axolotl

I've had my Bike Friday NWT for 8 years and have toured on it a lot, with no significant problems at all. I've toured in some fairly remote places, including Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Pyrenees mountain passes, in addition to various places in North America including lengthy unpaved trails in the US & Canada. A couple of my trips were with a friend who has had his Bike Friday even longer than me, and he hasn't had any significant problems, either. On my most recent trip in Laos, I actually encountered 4 other touring cyclists on Bike Fridays. A friend I toured with in Mexico was so impressed with how much easier and cheaper it was for me to fly with my bike than his bike, that he bought his own BF when he got home. I commute to work on it daily, mostly on an unpaved trail. As for the "stupid" comment, I get a lot of favorable comments and questions about the bike from strangers. People loved it in Sri Lanka, a place where I saw more locals on bikes than anywhere I've been other than the Netherlands. And why should anyone really care about what other people think about your bike, anyway?