THE FOLDING SOCIETY
FOLDING SOCIETY NEWS
Issue 69 - 4 February 2001
EDITORIAL
It is rather quiet on the folder front at present -
mid-winter, just after Christmas, is not a time when there is
usually much to report. Many thanks to our contributors who have sent articles and
letters to fill the gap in this issue.
The weather has not encouraged much travelling recently,
whether by cycle alone or combined with other forms of transport.
I have to admit that I have not folded or separated a bike yet
this year - I've used local trains several times, but they
allow cycles unfolded at any time. Apart from further tyre
testing, the bikes which have been out during the last couple of
weeks have been the Marin (once), Airnimal (once), Moulton APB
(once) and Moulton AM7.
At least at this time of year one can
have fun planning rides for later in the year. I have three major
outings planned - April (Bath/Bradford on
Avon), May (Lands End to Broadstairs - the Lanstair ride) and
September (Photographic Workshops near Loch Lomond). Only the
Lanstair ride will be a purely cycling holiday, but cycles will
be used with trains for all of them for general transport and
getting about locally. Once at the destination, no train or other
powered assistance is planned, so load carrying, comfort and ease
of riding will be higher priorities than foldability. Although they are all some way off, I have been giving some
thought already to which bikes to use, the most critical one
being the Lanstair ride. Of course any bike could be used for any
of these holidays, but given a choice some are more suitable than
others - while Lanstair could be done on a single speed
Moulton Stowaway from 1964, or a Micro, I don't think it would
make much sense to choose these. After some thought, I decided
that the most suitable bike for Lanstair (about 10 days, with
luggage, using B&B, and mainly on-road, but also using the
South Downs Way) would be one I sold about 2 years ago - the
Moulton Jubilee L! In its absence, the top contenders on my list
were the Moulton AM7, Moulton APB and Airnimal Chameleon. That's
one reason why after using the AM7 a lot recently I got out the
APB to try that. On paper it had been at the top of my list for
Lanstair, but on my usual commuting run it certainly felt much
heavier and harder work on coarser road surfaces and hills,
though it bowled along very merrily on the smooth tarmac roads
near the NEC. On a really wet and miserable day today the
Airnimal felt lively and enjoyable to ride, but it does lack the
suspension refinements of the Moultons (though the combination of
hinged rear triangle and carbon fibre front forks is very
effective), and the rather narrow Kenda tyres fitted at present
would be less than ideal for Lanstair - I hope soon to have a set
of semi-knobbly Specialized tyres to try on the Airnimal, and
will report on these when I have had a chance to use them. Apart
from these more major outings, there will be the monthly Origami
Rides, and I hope also to fit in at least one Brevet Populaire -
see the letter from Simon Davies later in this issue for more on
this subject.
Other News
We were sorry to hear last week of the death of Roger Thorpe,
a regular at the Mud Dock meetings.
Cycling journalist Peter Knottley, the well known Moulton
rider and Brompton owner, suffered a stroke some weeks ago and is
still undergoing treatment - we wish him a speedy recovery. Peter
is one of the highest, or perhaps the highest,
mileage Moulton riders ever. Many of you will have read his
booklet "Half Way Round", which described the bicycle
ride from England to Australia which Colin Martin undertook in
1970.
We also hear that Mike Burrows had a fall recently, and broke
an arm - we wish him too a speedy recovery.
Next issue
The planned date for the next issue is 18th February, though
if there is still a shortage of news it might be put back a week.
Format
If you receive this issue of FSN in a plain text form,
please remember that a formatted version is available on our web pages at
http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/fsn/fsn069.html,
and you can receive the formatted version (suitable for reading with a web
browser) just by emailing us to let us know you prefer this version.
BIRDY
In response to a letter in the last issue of FSN, we hear from Gunnar
Fehlau of Riese & Muller that the company has had a suitcase specially done for the Birdy.
The price will be DM 500, and it should be ready to
ship beginning of March.
Gunnar also informs us that the Riese & Muller web pages are
now available in English, so take a look at http://www.r-m.de.
