Taking fold-up bikes - yay or nay?

[john o connor]

We have been using folding bikes stored in a padded bike bag on board , they are a great addition on the boat , I would recommend a 20 inch wheel as it will do the distance and can carry a heavy load for the supermarket look at one of the mid range Turn bikes carry a spare tyre and a few tubes with a good quality pump and enjoy the cycle

[thinwater]

I think if you read between the lines, it boils down to whether you like bicycles. Do you use them at home more than a few times each year? or do you find an excuse to take the car? Are they fun?

In my experience, if you don't like them at home, you won't suddenly change. If you ride every week at home, you'll wear them out.

Not sure? Make yourself ride 1x per week starting now. You'll find out, one way or the other.

Same thing with kayaks. People who like to paddle love them, those who don't, don't. Practicalities are a minor factor.

[duefocena]

I've had fold ups for years both quality and not so quality. I had to finally weigh the usage to the space/maintenance issues. In every instance we used them for awhile and then they sat and were in the way. Most places you can hire a bike if you need to ride one. For us they weren't that helpful in carrying stores or fuel or water so it still requires us to look for additional transportation. IMHO they are great if you want exercise but if you are looking for transportation they are in the way. Many times we would ride to the nearest town and be offered a ride back only to fine there wasn't room in a car to bring our two foldups back.

[Davecheslow]

My wife and I have cruised in the LI sound, Block Island, etc from NJ for the last 7 years. We always took our West Marine folders. Our Pearson 26 had huge cockpit lockers which easily held the bikes. Last summer we took a grandson and a third bike and stowed two bikes in one locker and one in the other. The bikes were great for errands and sightseeing. We just moved up to a Pearson 303, which has only one cockpit locker. We'll need to figure out how to stow the bikes.

[Sailingmartin]

We have two Bromptons and wouldn't be without them. The folded size is the key. Best to keep them covered if possible to protect from dampness. On land I used to bike for a living producing cycle maps and the Brompton is a good compromise between ride and foldability - comes at a price of course but a quality product with excellent resale value.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[roverhi]

Haven't had much experience ferrying my Bike Friday ashore in a dinghy which would add to the rust issue. Haven't had a problem with corrosion on the bike, though. Pack the bike up into its trailer/suitcase and chuck in the forepeak on long sails. If I don't use the bike at anchor, store the bike in its suitcase on deck. The suitcase is pretty much water resistant to the elements but not waterproof to a dunking. Also take it places when travelling by air as its considered luggage and not subject to additional baggage penalties.

The bike has been invaluable to have aboard. Using the bike greatly extends my range of travel off the boat. Have found it pretty much negates the need for a rental car except to pick up really big or heavy stuff for the boat. When I used to commute to the boat via air, would pack the bike up and ship as luggage. Would assemble it at the Oakland Airport, throw my carry-on into the trailer/suitcase and ride to the boat in Alameda. Would ride to the boat show in Oakland when that was happening and all over Alameda. Could throw it on BART to visit the kids in San Ramon or take it into the city. Didn't try many of SF's famous hills, however. Used the suitcase/trailer for hauling bulky items. When at the dock, keep the bike on the boat, hose it off regularly, and lube the chain occasionally. That seems to have stayed ahead of any corrosion issues.

Cruising to small Islands in the South Pacific or Carribean, a bike probably wouldn't be as useful. Did circumnavigate Moorea on folding bikes when we were there.

FYI, Bike Fridays are real bicycles that fold into a suitcase for storage and transport. Have the New World Tourist (NWT) model which has braze ons for racks, etc for carrying stuff in panniers. The bike has 3 speed rear hub and a 9 speed derailleur for 27 gears. May seem like overkill on the gears to the uninitiated but a godsend to this out of shape 70 year old body. There is some disassembly to get the bike to fit into the suitcase. Otherwise, it's not something that you'd do everytime you rode the bike or for daily use. They do fold into a carrying bag in seconds which I do when loading it into a dinghy or stuffing it into the trunk of a car. Can also fold it into the bag for some protection from the elements on deck.

[roverhi]

Didn't mean to bomb the thread. Don't know how this managed to get posted three times. Dear Administrator, please remove all but the last of my posts when you get a chance

[Wrong]

Originally Posted by JJ77

Good point Kenomac,had not thought about that.


@Wrong;Did you ever consider a randonneur type of bicycle,the kind Mark Beaumont uses?Aside from Koga Miyata you can get nice ones from Idworkx,I highly recommend the easy rohler with Rohloff hub,except that the magura brakes are a bit shaky sometimes.


