Touring on a Brompton
 

Something that has always caught my interest . . . touring on a bike, but in this case, a Brompton. Has anybody done this, and if so, I would love to hear your story.

I know there is a forum on touring, but from what I have found, I haven't seen any posts of someone using a Bromton. So I thought I would ask here. Perhaps those who have toured on a another brand of folding bike could chime in.

Cheers
Wayne

If you go to the Clever Cycles blog for 11/14 in the "personal" category theres is Todd's account of 700 miles down the Pacific coast from Portland to SF. There is another blog "The path less pedaled" which discusses a couple's experience with Brompton touring. Specifically "Zen and the art of Brompton Touring".

It has been done . 'Path less pedaled', a young Couple, are writers & made videos ..

Heinz Stuke had the model they followed .. he has been touring for 50 years, around the world..

His last years were sponsored by Brompton , supplying a Bike , Replacing His Bike Friday , which he used for many years.

Todd, mentioned above, is one of the Owners of the Clever Cycles shop, the Portland Brompton Dealer..





...

Lots of info on Brompton touring on the web. Brompton Traveler has lots of good tips and videos on touring. The Brompton Traveler

I've done 2 tours this year on my Tyrell IVE and have written a bit on it under the review here. (another one coming in 2 weeks)
I'd think its not a problem with any other folder though each one will have their own issues to iron out.

My impression with the IVE are :
1. Simple/small fold and for transportation and multi-mode transport if necessary.
2. Good ride, capable of decent speeds (and I prefer the deraileur system to the IGH)
3. Wider tires (1.5" marathon racers in my case) is preferred giving the option to lower/raise pressure depending on ride conditions.
4. 18" wheels are fine (I've done 200+km brevets with it)
5. Easy to change out tires as its using QR skewers.

Some picts :
https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5630/3...e577533d_b.jpg
20161108-IMGP5026-1 by jenkwang, on Flickr

Simple fold up, packing and re-setup
https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5666/3...99fcb50f_b.jpg
Tyrell Ive packing by jenkwang, on Flickr


https://c8.staticflickr.com/6/5786/2...ece4513e_b.jpg
20161107-IMGP5393 by jenkwang, on Flickr


https://c5.staticflickr.com/6/5521/3...349d8cf7_b.jpg
20161109-IMGP5589 by jenkwang, on Flickr


Heel strike on the rear pannier bags will be an issue with many folding bikes with the low rack position.
I carried a bag on the top only and did not have an issue.
If I wanted bags on the sides (rear), I'd probably have to look out for folder specific models which are usually smaller.
That said, I don't see a problem adding more to my only bag (lots of space left) or just piling the camping gear on top.

I ran a pretty tight schedule and cycled 120-140km each day.
Its probably better to half that or keep it under 100km and end the day 1-2hr before sunset to enjoy looking around the place.

Nice setup!
I'm currently looking for camping stuff as I feel that I missed lots of photo opportunities trying to cycle to the pre-booked accommodation.

Thanks! and yes, that is one of the greatest things about folding bike touring - no reservations and your own transportation, accommodations, and meals.... if you want... or not. And nice IVE and photography.

I haven't toured on a Brompton...

However I did have a Bike Friday NWT for a bit and I do short tours on my Raleigh Twenty.

You can bike tour on just about any bicycle, for me it is more about what I see and do than what I ride.

Aaron:)

Thank you for getting back to me. I found that great articel "Zen and the Art of Brompton Touring," but I have no idea where to go regarding the Clver Cycles blog you mentioned. Sorry for my ingnorance on this.

Cheers
Wayne

Love that link. Awesome!! Thank you for that.

Cheers
Wayne

Thank you for all your input folks. I've learned a lot from al of this. I hope more post their own personal journeys like some here.

Cheers
Wayne

Down the Pacific coast by Brompton / Clever Cycles Blog

From 12boy's post.

Thank you for giving me the link. Awesome read. I have to get a pair of grips like he has. Interesting to me, is that he has the same Brompton color scheme as on mine. :thumb:

Cheers
Wayne

I know this isn't related to my topic, but I just wanted to comment on your statement.

"Steel: nearly a thousand years of metallurgical development
Aluminum: barely a hundred
Which one would you rather have under your butt at 30mph?"_krazygluon

I agree with this. Me, I certainly want the strongest material under my frame(body) while riding. Can't help but think of the numerous crashes in bike races where, in some cases, carbon fiber frames where broken in two. Even though they say that CF is stronger than steel pound for pound, I would much rather use steel. Can you imagine crashing with the high possibility of being skewered by a broken section of a CF frame? At least steel bends.

Cheers
Wayne

Often hard core tourers say they want stel becouse you can find somebody who can help you weld a broken frame almost anywhere in the world. This can be important if you ride "in the bush".

That makes a great deal of sense. I can only imagine being far from home in a different part of the world and having bike frame issues. I doubt that carbon fiber can be repaired, but at least one can find a welding shop just about anywhere.

A really excellent Brompton tour.

A 'bush' welder will destroy your steel bike frame. You want to find someone who can braze.



Ya know, if its a question of how long humanity needs to figure out how to use a material:
Bamboo 20,000+ years :roflmao2:

Check out Journey Pamir Highway

In case you haven't seen my other threads (http://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bi...lding-box.html and http://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bi...-part-2-a.html), I tour exclusively on a Brompton. Earlier in the year my wife and I did the Danube from Passau to Vienna, and more recently I've been doing the rides above through African countries. It's a great little machine for touring. Usually do around 50km a day, so take it quite easy. The most I've done fully loaded was 85km. More is doable, but we're there to enjoy the ride, not rack up the miles :)

I am not familiar with anyone touring on a Brompton.

But I did a group tour a few years ago, I was on a full size bike. But of the 16 riders, 3 had Bike Fridays. They all seemed to be doing just as well as the rest of us on full size non-folding bikes.

Regarding your comment - which would you rather have under your butt at 30mph? My answer would be which would you rather have under your butt at 500 mph and at 35,000 feet of elevation? There is a lot of Aluminum in that airplane that you would be riding in.

I own both steel and Aluminum bikes. As an engineer I do not consider steel or Aluminum to be inherently better for biking, each has different characteristics and the designer needs to account for those characteristics in their design.

This video ... wow!! Breathtaking scenery. Crossing the sea in fog, in tiny dingy ... really nuts. The second crossing was beautiful.

Oh and in case you were wondering, the plastic box isn't my normal long distance touring setup. This is how we usually tour:
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w...ps6f8kvrsx.jpg

T-bag on the front obviously, and an osprey porter 46 on the back. We love this setup. 76 liters of storage possible, and you can go from biking to backpack on back, bike in one hand and t-bag in the other in just a few minutes. Plus the porter 46 is airline carry on legal, so the bike can be boxed in the hold with liquids and tools, and everything else comes aboard.

I'm curious how you get on with the bars. I just got my first Brompton and it's wonderful, but the bar bend felt slightly awkward on the first (so far only) ride. Most touring riders have bar preferences, but Brompton folks seem to just grab the one in front of them and be happy with it.