It is very comfortable to ride. I have ridden it on short (2-3 days) loaded tours. I have packed it up and put it on numerous planes, trains, and buses. On the plane, it travels in its suitcase; on trains and buses, it gets put in the nylon bag -- which could be a little thicker; some holes are starting to appear. The rear rack is fine and very stable -- my only complaint is fitting it into the suitcase for plane travel. I saw a different rear rack in Green Gear's latest catalog -- it rides just above the rear wheel, so doesn't have to be removed for putting in the suitcase. If I were buying now, I might get that.

I upgraded the NWT to use the Pocket Rocket's wheels, since I only intended to ride on the roads. Minor mistake. Those wheels are 451's, and it's just about impossible to get replacement tires. The NWT wheels are 406's, and, as a previous respondent said, you can find BMX tires in a pinch.

I got the FRIDAY with the H bars. They are surprisingly comfortable, and I have ridden centuries on them. I got them because the bike folds up flatter, and for a while I was taking it on a commuter train at least once a week. However, they are not quite as comfortable as touring bars, if you are used to a touring bike -- you do have multiple hand positions, but they don't vary as much as the positions on a touring bar.

The long cables with multiple bends are a problem. Here's something no one else has reported: I was riding in the snow and got a flat. I fixed it okay, but by the time I started riding again, water had worked its way into the cable for the rear derailleur. It soon froze -- no rear derailleur for that trip; luckily it was flat.

I usually don't lock the thing on the street. When I have to, I use a combination of Kryptonite Gorilla (?)lock and a long, thin cable. I loop the cable through the pannier handles and whatever other parts of the bike are not secured by the Kryptonite.

Green Gear has a pretty good listserv itself, which is limited to Bike FRIDAY owners.

Although my wife and I have ridden approx. 10,000 miles on Santana tandems, we were far from being disappointed with the BTD. We actually joked about selling the Santana and riding only the BTD. The lower top tube makes you feel more secure and in control. The small tires allow sharper cornering and quicker acceleration, even up hill. When we first took off on the BTD I noticed that the steering was "twitchy" and that smaller wheels didn't maintain your momentum like the large ones. The effect was that the ride was a little uneven until you smoothed out your pedal stroke. Both of these perceived negatives disappeared after an hour of riding. I liked the gearing (we opted for a 46 tooth front ring). The internal 3 speed Sachs hub took a little to get used to. The left STI behaves opposite from normal and you must ease up on the pedals to shift. It comes standard with a drum brake, albeit on the front wheel. There is more flex in the BTD frame than in the Santana frame but we didn't find it to be a negative (and we're somewhat performance- minded). The bike does take a 1 to 1.5 hours to assemble and disassemble. If I hurry I always screw up. We've put about 500 miles on the frame which is no real test of durability.

I'm sure the S&S coupled tandems are biting into the BTD market. At one time I was afraid that we might have made the wrong decision but I assure that we NEVER think that when we ride the BTD.
Mike DeLong
Atlanta GA

I have spoken with bike mechanics about that and they claim it is due to the smaller wheels. The gearing between the bikes is not identical. I have the Sachs 3x7 hub on the folder. I decided on that because I wanted to eliminate any potential problems with the front derailler when the bike is in the case.

I have ridden the same course under almost identical conditions (little wind and traffic), 30 miles with 2300 ft total elevation and I am ALWAYS slower with the folder. the BF is slightly heavier also but that shouldn't matter that much.

BTW, I enjoyed the website!

Rolf Oesterlin

Peter

'The FOLDING Society' should read: "A to B Magazine", 19 West Park, Castle Cary, Somerset BA7 7DB

We publish a bi-monthly magazine called A to B, relating to all FOLDING bicycle and public transport news and reviews worldwide. We noticed that your page directs enquiries to Cycling.UK.com and his site suggests e-mailing velovot@aol.com for FOLDING bike information. I hope Tom hasn't objected! Infact, we've been running this service for some years at post@a2bmagazine.demon.co.uk

We also provide a written information pack on FOLDING bikes worldwide for A31 or US$1. An A to B subscription costs A310 a year in the UK, A312 or US$20 elsewhere (surface) or A315.50 or US$26 (airmail, oblig for USA).

We are also starting up a moderated mail-list with all the latest in two weeks time.

If you have any other questions, do get in touch
David Henshaw

Found you on the web last weekend while the weather was too lousy for cycling so I decided to go for an alternative bicycle trip. Let me introduce myself, my name in Enno Roosink and I am living in the city in Amsterdam with my family. I am a longtime bicycle rider ( all dutch people are ) and addicted to riding my bicycles whenever I can. (commuting-touring-training-racing-cyclocross ) I ran into Bike FRIDAY 4 years ago by reading an article in BICYCLING - magazine ( USA ) and after a lot of consideration ordered my first rocket. ( post ordering a bicycle is very uncommon / not done in the Netherlands )

Once liberated out of its Samsonite I fell in love with my Pocket Rocket, after just a few kilometers it felt as trustful as my traditional rigs. It has seen a lot of places by now my Basso's and Presto and Gazelle were never able to arrive due to their seizes and thus impossible to carry along. Out of pure enthusiam I started promoting this wonderful product just by driving it around my homeplace and places in Europa once on holday trips, cause I never travel without.

Since you know your way on the bicycle - network please could you mention this upcoming event ?

Hope to hear from you soon. Happy cycling and surfing. Enno.

Lots of head-turning in France. No airline damage either way, no hassle about deflating the tires or extra charges. All-in-all the easiest trip abroad with bikes I've ever had. We did not use the trailer, just panniers.

We did transfer from train station to train station in Paris by taxi, each of us had a large backpack, a bike FRIDAY suitcase, a pannier and a day pack. These transfers were quick and not terribly expensive.

We used both TGVs and regular SNCF trains. We even took the through TGV to Brussels and switched to a local train there. Our Bike FRIDAY always arrived with us.

John and (Of course you don't just change trains in Paris, you change train stations.) Marty Volz
Santa Rosa CA

On our NWTs we use Ortlieb rollers, which are extraordinarily convenient and absolutely waterproof. When mounted fully back they clear my size 10 (Canadian) or 45 (European) shoes, although not by a lot. When centered they clear my wife's size 7 (Canadian) shoes. I carry 70 to 90 pounds on the back, using a large Ortlieb duffel that clips to the top of the panniers, and nothing on the front save a handlebar bag. The bike feels heavy but handles as though it were unladen.

Charles Maurer
5 Grandview Court
Dundas, ON L9H 5C8 Canada
telephone & fax: (905) 627-7035