Regular readers may recall that I used the OLD type of Carradice SQR on
the Birdy for the Llangollen ride a couple of years back, and that I have
not been particularly enthusiastic about the luggage facilities on the
Birdy in the past. As with tyres, there seem plenty of options, but all of
them leave me personally rather unsatisfied, though I know others find them
satisfactory. One shortcoming on the luggage front, in comparison with the
Brompton, was the absence of the really effective quick release bag. The
new Carradice seatpost mounted SQR system, which I used on the Airnimal for
Portmeirion in November, and which I have been using with a new prototype bag
this year, should go a long way to remove this advantage of the Brompton,
not only over the Birdy, but also other folders. As I don't have a Birdy
any longer, I'm unable to test it on that, but it's worth noting that
Carradice supply an optional set of mounting bands to suit bikes with
larger diameter seat pillars, such as the Birdy and many Moultons. I've
used the mounting on the Airnimal, Moulton AM7, APB and Marin East Peak so far,
and I'm intending to put it on the Micro as well when I get another
mounting bracket. You can mount an existing conventional saddlebag, just
about any size, on it, or Carradice will be launching some purpose-designed
bags for the mounting, and it is one of these I have been testing this
year. If I still had the Birdy, I would certainly consider this
item as a
major asset, and one which would have eliminated one of the things that put
me off the Birdy.
FURTHER THOUGHT ON PERFORMANCE TESTS
By Martin Donnelly
I've recently had a few rides on an ergometer (Elite Axiom)
and learned a bit more about myself. I used whichever bike was fitted to the
machine, so usually the "position" was not my usual position as
on my own bikes, although I have used my own bike on it, and also a saddle and
seat pillar which fit in one of the other bikes to give me a nearly
"correct" saddle position. There seems to be a good as-expected relationship
between power, heart rate and speed on any one bike/position but each
bike/position gives different results, including different ratios of watts to
heart rate. So the same "perceived effort" gives different power
outputs and also different efficiencies on different bikes. This effect is
independent of air resistance and rolling resistance: different positions
have been tried using the same back wheel, which is where all the external
losses come from. Of course it could be partly psychological: maybe if I
feel better I perform better. But in fact I didn't feel uncomfortable in any
of the tests.
I understand that you don't use the same position on all your
bikes, so you may experience a similar effect, in which case the test
indicates which bikes have a better position (for you personally) relative to
the total drag. So if two bikes have similar total drag (mostly air
resistance?) then the one with the better position will give the faster
riding speed. Of course air resistance depends on position, and it could be
that the optimum combination of (aerodynamic efficiency +
physiological/psychological efficiency) is not at the peak value of either. I did wonder
if your ranking order reflects the relative difficulty of getting the
handlebars in the right place (impossible on the Birdy if you're not the
right size, quite easy on the Moultons and the Marin?).
My own interpretation of your results is that they are
possibly meaningful for these bikes as used by you, but not necessarily valid as a
ranking order for the bikes independent of the rider. Of course if a
sufficient number of other riders contributed their own data, then I
think you could make a statistically meaningful ranking of the bikes as such.
I've believed for the last year that my Bickerton is faster than my Birdy,
but my position on the Bickerton feels near perfect, and there's
something not quite right about the bars on the Birdy (I think I'd like to
move them about 3 mm in the direction of the bottom bracket, keeping
them the same distance from my shoulders). So maybe the Bickerton is not
intrinsically faster, it's just that I have a better position on it.
Of course if you're not in a hurry it doesn't really matter
which bike goes faster, probably it's more important to know which one gives
you the most pleasure. I prefer the Birdy to the Bickerton because it
handles better (the Bickerton doesn't have enough weight over the front
wheel).
MFH adds: I'm interested to see these additional
observations, and don't have any problems with them. Just to
clarify, though there are differences in the riding position I
have on the different bikes, they are generally small, and in
fact the Birdy position suited me rather well. I have managed to
set up all the machines so that they feel comfortable and
efficient, even if measurements show the riding position may
differ - one would certainly expect differences between machines
with flat bars and those with drops. The only bikes with a riding
position which does not feel right for me are the Brompton and SP (bars
too close, and too upright), but both are certainly comfortable
even if the position feels less than ideal for efficiency on
longer rides.
FOLDERS IN THE PHILIPPINES
By John Gaerlan
In one of your previous issues, I read one request from
a reader wanting riding buddies in the Philippines. Since I
was going on a trip back home after 20 years, I decided to
arrange a ride with the reader. I was also able to hook up
with members of a local advocacy group who graciously arranged
for a weekend ride. All arrangements were done via email
and the internet.
