ThePerchik

Hi All,

So i read the stickies and did the research. I have narrowed my selection down to the Downtube Nova and the Dahon Eco 3 7sp. I tested the Nova yesterday and was pretty impressed.

The idea in buying this: I have a road bike (Specialized Allez). I like to ride for the sake of saving my knees and getting some cardio. My wife has now said she wants to go on nice rides together. Money is tight right now and so is storage space in the condo. So the idea is to get her a folder. We can ride together. We would ride bike paths and streets in NYC. Once i get a bit more cash I think i will get myself a folder as well to take on these rides with the wife.

So for now, if i go casual on the road bike will she be able to keep up? What is a comfortable speed for the Nova?

Thanks.

snafu21

I haven't done the calculations ( someone else will) for the Eco 7 speed, the gearing is a little shorter than my Dahon D7 which spins out about 22 mph on my bike computer. 18 mph or so for the Eco? On either bike, the engine will be the limiting factor.

I haven't ridden either of the two bikes you mention but small wheelers are great in condos, and give a nimble fun ride in town.

If you got stairs or hills, lighter is ' better.'

ThePerchik

Thanks. So what would you guess to be the estimated comfortable cruising speed on these?

snafu21

It's down to the legs. I'm regularly at the back of the peloton when out with my folding buddies, so I'm slow. I cruise at about 12-14 mph or so, with a couple of gears left. I'm no masher. My buddies on 20" bikes or Bromptons are always faster at about 14-16 mph or more.

We got JEFMCG on here who rides a 20" Mezzo, she just leaves me for dust....

So, let's say 12-17 mph or so. Someone who has actually ridden one will be along in a minute, with real figures.

daveF

As Snafu21 said, the engine will be the limiting factor. Both will be significantly slower at high speeds than your Allez assuming you have narrow/light 23 or 25mm tires mounted on it. At slower speeds, such as below 15mph, there will be much less difference. A change of tires on the folders to something like narrower Schwalbe Durano tires will help somewhat with speed. I've ridden similar bikes but with slightly bigger gearing in racing packs for fun. I had to put out a whole lot more watts than on my road race bike, but it is possible.

As long as you are patient with her then it will be fine. Wouldn't worry about the speed. If she starts riding regularly she will get faster.

Dynocoaster 

Here is a nice dahon and light weight. https://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/bik/1887542793.html

duende

I agree about being patient with your wife. You need to also cherish riding with her. If you slow down and stay with her as she gets acclimated, it can be great for longer distances. I did so with my wife and all thoughts of having extra time to fish along the C&O Canal while she rested along the way disappeared. She kept up pretty well and we had a great time, both there and along the Erie Canal between Lockport and Palmyra and back.

LDB

The question should be about 0% can she keep up and 100% can you ride at her speed whenever you ride.

edwong3

Hi,

Find out what your wife means by, "taking "nice" rides together. She might be referring to cruising along at casual speeds, taking in the view so to speak. In that case, the gearing on either bike is more than sufficient, and most people have the fitness level needed to do just that.

I'm certain as well that more "vigorous" paces of say 15-19 mph is still quite possible on the Nova, and Eco 3. It all depends if the person is fit enough, and wants to ride at that pace.

SunnyFlorida

You've mentioned that you test rode the Nova but has your wife test rode it too? After all, she'll be the one riding it. Since you're considering the ECO, why not have her test ride that besides the next model up (the Speed D7).

It's important that she feels comfortable with the bike.

How upgradeable are your choices? If it's very limited, than in the long one it may not be the most cost effective bike, especially if your wife quickly out paces it or it doesn't meet most of her needs.

How experienced a rider is she btw? Has she had road bikes of her own? What type of bikes is she use too?

Very important questions because the above really does determine what type of bike to get in the end. The next is price.

Right now from the responses it seems that you're going to have to slow down to accommodate her in the beginning.

Now you're really going to have to ask yourself, are you willing to do that and for how long before you start to resent it.

It also sounds like she'll have to work extra hard to keep up with you once you inadvertently or advertently pick up the pace with your Allez.

Whether or not she'll be able or want to for long is a big question mark here that only you and your wife will find out.

Honestly, if my husband picked a bike that wasn't on par or evenclose with his, i would think that he really doesn't want to ride together but doesn't want to say so directly.

Please get a bike (folding or not) that gives her a fair chance to keep up with you without developing the legs of an Amazon to do it. At least get her a bike she'll be happy with if your rides together do not pan out as imaged.

Dyno. - Why did you suggest a one speed folder? It's 18 lbs I see but the OP just mentioned lack of space, not that he had to lug, or whather she would have to lug, the bike up flights of stairs. Wouldn't riding a one speed really make it tough to keep up?