Interesting thread.


Cheers,
JJ

A quick search reveals randonneur bikes are used for long distance, non-competitive races with specific time limits. Photos suggest the objective is robust construction with larger tires and at least in some cases fenders. Means extra weight and road resistance from larger tires. I vaulted from mountain bikes to road bikes with lightweight components because friction from the large mountain bike tires and excess weight from heftier frames requires uneccessary extra effort. Was in St. Petersburg, Fla. and on rides from the anchorage into town decided after watching groups of roadies swoosh by, that was the way to go. Will never go back.

[annsni]

I'm looking to get one folding bike to carry on our boat mostly for two reasons: #1 - grocery stores are not always close by and it would definitely help with provisioning and #2 - my husband has a severely broken foot that never healed properly and when we have long distances to walk, it would be nice for him to be able to ride instead, thus causing much less pain.

I was looking at the Dahon Mariner. Any thoughts?

[boatster]

Haven't taken it on a boat yet, but I commute with a Strida LT (with thick plastic spokes) and have put about 8,000 miles on it. No signs of rust after years of riding in all kinds of weather in northern Virginia. It was designed for English weather and has a belt drive, disc brakes, and the cables run through the frame. It folds up lengthwise about the size of a golf bag and weighs in at around 22 pounds. There's no chain grease to get on you or things it touches. It folds and unfolds in seconds. When rolls easily when folded to take it into stores or restaurants. It's made of rustproof aluminum. What's not to like? I plan to take it on the sailboat this summer when cruising the Chesapeake.

[Canibul]

I gotta tell you, boatster, that Strida LT is looking pretty good based upon my experience with bicycles and things that rust and corrode. They are still going to have places where dissimilar metals are in contact, that just almost has to happen. But keeping a can of Corrosion X or CRC or Boeshield handy and using it would work.

I did buy two of the Montague X-50 "Swiss Army" folding bikes to use with our RV in Colorado, planning to evaluate them for boat use, and based upon my experience with those I couldn't really recommend them for much use anywhere.

We went through my two high end Klein aluminum bikes and my wife is on her second bike just living on this island. That Strida bike hits a lot of the hot buttons. Is that a single speed? That might bother some people, but for our purposes around towns near oceans, the terrain is generally pretty flat. I mean, how many gears does the Bahamas need? Walk and ride?

[Scout 30]

Here's a list of someone's top 10 folding bikes. Dahon has a mariner version designed for boats. We've got a couple of the Montague's. They're full size & great quality. We live on the water & have not had a problem with them rusting. They came with a travel bag but are kind of big when folded.


https://wiki.ezvid.com/best-folding-...FQQRHwod6ZEAwg

[boatster]

Other top 10 lists for folding bikes include the Strida LT. Here's a quote from one:

The Strida LT (MSRP: $650) is often mentioned as a competitor to Brompton folding bikes. The Strida LT gets high marks for style and design -- including a Best of Green award from TreeHugger.com. At 22 pounds, it's the lightest folding bike reviewed in this report. The Strida folding bike has a triangular frame, 16-inch wheels, a greaseless belt drive and a rear rack. Many reviewers mention the Strida's design, calling it "trendy" and "elegant." The Strida also folds up into an easy-to-carry package measuring 45 inches by 20 inches by 9 inches.

[Ian Streten]

Because of medically associated problems both my wife & I are unable to ride bikes anymore. Also it has meant that we can no longer sail a yacht safely anymore because we can't react quickly enough to any sail emergency that might occur. That is why we own a Trader Trawler yacht. The big advantages of this to us it allows us the room to have a small 125cc motor bike & it travels quite successfully on our aft deck. We have a hydraulic crane that enables us to load it off & on quite easily. We have had it for four years now & yes we have to take quite a bit of care with regard to the vagories of the climate it is subjected to but with silicone & WD40 etc. we manage to keep it in pretty good condition. The beauty of this facility is that we think nothing of taking a hundred mile tour from our boat which enhances our cruising life. We are currently enjoying the Greek Ionian with not much of an intention of moving on. With the format of all the islands in this area 'Horace the Honda' is a very important part of our crew.

[boatster]

Canibul, the Strida LT is single speed, but I've not found that be a problem. I use it to go up and down hills over several miles when commuting. The gear ratio compares to the lower gears of a folding mountain bike I also own (Dahon Jack). Peddling the Strida feels about the same going up hills as the mountain bike in first gear, but noticeably less heavy. I don't recommend the Strida as a long distance bike and always have opted for the mountain bike for distances of over 5 miles at a time.