Attached
is a picture of the group that rode to Tagaytay - a weekend
destination about 40 miles from Manila. From the left - Jim
(a subscriber to your folding bike newsletter - expatriate working
in Manila), Jack, JV, Raul (members of the firefly brigade)
and me. Since I was staying about 10 miles outside of Manila, they just picked me up on the way to Tagaytay, braving the
heavy traffic out of Manila. From our town of Imus, traffic
starts to thin down and weather gets more pleasant as we head
away from the big city. This route is a favorite among the
cycling aficionados as you see various clubs or teams riding it.
I rode my trusted custom 24 spd Dahon Helios that day,
which we put in a suitcase from San Francisco.
How were the riding conditions? Riding out or within
Manila is not for the faint of heart. It's probably like
riding any Southeast Asian major city - crowded, hot, humid
and heavy traffic. But as you head out of the city, it becomes
country like and more pleasant. Because of family commitments and
appointments, this was the only long ride I was able to take. I
think The Philippines can be a good tropical cycling
destination, with the right route planned. Accommodation is inexpensive,
food plentiful and cheap, and most Filipinos conversant in
English.
One
highlight of the day trip was stopping by a Buko stop. Buko is
the fruit of a coconut tree. They chop the top off for you
to drink the juice. When you're done, they chop it in
half so you can eat the meat inside. This Buko stop is popular
among the cyclists as evidenced by bikes parked outside and Lycra
clad patrons sitting on benches. Buko costs about $0.16 a piece.
I hope to return this year and maybe make it a fully fledged
cycling trip. Anybody interested, let us know so we can
inform you as what our plans are. Again thanks. With
the power of email and the internet, the world is becoming
a smaller and friendlier place.
LETTERS
A number of readers have responded to the enquiry about
cases for carrying Birdys. r & m will soon have their own
case, as reported above, but the other suggestions appear below. Paul
Whitehead suggests taking a look at the Birdy discussion
group, where the subject has arisen in the past:
"In reply to the letter from Will Powell which appeared in FSN
68, the
Birdy-bike discussion group (www.egroups.com/group/birdybike) has
discussed this very issue of suitcases on several occasions, and I would recommend
that Will goes to the site and uses the search facility to find
the relevant information. If there are any Birdy owners that are not involved in the
group, I would recommend them to join it as there is lots of useful info
on it."
Martin Donnelly writes on the same subject:
"Marijk and I use Samsonites for our Birdys. Oyster 2 model, it
was the biggest in the shop at the time of purchase (1999). We
dismantle the Birdys to get them in. I'm not systematic, it's not
the same each time, and maybe I do more than is needed. We both
have non-standard handlebars which take up more room: I use GB
Maes drops, Marijke 'Stuttgart' shopping bike bars
(very wide, handgrip points backwards). Our Birdys have
"fixed" handlebar stems. We split the hinge to get the
bars in the case. If you have an adjustable height
"comfort" stem or a 2-bolt handlebar clamp you can use
these instead to remove the handlebars, it's easier (I have
modified our hinges for easy disassembly without circlips). But
maybe the standard bar fits just by folding. We take out the seat
pillar and the wheels, and remove the cranks with the pedals.
We have one key releases on the cranks and I prefer this to
removing the pedals. However since our last holiday with the
suitcases we have bought folding pedals, which we haven't tried
in the case. We have Birdy wheels with solid axles, and also
light wheels with quick release axles. Wheels with q/r removed
fit easily; with solid axles the back axle presses against the
suitcase lid. Cranks, wheels and chain go in plastic bags to keep
the case clean. Holiday clothes are packed in the same case as
padding. Recently we have used soft bags, so we can ride away
from the airport. In the soft bags we leave the front wheel in
the bike, and the back fork folds so the fork end straddles the
front wheel. I haven't tried this in the case yet but I expect it
might work. Incidentally, my modified Bickerton with 20"
wheels fits much more easily in the case after similar
dismantling; I think it could go in a smaller case."
Following up on the reports in the last issue on tyre
performance, Tony Hadland adds:
"Thanks for another interesting
read. Could I please ask you to give a plug to a new feature
on my website? This is a slightly updated version of John
Lafford's big table of rolling resistance tests on tyre/rim
combinations suitable for recumbents and small-wheelers. His
technique claims both to be scientific and to replicate real
road conditions."
