Fellow foldies,
I finally got a tour to Switzerland that didn't arrive on a Sunday, I set off on my Strida 5 to Vitelli's in Basel to get a mountain of Long-john & other bits, including new tyres for my Strida 5. After a few miles there was a very big bang as my rear tyre blew a huge hole in itself! Stuck a bit of plastic in between my repaired tube my holey tyre. I planned to get one Big Apple & one Dutch Perfect as I'd read that 2 Big Apples wouldn't work. Well, all they had was two Big Apples, as I didn't want to wobble all the way back to my bus I bought them, fitted them outside, and surprise, surprise, they fitted no problem, what'smore the wheels still magnetted together OK. There is a slight squeaking occasionally as the front tyre lightly kisses the mudguard but otherwise a commendable ride.
Then, while in Holland, I stacked it big time, went over the bars & hit my lip on the curb, which shattered all the teeth on my bridge, and the socket that the ball-joint plugs into on the Strida. Don't get your travel insurance with AMEX would be my reccomendation. Enough said!
A taxi ride to Strida NL in Amsterdam with battered me in the front & battered Strida in the boot, in no time they had fixed it, I also picked up an aluminium luuggage rack & a kickstand.
I had hoped to test ride one of thetwo prototype 2-speed Stridas that tey ave, but there was an UPS guy there to pick up my ride, to take it to a show, where it was up for a design award.
Got a quick pick, also discussed their plans to sell the Strida Mini as a child's bike, to introduce an 18" wheeled version, & the Xtra which has a bigger frame and which can be made bigger with 18" tyres.
Theynalso havenew options, such a very brightly coloured disc calipers, Brompton shaped bars (which still fold)
And of course the 2-speed, which I'm told is very fast, they've been test riding it and hope to get it ready for sale in the 1st half of 2009. They are trying to sort one out for me to take on the Velovision Spezi trip at the end of April 2009. Pics to follow, just drove 1600km from Amsterdam to Stockholm so I'm shattered! ZZZZzzzzzzs calling! Nos da!
