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I have a Bike Friday Tikit, which has 16" wheels. It does just fine on potholed dirt roads. You wouldn't want to ride it over a log, but you're not going to do that with a street bike either. One really interesting thing about the smaller wheels is that it's easier to recover if you lock them up—I've had two occasions where I did something on my tikit that would have resulted in a crash on a road bike, but I was able to save it on the tikit: once I locked up my front wheel on a patch of ice coming down a steep hill, and my reflexive releasing of the brakes was enough to avoid going down. Another time I got the front wheel caught in Muni tracks (it's a travel bike!) and had to wrestle it back up, but the small size of the wheels made it easy to wrestle them out of the track and recover. I had a bad crash doing the same thing on the Muni tracks back when I was living in San Francisco and had a road bike. I was down on the ground before I had time to react. So I would not discount the small wheels from a safety perspective.

On the other hand, riding two-up so close together changes the physics of the bike pretty significantly. I wonder if he's done the math on center of gravity. I would expect the steering to be pretty twitchy, and I'd be curious to see how it handles with two riders on a descent, and also whether it's possible for the stoker to stand on an ascent. That said, I suspect in the right circumstances, this would be a blast to ride, and the price seems pretty reasonable to me.

If by "leading the way" you mean "stigmatizing bike riders as too poor to own a car", then you're right.

Uhh... huh.

Me and my $3500 American-made custom-frame folder (a step down in price -- last US-made custom-frame bike was $12k before aftermarket tweaks) will just continue to boggle at your attitude there.

Yup. Had the Nexus 7 in my left pocket this morning, but was asking myself on the bike ride to the train station (I ride a tikit -- the crossbar is low enough to not conflict with the kilt) if it was there at all.

The only real down side to the huge pockets is how they sit to the front. It's a benefit to cycling -- have heavy enough pocket contents and the pockets prevent wind gusts from compromising modesty -- but a disappointment to the womenfolk (hard to cop a feel through a smartphone, a wallet, and a 7" tablet).

Your carbon-frame bike weighs 15kg?!

My internally-geared, steel-frame folding bike weighs 15kg. How the hell do you make a carbon bike that heavy?

(Secondary reaction: I'm really not so sure that a carbon frame makes sense for a commuter. They have lousy failure modes [like aluminum -- ask my wife about that; her top tube spontaneously crushed in the middle of an intersection once], they can't really be repaired [whereas any corner of the world will have a welding shop able to enact emergency repairs on a steel frame], they're hard to trust after a minor accident due to the potential for invisible damage, and they're priced at a massive premium. Now, if I had the money and I were into racing, I'd buy a KirkLee frame in a heartbeat -- those things are absolutely droolworthy, despite being built by a fellow whose ego can be felt from miles away -- but even then, there's no way I'd risk making it my daily driver).

I had a shaft-drive bike, and changing a flat on the rear was a messy pain. Belts (my wife has one) are also trickier than chains (need to break the rear triangle, not compatible with quick-release), but not quite as much so.

My next bike will have a belt drive -- largely because I'm riding folders these days, and not having all the grease floating around is a huge advantage when you make a habit of bringing your bike inside, throwing it into onto leather car seats, etc.

Thats insane considering the alternatives. I can find a used *car* for that price.

I could find (no, have bought) a used car for the cost of the frakkin' GPS and headlights sitting on my handlebars and helmet. What's your point?

I don't have that many pet peeves, but the "you're on a bike? -- must be too poor to drive a car" kneejerk response is among them. We've seen that here with business owners objecting to a proposed bicycle boulevard project, though the numbers from other cities show that similar measures have resulted in dramatic increases in residential and retail property values elsewhere (in part because cyclists and pedestrians are going slow enough to actually notice the places they're passing, and thus generate more incidental traffic).

Do you call people who buy sports cars from Tesla idiots too? They're spending some money -- but it's money they have to spend (meaning it's coming out of an income source much higher than that $50K median), and they're getting a unique vehicle and the experience that comes with it. How is it your place or mine to say how well someone else's money is spent?

Further, there are very good reasons to be willing to spend some money on a quality conventional bicycle. If you're using something as your commute day-in and day-out, the last thing you want is back pain (or knee pain, or shoulder pain, or any of the other problems that can come from a poorly-fit bike). If you want something you can haul large amounts of cargo with (and by "large amounts" I mean several hundred pounds with lots of bulk), not a single one of the crappy cheap bikes that Wal-Mart or Target sells will do the trick, and (for that matter) not that many specialty shops sell longtail cargo haulers either.

Anyhow -- sure, you could find a car for that price, but sometimes a car isn't practical.

If you live in the city, parking is bloody expensive. Have only one parking spot for your two-person family, and both of you have jobs? If you ride a bike, that's not a problem.