Tony's website is at www.hadland.net
Dennis Duggan also has something to add on rolling
resistance:
"Sorry to hear that Philippa Wheeler came a
cropper off her Micro as a result of colliding with a pothole.
It must have been one heck of a hole to bring her off and
puncture both tyres, but obviously Philippa was not badly hurt
as she was able to continue the ride.
The incident made me wonder if the
accident was made worse by the fact the bike involved had small
wheels. Logically a 26" wheel might have traversed
the pothole, whereas a smaller one is bound to make heavy
weather of such a hazard. Is my thinking faulty on this,
or is my point a valid one?
I read the report on bike
performance and rolling resistance with special interest, as
I raised the matter in FSN a few issues back. I maintained
that tyres played little part in push bike performance, given
the low speeds involved. However I was in the minority,
and after reading the replies I did alter my opinions (though I
am still not 100% convinced) and admitted I had been a little
simplistic.
Mike makes it clear that his results
are not based on scientific methods of testing, which is fair
enough. To make a true comparison between machines each
one would have to be fitted with the same type of tyre, inflated
to the same pressure - plainly not a practical proposition in
this instance.
I have not tested the performance of
my own collection, but there is no doubt in my mind that some of
the bikes do freewheel further than others. The best one
is a 1930's Silver Sunbeam, and I think the main reason is its
excellent rear hub. This is a Villiers Deluxe, and the
proprietor of my local bike shop (The Cycle Centre, Melton Road,
Leicester - highly recommended) waxed lyrical about this when
the machine was in for overhaul a couple of years ago.
They all have bog standard tyres,
and these are either the ones fitted when I obtained the bikes
or ones purchased new off the shelf, the type being dependant on
what was in stock at the time. Does weight make a difference I
wonder. A heavy mass is likely to roll further than a
lighter one - or is it? And what about the condition
of the wheel bearings? If these are incorrectly adjusted
resistance would occur, badly affecting performance.
So it still seems to me there is
more to it than just tyres, though I now agree these are of
great importance."
Fellow Airnimal owner Simon Davies writes:
"I was
especially interested to see your rolling resistance report on the Airnimal
tyres. This surprised me somewhat as I'd got the impression that the Kendas
are a little 'mushy' even when blown up over their quoted 90psi. However,
this may well be a very subjective opinion and as I'm planning to get some
Panaracers soon I should be able to qualify it.
I thought that some of your readers from the Midlands may be interested
in the following events (mostly organised by the Birmingham and District
CTC DA):
3rd March, Cycle Jumble Sale - Methodist Church Hall, Station Rd,
Erdington, 10am to 1pm, entry 50p, details John Bedford, 60 Fordwater
Road, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, B74 2BG, 0121 353 5136.
March 18th, 50 miles in 4 or 5 hours standard ride - details Sue
Thorne, 44 Springfield Road, Moseley, Birmingham B13 9N, 0121 778 3615.
April 8th, Northern Section Audax - (100, 160 & 200 km),
Shenstone,
Details John Bedford (see above)
May 13th, Southern Wheelers Audax - (100, 160 & 200 km), Cutnall
Green Village Hall. Details from Alan Mason, 102 Kingfisher Way,
Bournville, Birmingham,B30 1TG, 0121 471 5150.
May 19-20, Meriden Memorial Service & Heart or England
Rally,
Saturday 100km Audax + 3 invitation rides +fish and chip supper &
entertainments.
Sunday 80th Cyclists' Memorial Service + Arden rides. Camping + B&B
available. Details John Bedford (see above). Note this is the Audax
that was reported upon in the Folding News last year.
June 17th, Beacon Audax- (100, 160 & 200 km), Earlswood Village
Hall. Details Ruth Eyles, 92 Scaife Road, Aston Fields, Bromsgrove B60 3SDB,
Tel c/o John Hitchcock 0121 427 5590.
Aug 19th, 100 miles in 10 or 13 hours standard ride. Details Chris
Jones, 30 Yew Tree Rd, Sutton Coldfield, B74 3SJ, 0121 353 9142.
Dec 16th, Cyclists Carol Service, Meriden Parish Church, Village Hall
open before the service from 12.00. Details Harry Child 0121 353 5814.
