Speedo

I really like the look of mini-velos, and I think I can speak to why I would choose a minivelo over a standard frame.

Like a lot of people I have a fleet of bikes. They are:

1983 Univega Gran Tourismo (rehabed in 2009 with a 9 speed drive train)
1986 Guerciotti (Classic Italian steel road bike)
1988 Bridgestone MB-2 mountain bike
2006 Bike Friday NWT
2008 Serrota Fierte Ti
2008 Bike Friday Tikit

As you can see from the dates, I had a bunch of bikes from the 80's and have been upgrading the fleet.

We are getting to the end of riding season, so the stats on what I've ridden the most are pretty well in. In 2009 I didn't ride the Serrota at all. Not even once. I didn't ride the Guerciotti at all either, but that's not so surprising, I only keep it for sentimental reasons. I commute on the Bridgestone, so that gets a fair amount of mileage, but it's not really all that fun to ride. I took the Univega out a fair amount, probably because of the rehab. The Tikit goes on pootle rides and commutes some times. The big mileage bike in the stable is my NWT. It gets the nod for just about any ride where I am going to put the bike in the car and take it to the start of a ride. Now, I don't fold it to put it in the car, but it just fits easier in the car. So, I use the NWT in the way one would use a mini Velo, and I am choosing to take the NWT over the Serrota for convenience reasons. The Serrota is a great bike, and I love to ride it, but the NWT rides well enough that the convenience and compactness always seems to win.

I think that a mini velo has more simplicity than a folder (none of the long convoluted cable runs, and no hinges) so for someone who uses a folder like I do, it would be a better choice. As long as it has a good enough ride, a mini velo could be a big success.

Speedo