wobblyoldgeezer

I know how this goes. You post a 'should I buy...' and everyone pitches in with 'of course you should, why ask us, we're all co-dependent'.

So, my good UK friends with whom I've loved riding for the last few summer tours are planning another in summer 2009. Last year's was great, like all the previous ones, with the only proviso that we rented bikes that were slow and heavy.

So, I'm thinking of getting a Bike Friday Pocket Rocket for me and the delightful spouse, so we can travel internationally with our own bikes with less packaging hassle than has been the case with packing up our usual bikes.

Do any of you know them, and if so, what do you think of them?

(One temptation is that we're close to Sri Lanka here, we've spent 2 trips there, and there's a 90 mile downhill from Nuara Elya to Candy - when spouse and I were driving down we were both going ' wow, we have to do this on bikes before we're too decrepit' )

maddmaxx 

A 90 mile downhill?.....

kr32

Yeah that one is easy it is the trip back that is a bear.

wobblyoldgeezer

Ho Yup

There's a lovely single track railway line from Columbo on the way up, covering about 20 mph through paddy fields yielding to tea plantations on the way up, spectacularly beautiful - and a twisty road, mainly downhill with a few uphill bumps, on the way down to Candy (short of Columbo, but the best part of the journey)

50+ group trip, anyone?

staehpj1

We did some long ones on the TA but I don't think any were 90 miles. We did climb for almost 80 once to Lolo Pass along the Lochsa River. It was pretty gradual and pleasant most of the way though.


I have fond memories of spending the morning of my 56th birthday in a wild hot spring on that section.

Retro Grouch 

I have some personal friends who own one each Bike Friday single, tandem and triple.

They seem to like the single and the tandem fine but are less happy with the triple. It took more maintenance and required more frequent repairs than they were happy with. When their son outgrew the weight limit for the middle seat, they bought a Santana Cabriolet.

I'm not aware of any particular problems that they've had with their single or tandem. If you have average or better mechanical ability, reassembling the bike takes around 30 to 60 minutes.

wobblyoldgeezer

[QUOTE=Retro Grouch;7747583] If you have average or better mechanical ability QUOTE]

OOOps. I think I confessed before that I have the mechanical ability of a clumsy gibbon who's got access to the medicine cupboard. Maybe a Dahon or a Brompton, then?. Or a Birdy?

(Actually, that's intended jokey. I look after my bikes and my Ducati and my Honda Africa Twin pretty well, but I'd like a folding bike to be pretty straightforward).

But I like everything about what I've read about Bike Fridays, and their riding characteristics. Are they hard to fold down and set back up?

Digital Gee

of course you should, why ask us, we're all co-dependent

wobblyoldgeezer

[QUOTE=staehpj1;7747575]We did some long ones on the TA but I don't think any were 90 miles. QUOTE]

That looks beautiful. Thanks for posting and sharing. Many more to come, I trust

R

wobblyoldgeezer

Your dependability is one of the things I like best about you.

Get on with your work. (Don't we both say that in motivation seminars?)

Digital Gee

Thanks, I guess I should. I'm trying to take it to the next level and bust a paradigm or two.

BengeBoy 

I have spent some time in the past year looking at and thinking about Bike Fridays. I test rode two models at one of their dealers here in Seattle - the New World Tourist and the Pocket Llama. Also, I have visited with their factory people at two different bike shows in the past year and *finally* I visited their factory/shop in person last spring and got a tour of the whole place.

My impressions:
1. They ride remarkably well. I know this is not news to anyone who owns a folder, but my basic question was, "do they ride like a 'real' bike?". The answer is *yes;* they ride great.

2. Folding/unfolding is easy.

3. The biggest maintenance issues that I've read about here at BF is related to the cables/controls. Since you are unfolding/folding the bikes a lot, the control cables are threaded in some slightly stressful ways. You may find that cables stretch/wear more than you're used to. (This is *not* unique to Bike Friday; it's an issue with folders in general). I didn't dig that deep on these issues, though - I'm sure some owners will come along before long and correct this if I'm wrong.

4. It would be hard for me to figure out which one of their models to buy -- I looked at the NWT because that's their most popular touring model; the Pocket Llama is a somewhat more rugged bike for doing light off-road riding and on-road touring. They have a bike called the Tikit that is also interesting if you are going to do lots of quick folding (like, doing a commute that is half by bike, half by train). They have a higher-performance line called the Air Glide.

Plus, each one of their bikes can be configured in many different ways (derailleurs vs. internal hubs; several different kinds of handlebars, etc.). I would *definitely* spend a fair amont of time investigating their website and asking them questions via email to focus in on the right model.

5. Quality company, quality people; they stand behind their products.

6. You can find their stuff used (in the U.S., anyway), but it isn't cheap. I think people who know folders know Bike Friday; their bikes don't seem to depreciate much. However, there are always a few used ones for sale from the factory itself - don't know about shipping to Bahrain, but you can try their website.

7. The very cool Bike Friday set-up is to get a bike with the Samsonite suitcase that turns into a trailer. You fly somewhere with the bike in the case and your gear in a soft-sided duffel bag. When you get to your destination, you get the bike out of the case, turn the case into a trailer, dump the contents of the duffel into the trailer, and off you go.

That's the entire contents of my Bike Friday memory bank.

They have a huge and very helpful website - good luck.

Another folder I've looked at is the Pacific Reach. My LBS carries this and it's quite a bit cheaper than a Bike Friday; more expensive than a Dahon.

I finally concluded I didn't *need* a folder right now but under the right circumstances I'd strongly consider one; the BF would be great if I had the budget.


https://www.foldingbikes.co.uk/pacific_reach.htm

wobblyoldgeezer

That's very clear and helpful. Thank you.