Mandatory liability insurance? Bicycles very rarely generate substantial liability, hence such laws don't apply. Vehicle registration fees? In my state, those go to fund highways rather than regular roads; bicycles don't use highways, thus moot. Gasoline? Hah.

A folding bike (there are some good ones, and the custom builds tend to run in the neighborhood of or somewhat more than that $2300 watermark) will let you take public transportation for part of your commute or bring your vehicle with you when you travel by air. You can't do that with any car.

If you get a cheap used car, it'll need lots of TLC and maintenance -- and the skills and tools to do bicycle maintenance yourself are much cheaper.

A bicycle in the $2-4K range can be the Right Vehicle for many people.

Or I can just ride a regular bicycle which has at minimum the following advantages:

• Faster (12mph is very slow on a bicycle)
• More reliable (no motor to break or recharge - pedals are uber reliable)
• Cheaper (Yes you can get a $5000 bicycle but most are MUCH cheaper)
• Widely available
• Easier to repair
• Less dorky looking (subjective I'll admit but did we learn nothing from Segway?)
• Legal to use (this device apparently is illegal on many roads, at least in the UK)
• Unlimited range (only limited by your strength and ambition)
• Likely better control (the seat position and steering on this thing gives me the willies)
• Has versions available that fold and are similar weight
• Has lighter versions (many bikes these days are much less than 20lbs)

That's just off the top of my head. I admire the designer trying but the bicycle is really a very elegant piece of engineering. I find it hysterical they compare it to the old high wheeler design (which was notoriously dangerous) rather than a modern bicycle.

When I got my private, I biked to lessons and locked my bike to the inside of the chainlink security perimeter fence. A standard bike fits fine in the back seat of a 172 and if you pull both wheels fits fine in the back of a 152. My then-gf (also a pilot) and I always planned to stick two mountain bikes in the back and fly to Moab and go ride Slickrock, but never got around to it.
There are plenty of very nice, fast, full-size bikes that break down, like the collapsible Slingshot (which is one of the fastest bikes I've ever ridden) and the beautiful Ritchey Breakaway (in steel and titanium framesets) or if you insist on smaller bikes, the Friday is reminiscent of a real roadbike. The Slingshot is no-compromise, though: I'd take that to a race.

Bike Friday makes performance bikes that fit in a suitcase.

And if you need to, you can even haul the suitcase as your are riding!

I own their family tandem, modified to fit 3 people and it fits in two standard suitcases. No more $75 airline bike fees for me!

Bike Friday makes performance bikes that fit in a suitcase.

And if you need to, you can even haul the suitcase as your are riding!

I own their family tandem, modified to fit 3 people and it fits in two standard suitcases. No more $75 airline bike fees for me!

What we bike riders really need is:

1) Tires that don't go flat!

Get $10 tyre-liners like Mr Tuffy's. Ever since I started using them a year and a half ago (and only in my rear tyre, to boot!), I've had zero punctures despite commuting five times a week through streets littered with broken beer bottles.

And in the rare event that you do get a flat, use a CO2 inflator to cut out the most frustrating part of on-road flat repair: pumping.

2) Something to keep the rain and road dirt from putting a big skunk stripe up our backs when riding in wet climates. There are fenders, but they don't work well.

Maybe you're using the cheapo snap-on plastic types. Get the real thing and they eliminate every drop of spray. They don't look so conspicuous either if you get them in black (unless you have fancy candy-coloured tyres).

3) The ability to fold the frame so that it can fit in the back of a small car or on the bus.

Plenty of options available for you here. Probably the best and most popular are the Brompton and the Bike Friday. And if you're really hardcore (but obviously you're not), check out S&S frame couplings.

4) Brakes that work in the rain.

Pssst. I'll let you in on a secret. Use the front brake, it's really not that dangerous.

5) Tires that don't go flat. So important, I'm saying it twice.

Well, I wouldn't recommend solid tyres but hey, if you really want them, it's a free country.

We don't need auto transmissions, $150 helmets, $1500 frames that weigh next to nothing, and stupid yuppie mommies who want to pass stupid yuppie mommie laws to protect us for our own good.

Agreed on all those points.

In fact, I HATE bicycle helmets. "But," the yuppies tell me, "you NEED a helmet for safety! It should be illegal to ride without one."

Well I'll agree that it should be your choice whether or not to wear a helment, but still it's pretty stupid not to wear one. It's your head -- don't go suing somone for not having told you about the risks when you go crack your skull on the pavement.

The same people who say this think nothing about strapping two skinny long little boards to their feet and flying down an snow-covered mountain at 50 MPH with nothing on their heads but designer sunglasses!

Umm...I guess you haven't been on a ski slope recently, because the biggest trend these days is for everyone to be wearing helments. In fact, it's almost a fashion statement now regardless of which demographic you fit into -- they're all going for the freeride / x-ski look. But hey, as a ski patroller, I'm all for it if it saves lives and minimises injuries.

