Originally Posted by
mattlavallee
My girlfriend is moving in with me. She works about 700m away from our apt, but still drives there. What would seem to me to be a no-brainer has evolved into a discussion about sweat, rain, and poor treatment of a car engine (my input). To be fair, it does get nasty hot/humid here, and it can rain on a whim, though usually not long in duration. Ideally, she would start out riding to work, come with me on weekend neighborhood rides, fall in love with riding, and in the future be receptive to multi-week unsupported stealth camping tours. I said ideally.
There are 2 basic directions I could go with this: a cheapo bike so not much is lost if she doesn't get into it; and a good bike that fills a void in my current lineup so that I can use it if she doesn't get into it. I think buying a cheap bike for her could increase the chance of a lack of interest. So I'm thinking about getting a decent folding bike for her. I probably don't need to extol on the virtues of a folder in this venue, but it would fit easier in the elevator and could fit in the back of her car as well.
I have a BF Pocket Rocket which I love. If I were picking for myself I'd like to get a 16" folder for bringing along when smaller folded size or faster time is helpful. A Tikit or Brompton would be great but I'm balking at the price for a (ahem) 5th bike. Also, although BF's multiple sizes are usually regarded as a good thing, I'm 6'1" and she's 5'2" so I doubt any Tikit would be a good fit for both of us. I also have a hankering to try out an internal geared hub. The Dahon Curve D3 seems like a good fit, though still a bit pricey in my mind for a 3 speed. I was interested in the Raleigh Folding I8 as well, but its folding characteristics are similar enough to my BF that it wouldn't really fill a different need for me. Any other bikes or viewpoints I should consider?
First of all, you said she only have 700m to commute to work. I mean, you can walk 700m; most people do if they want to get themselves in shape one way or another and it's cheap. If she's not into walking and rather opting to drive, I think you will have a harder time convincing her to bike. There is a reason why she wants to drive. It's comfortable, secure and dry. Nothing beats that. I take it that she's still young and healthy?!? If that's the case, there's more reason for her to live a sedentary biased life style. The only way you can convince her to ride to work is to demonstrate the health benefits of mild exercise. Good for cardiovescular as well as joints and muscles (more so with women) and slowing down the aging process. When you're young, you don't feel that bad. When you are older however, things start breaking down and so which is why mature and middle age women are more health conscious than their younger peers simply because, they are just not young anymore.
Don't force your girlfriend into doing things she does not like and don't treat your girlfriend like a child either. If she loves you very much, she will do things to impress you.