The folding bike. From the clunker gramps keeps in his RV to the industrial designer's canvas to the world travel touring bikes, there have got to be a ton of interesting and innovative designs for collapsing a bicycle. Why not? What you sacrifice in performance you make up for with the fact that you're riding a bike at all! I've witnessed people being left on the Caltrain platform with their bikes because the conductor wouldn't let one more person on the bike car. Imagine if they had a folding bike! A little origami, probably some grease on the hands and they would be onto the regular car, pushing that contorted heap of metal tubing down the aisle like a monkey humping a tig welded football. But, hey, they would have been on the damn train, in spite of poor public transit planning.
Why do I bring this up? Our very own Fargonaut, Dylan, has nabbed hisself a vintage Bianchi folding bike. So far, it has been a Nipple Works collaborative effort with a little haggling and some shipping and handling involved. It needs some TLC, and some new parts, and a trip through the new home made spray paint booth, but after that, this thing will be cherry! Stay tuned to this space for the details.
2 comments:
Does that Strida ("industrial designer's canvas") have a carbon belt drive like Spot Brand Bikes / Carbon Drive Systems? If so, sweeeeeeeet. Either way, I would still look like a circus monkey riding the thing with the bars between my inner thighs. All I'd need is a Shriner's hat and a red cape.
I do believe that both the Strida and Spot belts are supplied by Gates: http://www.gates.com/
Just remember to get off going backwards, not forwards. Also, without a serious nard-guard, probably no good for jumps :-)
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