I'm very surprised by that. Quite unusual there. Many people don't even bother to lock their bikes up. Very different from Amsterdam where bike theft and stripping are quite high.

More better with a Beater . its pretty flat anyhow coaster brake, go with the flow.

DK has its own Wheel lock Type, the cross bar goes in the spokes on the back Wheel ..

NL has the Ring Lock .. similar Function.

Do you have a good safe way to store your bike and other stuff while you're away?

Many moons ago, I spent 3 months in Italy with my father. I had my previous bike stolen, so planning ahead, I just got an interim beater.

Then in Italy, I shopped around and picked out a Colnago Super. Now classic, but at that time, it was already getting old, but was still a nice road bike (I suppose I was used to old stuff so that is what I looked for :P)

Anyway, I still think of it as one of my best decisions I've made.

As far as commuter vs road bike. It is up to you. You can commute on anything. I did a lot of cobbles with my skinny sewups... which was a blast for a teenager :)

Decent commuter can be had for around 500-600 euros. The conditions for commuters are excellent with special bicycle "highways".

That much?

If you go to Holland, you should be able to just fish one out of the canal for free ;)

Got my Gazelle Tour Populair new from Calhoun in Minneapolis, so yes the traditional bikes can be had. On the other hand, contemporary bikes like my Gazelle Golfo seem to be nearly impossible to find in the US other than costly special orders.

I made some inquiries about a Gazelle Ultimate S2 without success.

Well, what is considered decent varies but for doing 20k and be worth transporting back I'd probably not go much lower than 500.

Many shops are are pretty good about shipping to the U.S. It's a good idea to remind them not to charge VAT though as they sometimes forget if they don't regularly ship outside the EU. For Gazelle I've used: Fietsenwinkel Utrecht? Banierhuis: de fietsenwinkel van de regio Utrecht.. You can also order from Aika in Santa Monica.

BTW, right now is a great time to buy direct from Europe (or go there and bring some bikes back) with the exchange rate much better than it's been in some years.

European unicornfiets and bike strippers….still eating my rainbow soup and searching for both, here.
This thread is HOT !

I was able to find some that would ship to the US, but the cost of shipping always turned out to be prohibitive. I often order Cycling goods from Netherlands, but even my favorite source, hollandbikeshop.com charges around $1000 to ship a bike to the US.

A lot of E-Bay sellers will ship frames and bikes for $100 to $150.
Perhaps a bit more for those priceless classics that seem to be on E-Bay forever.

I wonder what big internet companies like Ribble ship whole bikes for???

I have read about people buying frames direct from European suppliers.

Anyway, any company charging $1000 to ship a bike really doesn't want to ship it.

I ship a lot of bikes from NL to U.S. Single bikes are $125 - $150 plus packing which is usually about $25. Add another $40 - $80 for customs depending on the value of the bike. $1000 is ridiculous.

I took a Ferry on the Baltic to Polish Pomerania, next. Eastern Europe right after the Wall dissolved was Interesting.

I usually buy bikes in other countries to avoid buying a car there but if the families coming where are you going to leave your stuff back home and if you intend to make it permanent or go other places.

Thanks all for the comments. If this comes through, I plan to keep our house here in the states, for a little bit. I don't think we are going to rent it out since this stint is just a year. I have family local, so they will check on the house periodically and start our vehicles. So our bikes here are safe in the garage. If this opens additional opportunities overseas, then we will sell and ship everything over. As mentioned, yes, great opportunity for my son, which is probably the main reason I'm considering this. My wife grew up overseas (Hong Kong) and the experiences she had growing up and traveling in SE Asia. I'm hoping to provide that same type of experience to my son, even if it is only a year.

I'm leaning towards buying something in country as most have suggested. I have in my mind buying both a commuter/city bike and probably a MTB to play on the weekends. I will have a couple of months before my wife and son come over (end of school year). I will look at European MTB makers, probably German specifically. I think there was a thread on MTBR forum that had a list of all German makers. But will see what is offered once I get there.

Some details I have so far is that my company hires a firm to find housing. I do not know if that means apartment or actual home, nor the location. It does look like it will be in Aarhus, Denmark. No details about a car. Typically, cars are leased for that period of time. I will likely leave the car for my wife to use and bike to work. They also provide a clothing allowance. Since I'm from Florida, I don't quite have the cold weather gear those up north are accustomed to... and I'm not only talking about cycling wear. We were already at the outlets "scoping" out cold weather gear.

I'm kinda big, and a fit freak, so my bike would go with me. I'd also make sure that security for the bike was as good as I could make it -- assorted locks, locking skewers, ball bearings silicone'd into allen heads, and maybe a body-slammed thief or two...j/k. No slams.

I did this a while back. For me, the choice was easy – buy in the US and ship. I made a trip home to the US to do that. It’s easier speaking the language at my local bike shop, much, much cheaper prices in the US, don’t need to pay the crazy European taxes, etc.

The Euro has gotten a lot weaker these days, so the financial incentive isn’t what it used to be (although paying close to 20% tax in Europe is a PITA). In Germany there are all kinds of laws about what you need on your bike (Fenders, lights, etc), so keep that in mind. Only “race” bikes are exempt from all the extra equipment. While in the US I do about 20mph going to work, in Europe I probably did half that speed as you usually can’t race along a crowded bike path.

If you have/find something you love in the US, consider taking that. If you want something uniquely European (heavy decked out commuter bike) – buy over there. IT depends on your personal preferences.

(FYI, REI now carries German Ghost bikes).