anybody go to salford uni

[RedBike]

Never tried a Brompton but i've had a quick spin on an Airnimal Chameleon. It was much easier to accelerate up to speed than normal road bike but it harder work to maintain a high speed, espeshially on rougher roads.

It wasn't a slow bike though. I don't think a 20mile commute would be any harder on a Chameleon than it would be on a hack road bike. Obviously there's just a little difference in price between a hack bike and an Airnimal!

 

[trio25]

What sized wheels did it have?

A brompton is fantastic, if I ever get one it'll be pink. But it really isn't designed for long journeys!

 

[RedBike]

Trust you to ask difficult questions.

24" wheels I think.
Drop bars, 105 shifters. Rear suspension and carbon front forks.

 

[trio25]

i have weighed up the pro's and cons of a hack bike. one thing i did forget to mention is that i will be doing blocks of placement training at hospitals / in the community. as i am doing mental health nursing means that i will be assigned to placements which may play host to drug addicts and other types of addicts which are synonymous with crime including theft of push bikes.

A bike that is very unattractive, an old racer, with a couple of locks sounds like a good option. If the bike doesn't look like it has a resale value it won't go anywhere!

A brompton has a good resale value, and even everyday people sometimes recognise them, while you are folding and putting in a bag to carry in they could be off with it - assuming that is why you want a folder, if you are going to walk in with the bike unfolded a normal bike works as well. I work in various schools and I just bring my bike in, hardly ever is anything said!

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

a bag of smack costs less than a fiver. so any bike is at risk. hospitals don't usually have good cycle racks. fetching a small folder and leaving it in the ward cleaning cupboard locked up is probably far safer than leaving a bike out of my view. i can't imagine me being allowed to fetch a full bike onto the ward or wherever i'm placed. believe me i'm not choosing a brommie over a full size bike thru choice, just thru common sense. also it gives me options when the weather is bad in winter as i have decent bus route thru to manchester city centre near my house. i'm determined to have 'one less car'. i might even be lucky and get my placements close to home.

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

like you said, brommies have good resale value. so if it turns out to be a bad decision i can always sell.

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

there's a pink and blue one in the brochure which me think of your fetish for pink. it looked really pretty, definitely not blokes colours thats for sure.

 

[ColinJ]

Never tried a Brompton but i've had a quick spin on an Airnimal Chameleon. It was much easier to accelerate up to speed than normal road bike but it harder work to maintain a high speed, espeshially on rougher roads.

It wasn't a slow bike though. I don't think a 20mile commute would be any harder on a Chameleon than it would be on a hack road bike. Obviously there's just a little difference in price between a hack bike and an Airnimal!

When I did the Red Rose Ride with goodspeed this year, we were having a lunch stop at the cafe at Glasson Dock when Svendo arrived with another rider who was on an Airnimal. I was quite impressed with it. The RRR is a hilly 125 mile ride and the mystery rider seemed to have no problem at all doing that distance on his bike. He and Svendo shot past us as we headed back through Todmorden so going at a decent speed didn't seem to be a problem either.

A brompton is fantastic, if I ever get one it'll be pink.

Like Dawn Porter's!

 

[RedBike]

The Airnimal I tried even had front and rear panniers on and was used for touring, so I would think it would make a very good foldable long distance bike. Those small light wheels are probably very good on the hills too. The trouble is I dread to think what they cost. Probably well into carbon roadie territory.

The only other folder i've tried is an Apollo . If this is typical of how a Brompton rides (I hope not) then you'll be taking the bus more often than you'd planned.