lexm's Strida LT (pics)
 

After a gentle ride on the lakefront - south past the Buckingham Fountain, the Shedd Aquarium, Soldier Field, and back again :ride: - I now make good an earlier promise to post pictures of my now-one-week-in-service Strida LT. My apologies upfront for my appalling photographic skills. :(

I've replaced the stock saddle (ouch) with a Specialized Expedition Plus. It is otherwise as it came from Areaware (who unfortunately, like a midwestern U.S. car dealer, felt the need to stamp their name on the bike - WTF?).

Enjoy, comment, criticize, or ask questions.

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Very nice. Thanks for sharing.

Nice color! It really compliments the yellow vacuum.

Nice! Good move on the sprung saddle. With the Strida's riding position, the buttockal parts take a real punishment on any and all bumps.

Looks like a shiny red apple :).

oh yeah and shouldn't that mudflap go on the rear fender so you don't get a skunk trail on your back when you run over a puddle? the bottom bar basically blocks all spashes on the front wheel very well.

The LT is almost maintenance free with no spokes to break at all and the chain just dust or hose it off once in awhile to get rid of the dust from grinding into your gears.

What a nice looking bike! How is the ride quality in terms of speed? How is it on hills?

Speed and hill-climbing are modes not typically associated with Stridas. They were not designed for either. It's a fine bike for short rides in a multiple-modal commute.

I happened to see a Strida this past Saturday biking up Fourth Avenue in the NYC Summer Streets as I was keeping one eye on my 8 year old and talking to another Brompton owner who happened to strike up a conversation. The Strida is a good looking but tall bike, I didn't realize how big it was until I was next to one. Wish I had more time to stop & check it out though.

I strongly recommend you installing the fender extension on the rear fender instead of on the front, especially in rainy days.
http://vanmoof.com/shop/catalog/imag...SC03722_35.JPG

I think my Strida SD do both quite well. :D
http://www.stridaforum.com/forum/vie...php?f=3&t=2759

Many thanks, Amuro Lee. I think the gentleman at the (non-bike) shop where I bought it absent-mindedly popped the fender extension on the front. I have now affixed it properly rearward.

Nice bike but where are the cats? Did anyone tell you that if you have cats they must...I say must.....be all over the folder, preferably depositing cat hair all over the saddle and the gears.:D

Looks like there's lots of room for more bikes here. There is no sign of the alleged book cases.

Who says that's my apartment? ;)

Ah, but a folded Strida stores upright. The saddle sits at a 45 degree angle and the whole package is just a little too precarious for a cat to jump on. But worry not: We have cat hair everywhere else. :)

If only they made a Strida LT in that shade of yellow. (Sigh.)

Ah. Even better - just store the Strida at yours, the rest in ;)'s apartment.

Strida folded, stored inside my front door:
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Baton Rouge. congrats looks very nice. I see your Brompton is on order. If I had gone the way of the Brompton I would have picked the SS also.

Many thanks, Dynocoaster! All folded up, the Strida really is un baton rouge.

Speaking of the Brompton, I went for red on that one, too. Riding the showroom bike (a single speed, incidentally) elicited memories of my teenaged, pre-driver's license days. Back then (1980-81), I wanted nothing more than a British convertible roadster. A neighbor's British racing green MGB was an object of desire. So too was a red Triumph TR6 on the next street over. I ended up with neither (a FIAT 850 Spyder began and ended my grand experiment with convertibles), but the cars and the colors stuck with me. (I guess I wanted the Triumph a bit more. ;))

BTW, if I had gone for a tikit, single speed all the way :thumb: - not a moment's indecision.

lexm's Strida LT - accessorized (pics)
 

A box arrived today from Areaware, containing a Strida water bottle holder, saddlebag, and alloy pannier rack. A few tools and an hour later, my Strida LT is accessorized.
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Strida and Areaware are both too aggressive about slapping their logos and taglines on everything - this coming from a business school professor :(. Unable to bear the thought of broadcasting "a whole new way to move" (ick) from my Strida's fore and aft, the white stitching so proclaiming had a meaningful encounter with a black Sharpie. (I'm still finding and peeling off stickers announcing Strida's and Areaware's web addresses. Enough already!)

I'll be interested to see what panniers, if any, I can attach to the rack and how useful the included bungee contraption is. Must get a Sigg or other like bottle for the holder. The saddlebag presently holds the all-powerful, all-in-one tool (screwdrivers, wrenches, etc.) the boys recommended at Rapid Transit.

I love the Strida for being sooo distinctive. It has equal designer cachet for me as the Moultons. Your particular Strida benefits from those low-maintenance plastic wheels which I find appealing. About the only thing you need to worry about is keeping the correct tension on your belt drive as the bike is otherwise free from maintenance even if it rains. A simple, thin poncho is all you need to keep yourself and most of the bike dry during a sudden downpour.

The location of your rear rack should also minimize the chance of heel strike issues when using saddlebags. What a wonderful short commuter\multi modal commuting setup. I honestly cannot think of a better bike for such use. Even my Pacific Carryme does not compare to the utility and rideability of your Strida.

All I can say is lexm is going down an expensive and dangerous path, just look at his sig line 2 bikes already in under a month?? and I'd bet it'd start to get the itch again before he starts to search for a moulton, probably before it snows. :)

he's going to keep saying "it's a folding bike how much space can this take?" hahahah I've seen many folderites here with at least 3+ folders even though we need only one. might have to go to FA meetings if you collect the 3rd bike (Folders Anonymous). The second folder you can easily justify the wifey needs one, that's what I did!

But the Moulton isn't a folder! :twitchy: So I don't have a problem. :twitchy::twitchy: I can quit whenever I want. :twitchy::twitchy::twitchy: Really! :eek: