Folding bikes - Brompton, Dahon, Mezzo etc - recommendations and chat

[Piers Gibbon]

enjoy!

 

[Ted Striker]

Hopefully going to get myself an airnimal chameleon one of these days...just waiting for a decent one to come on ebay/gumtree or perhaps a discount on a full price one (not holding out much hope for the latter!) to bring it nearer to the 1k mark.

 

[anothersam]

Once upon a time I had a Brompton (please don't take offence any Brompton owners!), but now I have a Dahon Presto Lite. Unfortunately that's no help to anybody who wants one because they don't make them anymore. A shame, because they're light and fast.

Used to park it in the British Museum bag check before they stopped taking things like that...

 

[editor]

Once upon a time I had a Brompton (please don't take offence any Brompton owners!), but now I have a Dahon Presto Lite. Unfortunately that's no help to anybody who wants one because they don't make them anymore. A shame, because they're light and fast.

Used to park it in the British Museum bag check before they stopped taking things like that...

And it flew as well! Remarkable!

 

[Piers Gibbon]

I've just challenged a total stranger on twitter to a race in victoria park...brompton v full size bike

(she jokily tweeted that bromptons shouldn't even think of overtaking her)..we are thinking a couple of hundred metres

Am I about to get beaten?

 

[editor]

If she turns up clad in lycra and on a titanium racer, I'd feign an injury.

 

[Ted Striker]

Or just tell her you'll up the stakes and race her to somewhere miles away. Then simply cycle to the nearest station (going to the finish line!) and fold the bike up and hop on

 

[Piers Gibbon]

Oh dear...so I might well lose this race, even though my legs might be strongerer than hers?

 

[editor]

Oh dear...so I might well lose this race, even though my legs might be strongerer than hers?

I've overtaken loads of people on racers, but if she's reasonably fit and with a good bike, a racer will always be more efficient than a folder.

 

[Piers Gibbon]

just had a few test races with a friend - fit 24yo long legged female but not a bike fanatic, on a full size bike...I won all three 200m-ish races including a rolling start one where we both stayed in top gear

hmmm, interesting. Real race is on sunday.

 

[Piers Gibbon]

And the results:

I am on my three week old brompton m 3 gear...She was riding a racing bike converted to a fixie one gear..she is 23 years younger than me and rides the bike every day and is a snowboard champ. I am getting fitter with regular runs and now regular bike rides.

on the 200m sprint standing start I decided not to use my gears and just stayed in 3rd (was worried about fiddling and maybe throwing a chain). I pulled ahead at the start and kept gaining and won really easily with 30 metres spare. Really exciting to have time enough to look back and see her pedalling crazy speed with her head on the handlebars for aerodynamicityness...

(makes me wonder what it would be like riding the more racey styled S handlebars on the brompton)

I was lung-knackered and woobly-legged after the one sprint

So on the 1k she pulled ahead after 100m and I knew I would never see her again... She won comprehensively, I was maybe 100 metres behind - maybe more, I'd given up - only a really big carnivore chasing me could have got me going

And whilst I think it is likely that a fit bike bloke will perhaps always beat me+brompton on a 1k ....I am a) hereby challenging all my racing bike mates to maybe longer sprints (any Urbs near Victoria Park Hackney please PM!) and b) wondering about a 1k rematch with Ms Fixie when I am fitter and more experienced on bikes

Great fun, really good to add some adrenaline and competitivo

 

[editor]

Ah, you didn't mention she was on a fixie. That levels the playing field a bit.

 

[Piers Gibbon]

yeah I only found that out when she got to vicky park

have now got another race on with a 37? geared bloke

 

[editor]

37 gears is positively bacchanalian.

 

[weepiper]

37? Sure it wasn't 27? That would be 9 speed cassette at the back with a triple chainset. 37 isn't divisible

 

[Piers Gibbon]

Yeah 37 gears may be my fear exaggerating my memory

 

[Piers Gibbon]

He's now gunning for a 1k race and I say no no no

 

[Piers Gibbon]

and he has 27 gears...race this weekend

 

[uk benzo]

and he has 27 gears...race this weekend

Piers, I've got a Mezzo folding bike. Let's race.

 

[Piers Gibbon]

okeydokey...mezzo v brompton..victoria park ok for you?

 

[uk benzo]

okeydokey...mezzo v brompton..victoria park ok for you?

I guess it's fine. Never been there.

Two races- a sprint and a long distance?

 

[mrs quoad]

I hope you're racing these whippersnappers wearing a suit, Piers

 

[Piers Gibbon]

suit and bowler hat...and spats

 

[uk benzo]

I hope you're racing these whippersnappers wearing a suit, Piers

At my age, it's quite a compliment to be described as a whippersnapper

 

[Private Storm]

I'm loving my Brompton, regularly overtake and outpace lycra-types on my commute. I only really do it to make them question their life choices though.

 

[Ted Striker]

I now have my Airnimal...Tres excited

 

[DrRingDing]

Just had a call that my new Brompton is waiting for me at the shop. I'm picking it up shortly and rather fucking excited

 

[Piers Gibbon]

yay! have a lovely time on it...still love mine after five months

 

[DrRingDing]

She's sitting next to me now. Black frame and extremities, S-Type, 6 speed, bad ass.

 

[editor]

My Dahon is still going strong, as is Eme's.