1) Tires that don't go flat! Or, rather, I should say... tires that don't go flat and only cost two or three minimum wage units. $15 US. Yes there are Kevlar tires that are as thin as your thumb and cost $200, hold 100 PSI air pressure, and rarely go flat, but they don't count.

Firstly, those $200 tires go flat just as easily as cheap tires on pavement (i.e. a piece of glass or nail). They are $200 because they're light (by way of having a high thread per inch count) and they're grippy (fancy rubbers and compounds). NOT because they're anymore flat resistant than a cheapo knobby or slick. In fact, I'd argue there more flat resistant for punctures (maybe less for snakebites).

Secondly, if you want a tire that definitely won't go flat, buy a solid rubber tire like your bike had when you were seven. Light, Cheap, Strong - pick two.

Thirdly, tire choice pretty much never affects regular flats (assuming the tire is adequately inflated to begin with). It's the inner tube that goes. Here's a tip, throw a bunch of baby powder in the tire before putting in the inner tube. You're probably flatting because your tire is spinning in the rim and cutting the valve stem.

2) Something to keep the rain and road dirt from putting a big skunk stripe up our backs when riding in wet climates. There are fenders, but they don't work well.

Actually fenders work incredibly well. Just get a set of grandma fenders that cover about half the wheel (less in front) and are really close to the tire. Yeah they look dumb, and your cool seat mounted stick is waay cooler on campus, but you said you want something that works.

3) The ability to fold the frame so that it can fit in the back of a small car or on the bus.

These exist in abundance.

4) Brakes that work in the rain.

Yeah. This one would be nice. Discs work well here ($$$), and so do Magura's with salmon pads (haven't tried the froggies), but most mechanicals suck. (Except when you pair old canti levers and v-brake arms... that'll stop anything).

5) Tires that don't go flat. So important, I'm saying it twice.

See above.

In fact, I HATE bicycle helmets. Their sole purpose is to show all the people driving around that the person on the bike is middle class, has a car at home, can afford a $100 helmet, and is seriously concerned about saving the environment to the point of actually going out into the public on a bicycle.

At this point I think I'm being trolled, but I'll continue.

There are plenty of ANSI and SNELL certified helmets for significantly less than $100. Hot damn, I even found you one using Canadian Dollars. The Adrenaline 2 is on sale for $20 and is plenty safe. Hardly seems to justify the yuppie status trophy you want to place on it.

Sure helmets aren't cool looking. BFD, neither are life jackets and designated drivers.

I'll leave the skiing one for the next time, but in the meantime, think about what you'd rather land on if dropped from the sky, fresh powder or a lamp-post/ford pickup/car door/concrete curb and when you're done there, remember that traffic (on streets, trails, and parks) move both ways and don't expect to see you there.

Jeff

A Reise and Muller Birdy. Better than a Brompton, which suffer from over soft suspension and a a floating back wheel. They have all aluminum frames and the lightest comes in at around 10kg. The gearing is excellent, much better than the 'sturmey archers' on the Bromptons. They are of course far more expensive but they are the best folders I've ridden. You could also try the US made Bikefriday who even do this incredibly expensive folding recumbant. I've not ridden them so I can't vouch for them.

A Reise and Muller Birdy. Better than a Brompton, which suffer from over soft suspension and a a floating back wheel. They have all aluminum frames and the lightest comes in at around 10kg. The gearing is excellent, much better than the 'sturmey archers' on the Bromptons. They are of course far more expensive but they are the best folders I've ridden. You could also try the US made Bikefriday who even do this incredibly expensive folding recumbant. I've not ridden them so I can't vouch for them.

Maybe unicycles? Or more seriously, small-wheel, possibly folding bikes, such as Bikefriday or the Moulton. These have the advantage over Segways and conventional bikes of being portable, in the sense that youl can carry them inside, on an elevator, or a train to complete your journey.

Thanks for the replies so far. As noted, bikes aren't allowed on BART during commute time (it's very crowded then, so it makes sense...unless you're commuting by bike). The Segway, aka 'IT', is right out--I doubt they'd ever let that on BART because of the size and weight. Plus there's the cost for me...

However, folding bikes are allowed, so the Bike Friday looks like an interesting possibility.

The area of SF from BART to my destination isn't too far (unless I run errands, too) or too hilly. The problem comes at the other end. BART is at about 200' above sea level, and home is near one of those 1200' markers and about 3 miles from BART. I can drive and walk, but I'm looking for something to get rid of the driving part. The Bike Friday's seem better designed and geared, so the hills might be doable with them. I haven't ruled out an electric scooter, and have been referred to a scooter dealer in SF to start looking.