ThePerchik

Thanks for all the comments. We do plan to go and have her test the bikes. She doesn't really cycle and hasn't had a bike for a long time. What I am worried about is that long slow rides on the Allez will just be unpleasant. Cost is a major factor. Judging by the responses I think it may be best to just squeeze the budget a bit and get two folders so we are a bit more on the same playing field.

badrad

important features for you might be so for your wife. little things my wife had said when we bought our first pair of jacks together, although we looked like a pair of his and her bikes, she rode the bike but was not super enthusiastic about it. when we went to look for our second pair recently, i had planned to buy a MuSL and also a SpeedProTT and had thought when we were going to ride together she can take her pick. when we got to the bike shop, she tried every single folder they had and i would have chose for her.

she wound up picking the Ciao. why? she loved the low bar and she was not afraid of falling down when stepping over the bike and the low beam did not intimidate her. apparently that was one her biggest fears with the jack, but she never told me (or likely did, but being of the male persuasion - did i listen? - duh...). the other feature she really loves about it is the internal hub gears - for the simple fact that she can get into first gear if she is stuck at a stop sign and not have to worry about being in too high a gear with the rear derailleur. that was another of her phobias. and just the more upright position, she hated to hunch over and always felt she was not able to see traffic effectively.

all positives in her mind, which i had never given a second thought to. mine were - lightweight, fast, spartan and quick folding. not even in her vocabulary.

so hope that helps a bit too. anyways, she positively loves the bike.

when we ride together, i will set aside all my passion for getting anywhere fast. it is a pleasant outing with her, we stop off at coffee shops, sushi bar, rose gardens, whatever along the way. not in any rush. and i have learned to love that.

mulleady

Or the question could be:

Q 'What is the most suitable folding bike for me to choose to lose the wife?'

A: Dahon Speed Pro TT

jur

I often ride with my wife; she is reasonably fit (for her) but not even close to "keeping up" with me. So if we go on rides together, I totally ignore what I want to ride at and let her set the pace. Even then, I tend to ride just 2 inches in front, with her trying to stay level, and occasionally she has to ask to slow down a bit.

So, the bike she gets will mean you are going to have to go at her pace, whatever that bike might be. Going slow on a bike that you usually go fast on, may not work. I have a Swift which is my go-fast folder; I often do 200km rides on it, the most challenging one taking more than 10 hours straight in the saddle; it is fine for comfort. But if I take that same bike and go slow with her for just one hour, the saddle is torture, due to much more pressure on the saddle because the legs aren't doing the usual work.

Bottom line - get her a bike she likes eg the Nova, and be prepared to throw your own pace overboard when riding together.

ThePerchik

I think for sanity sake I am just gonna have to get a second folder for myself. I will probably go nuts going slow on the Allez and it wont do either of us any good.

Thanks everyone.

brakemeister

as much as I like the idea about a second folder ..... never enough ..lol
its NOT your bike which will make this a fail or pass..... its your willingness to ride slow without complaints and not even showing it that you usually ride faster....

instead of biuyng 2 folders ... get her the best you can afford .... just in case she doesnt like it down the road you have a decent folder for yourself ..in the meantime you can run your allez ...

thor

Dynocoaster 

Compromise https://community.bikefriday.com/familytandem

fietsbob

Keep the PSI in the tires up . that makes them roll easier, than if soft and Cushier.

LDB

Yes, get her a better bike for the full budget and then have her take the lead so you just follow at her pace. Not only that, you'll protect her from overtaking traffic. I've never understood why the man rides in front and the woman follows so that she's the first one hit by the car. There is really zero problem at all provided you care enough about your partner to put them first and do whatever you must do to meet their need. Oh, and that's not meant toward the OP, that's a general comment.

Boudicca

I just did a trip on a Friday, and I was a lot slower than my biking buddy on her rented road bike. When we are both on road bikes we normally ride at much the same pace.

So if she's on a folder and you are on the Allez you will have to slow down considerably. There's nothing wrong with that one. Just take your time, smell the roses and -- as others have said -- let her set the pace.

Otherwise she will get disheartened very early on, and you will end up with the Allez and a folder.

(Ah, just a minute, maybe that was the goal all along?)

CarlRJ

Or... get her a moped, and they you can huff&puff to keep up

SunnyFlorida

Good call. Always keep in mind the old saying below

"Happy wife...happy life."

ThePerchik

I have no problem slowing down really. Just not sure how annoying it would be on the alley. I guess we will try. I'll slow down. Hopefully she likes cycling and I'll get a folder for me too

bobw

I have a stable of bikes, from road, to recumbent, folders and mtn bikes. I find that I'm just a lot faster on a road bike with drop handle bars. I think this is due to 2 reasons. First, the bike is just more rigid, translating my pedal stroke into power, and secondly, I think I'm just a better rider when I'm in the compressed road bike stance. That positioning just gets my butt muscles more into the stroke, and I'm faster.

Having owned a bunch of folders, they are just *not* as fast. No how, no way. Change the pedals, etc, etc. the allez (which is a pretty nice moderate road bike) will still be faster. So, you will need to change your mindset and smell the roses.

And if you are in the NYC area, selling my 4 month old Dahon curve 3, since I finally found a used Brompton that I could afford (and I just couldn't resist).

prathmann

Guess I'd disagree about folders being significantly slower. I have a Bike Friday as well as a road racing bike and a road touring bike. All are drop bar, clipless pedals, high-pressure tires. In terms of average speed that I can maintain I'd put all three within about 1-2 mph of each other with the Bike Friday being in between the other two.

But I think Perchik is missing the point if he thinks that getting a folder for himself will solve any relative speed issues. If he and his wife tend to cycle at substantially different speeds than that'll be true even if they're on the same type of bikes. And if he's willing to slow down to her preferred pace then that'll be just as easy to do while riding the Allez as it would be while riding on the folder of his choice.