International Bicycle Travel Forum
International Bicycle Travel Forum
Who's Online
0 registered (), 23 Guests and 767 Spiders online.
Details
Advanced
About this forum
Rules
The Rules for this forum
Terms of use
Agreements for the use
The Team
Who's behind the forum?
Involved Homepages
Bicycle-travel sites already using the forum
Participate!
Use this forum in your Homepage
RSS feeds RSS
Overview of public RSS feeds
Shoutbox
A small chat area
Partner Sites
Statistics
29207 Members
97624 Topics
1532679 Posts

During the last 12 months 2217 members have been active.The most activity so far was at 02.02.24 17:09 with 5102 users online.
more...
Top Posters (30 Days)
veloträumer 60
Falk 53
Keine Ahnung 53
Juergen 51
iassu 45
Topic Options
#423632 - 03/22/08 05:11 PM Is a floding bike the best way to travel?
najo
Member Accommodation network
Topic starter
Offline Offline
Posts: 1
Cairo - Cape Town on a folding bike

We just finished an awesome trip on our Dahon folding bikes through Africa. After lots of other bike travels, we decided to take folding bikes this time. When the roads were bad or we didn't feel like cycling we hitch-hiked. We are convinced now that folding bikes are THE best travel bikes (unless you want to cycle every single km!); you just have to travel very light. We had a smallish backpack carrying our clothes, tent, sleeping stuff and cooking gear. You can follow our adventures on www.najo.co.za
Top   Email Print
#423706 - 03/22/08 08:32 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: najo]
whisky
Member Accommodation network
Offline Offline
Posts: 414
Hi Najo,

Congrats on completing your trip laugh

Folding bikes are ok for traveling short distances (e.g. to the next truck stop to get a hitch) but as you said not for real worldcycling (cycling all the way) with a lot of gear on bad roads. A bagpack is just too uncomfortable in the end. Did you like cycling with those big bags? Did you have problems with the bikes?

How do you manage to travel that light? shocked cool
On my 9 month trip I had the following with me as clothing:
rainjacket, raintrousers, 3x glove (fingerless, windstopper, winter), 2x trousers (thin, thick), 2x underwear, 1x sandals, 1x shoes, summercap, winterhat, 1x fleece, 1 windstopperjacket, 2x shirt, 2x socks, 1x cyclingshorts, 1x buff

Camping: -15C sleepingback, matress, fuelbottle, stove (+spareparts), pan, spork, tent, waterfilter, waterback, repair-patches for tent and clothing, seamseal.

Bicycle: 1x spare tire, 2x innertubes, patches+glue, chain-oil, nuts and bolts, chain, 2x brakepad-set, tie-wraps, spareparts lowrider, chainwhip, multitool

Various: Camera, portable HD, cables, first aid, maps, 1x guidebook (in each country bought fresh)

All in all I carried 25 kilo (without food and water) and many consider that to be as light as you can get without entering the "dangerzone". What did you both cary?

Cycle the world,
Whisky
Top   Email Print
#426121 - 03/31/08 06:25 AM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: whisky]
outbackjack
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 23
Wow! I could even feel the excitement knowing you really had finished the trip! Congratulations!
Top   Email Print
#426375 - 03/31/08 05:57 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: whisky]
gera
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 494
Underway in Germany

Hi whisky,

you are absolutely wrong saying folding bikes are not for travel,you should try one and after you can give your opinion,also depend which folding bike.I own a folding bike a bike friday NW tourist and I been traveling on the most worse routes full loady and I did n t have any problem
Greetings
www.lococoupleonabike.com
www.colmanlerner.zenfolio.com
No Sueñes Tu Vida, Vive Tus Sueños
Top   Email Print
#426436 - 03/31/08 07:55 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: gera]
whisky
Member Accommodation network
Offline Offline
Posts: 414
Hi Colman,

Nice site you have :-) I'm really impressed what you can handle with your folding bicycle. But those roads in Cambodja are heaven compared to some other roads in the world :-)

Is it possible to handle roads covered with snow



or loose sand like here



and here



with your bicycle?

How is the handling in mud and water with 20" tires?

Are 20" tires comfortable on loose washboard roads ?

