

jur

What annoying commentary! I cringed from beginning to end.

pm124

Ha! Of course. I'm silly not to have thought of that.

pm124

By the way, F&T I just found a copy of Fear and Trembling on the street. I love Kierkegaard, but never manage to get beyond the first 50 pages. I guess this is my big chance.