The only disadvantage I see in a folding bicycle is the folding point (weakest part of the bike) and the small 20" tires. For the rest they are great of course smile For commuting and hitching they are the best you can get! laugh

Cycle the world (with 26" tires),
Marc
Top   Email Print
#426443 - 03/31/08 08:06 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: whisky]
gera
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 494
Underway in Germany

I think people should be more tolerant ,what you always German say
"what the farmer doesn t know he doesn t eat"
Greetings
www.lococoupleonabike.com
www.colmanlerner.zenfolio.com
No Sueñes Tu Vida, Vive Tus Sueños
Top   Email Print
#426448 - 03/31/08 08:14 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: gera]
whisky
Member Accommodation network
Offline Offline
Posts: 414
Hi Colman,

I'm not intolerant, I'm just curious. I totally agree that with panniers it is a very nice way to travel. With a bagback like Najo did I think it's going to be very uncomfortable in the end. And because of the small tires I think that folding bicycles are not well suited for the more demanding roads. For asfalt and good pistes I believe they are fine though.

Cycle the world (always curious),
Whisky
Top   Email Print
#426452 - 03/31/08 08:21 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: whisky]
gera
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 494
Underway in Germany

It s ok PEACE!! laugh don t worry, I mean my wife and my self we didn t have any problem and the routes in Cambodia the are not all asphalt,the route going from Thailand border to Siam Rep was a in very bad conditions and after 150km going from Siahanoville to Thailand border was a desater a lot of hills and a lot of sand imagine going down the hills no more then 5km
So here some pictures
http://www.der-radladen-mannheim.de/Cambodia/

Greetings
www.lococoupleonabike.com
www.colmanlerner.zenfolio.com
No Sueñes Tu Vida, Vive Tus Sueños
Top   Email Print
#489151 - 01/02/09 11:52 AM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: gera]
outbackjack
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 23
Originally Posted By: gdlerner
It s ok PEACE!! laugh don t worry, I mean my wife and my self we didn t have any problem and the routes in Cambodia the are not all asphalt,the route going from Thailand border to Siam Rep was a in very bad conditions and after 150km going from Siahanoville to Thailand border was a desater a lot of hills and a lot of sand imagine going down the hills no more then 5km
So here some pictures
http://www.der-radladen-mannheim.de/Cambodia/

Greetings


It has been proven folding bikes works but maybe not the best way?
laugh

Loved those pics by the way..
Top   Email Print
#506323 - 03/11/09 01:20 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: outbackjack]
Sambinomio
Member Accommodation network
Offline Offline
Posts: 8
Colman,

I am very impressed about your travel pictures with your friday bike.

My opinion was initially close to Whisky's. It is hard to believe that such a bike can behave that well with such load on it.

After your post and pictures... I am enthusiastic to get more informed about this type of bicycles. Only thinking that it could be possible to bring the bicycle in a suitcase it makes me dream :-)

May I ask you... in terms of rigidity... don't you feel the "chewing gum effect" :-) when heavy loaded ?

Thanks in advance for your comments.
Top   Email Print
#562187 - 10/20/09 08:07 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: najo]
Lincoln
Commercial Participant
Offline Offline
Posts: 5
you don't give us much to go on like make, model,year, and condition. these bikes are found in all price ranges as new bikes so if you have any or all this info. please edit your question so someone with knowledge in that area can give you an educated answer.
Top   Email Print
#623096 - 05/25/10 01:58 PM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: Lincoln]
Flavio
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 23
I didn't experienced folding bikes directly, but in the last summer a travel companion (which came from US with a folding bike to avoid airplanes fares) had to end its tour cause of a tire: he didn't find a replacement. And we were in Innsbruck, and then in Passau, and then in Prague.

Anyway I like these small bikes. I think they should be very useful when there is a plan of mixing cycling/train/buses/etc. in the same tour.

Edited by Flavio (05/25/10 01:58 PM)
Top   Email Print
#658397 - 10/03/10 11:50 AM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: Flavio]
maxe
Member
Offline Offline
Posts: 7
Underway in Egypt

I think that touring on a folder is a great idea. I like the Terry brand which are not too expensive, also learn to use padded lycra cycling shorts they are worth the money.
Top   Email Print
#812277 - 03/26/12 09:00 AM Re: Is a floding bike the best way to travel? [Re: maxe]
steph_tr
Member Accommodation network
Offline Offline
Posts: 959
I've got a 20 inch dahon dash P18 and it's great for the own car, for the train... And for touring in and around cities, no problem for rides until 20 km or also more. But sure, for real trips, vacations by bicycle, I would prefer a fordable big bike, like the 26 inch Dahon Matrix or Cadenza. They are still foldable, for using them in trains..., but when you ride on them you have the feeling to be on a 'normal' bike.:)
And yes, as already sayed above: easier to buy a tire!

Regards, Steffi
Viele Grüße, Steph
Die Höflichkeit ist das Öl auf der Maschine, das die Reibung der einzelnen Teile aufhebt oder verringert.
Top   Email Print

www.bikefreaks.de