For the uninitiated, Audaxes are non competitive organised touring
events. There is a pre-planned route for which you will received a route sheet.
There is a maximum and minimum (to prevent racing) time limit. The
maximum time limit/minimum speed is very generous. The rides are very social,
with control points at various cafes and often some free food at the end.
Entry is normally around £2 to £4 plus £1 for third party insurance if you
are not a member of Audax UK or the CTC. The Meriden Audax is probably one of the easier ones as the route is
very flat. The Southern Wheelers Audax is fairly hilly and probably best not
attempted on a bike with limited gears unless you are fairly fit - I
did this one last year without having to use the lower ratio on my Birdy
Blue, however, I think something such as a standard Brompton may be a little
'pushed'. Please enclose a stamped SAE if writing to any of the contact
addresses above."
I enjoyed the Meriden Audax last year, as reported in FSN
at the time, and would certainly do it again, although looking
at the date I'm not sure that I shall be back from the Lanstair
ride - but I'm hoping for the best and have sent in a
registration. Unfortunately a lot of
the Audaxes are on Sundays, which makes it impractical to get to
the start in time as there are no trains.
Steve Sparrow wants to take his Birdy by coach, and
his enquiries seem to have raised problems:
"I was talking on the phone to the national express bus people the
other day as I was thinking about taking my Birdy or my Brompton
on the coach some of the way to go to a fell club meeting. When I
mentioned the bike they said that they will only take bikes in a
hard box and not a bag as they can slide and damage other
luggage! It is up to the individual driver apparently but it made
me nervous that I might be able to get one way and not the other!
Any thoughts?"
I've heard of a number of people who put them in bags and had
them carried on coaches without any objections. However, it's
obviously up to individual companies, and no doubt the attitude
of individual drivers can make a difference as well."
SALES AND WANTS
If you have a folder,
separable, or accessories to dispose of, or you want to buy, you can use the
Sales and Wants page (http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/sandw.html). If you want to
have something put on the list, just email us the details (mike@foldsoc.co.uk) - there is no charge,
but please let us know when it is sold so that we can take it off
the list. As I strongly suspect that I am not being told when
items are sold, I intend to introduce some changes to the Sales
and Wants section. In future all entries will be dated, and will
be deleted after 3 months unless a request is received to retain
the entry on the list. However, please do still tell us as soon
as anything is sold, so that we can remove it and avoid creating
annoyance to those using the list. Take all normal precautions
when buying and selling goods - the Folding Society and its
officers are not responsible for the descriptions and products
and services contained in the Sales & Wants list.
EVENTS
The events listed below are a combination of those organised
by Folding Society members or of potential interest to members.
Remember that cycling can be dangerous (so is travelling by
car, bus, train, air or water, breathing and living!); anyone
participating in any way in any event does so at their own risk.
Saturday 10th February - Origami Ride
The next Origami
Ride will be at its usual location, starting from the Tearooms at
Meriden: arrive from 10.30 for an 11.00 start. For more information, contact John Pinkerton on 0121 350 0685, email
pinkertn@mwfree.net, or look at his web site at
http://www.users.mwfree.net/~pinkertn/origami.html.
Saturday 3rd March - Mud Dock
Although there is no official organiser, the gatherings on the first Saturday
of the month at Mud Dock in Bristol are still taking place and
receiving good support. Meet at Mud Dock from about 10.30am
onwards.
Friday 11th - Sunday 13th May 2001 - Informal
Folder/Separable gathering in Weymouth
Early notification of the dates of our annual informal gathering
in Weymouth - no so much a Forum, more a way of life! Nothing
organised, just take things as they come. Typically meet up at
the Pavilion between 10:00 and 10.30 am for activities during the
day, and 7:00 pm in the evening. More details (if there are any -
it is informal) nearer the time.
17 - 19th August - Bike Friday Homecoming
Rally 2001, Eugene, Oregon. Contact Jennifer Hill, jenniferH@bikefriday.com
for further details
A to B Magazine
A to B Magazine remains the ultimate source of
authoritative information on folding cycles. In the unlikely event that you
aren't aware of A to B and/or don't read this magazine, then we would
urge you to take out a subscription without delay. A to B can be found on the
web pages at http://www.a2bmagazine.demon.co.uk,
or you can email them at post@a2bmagazine.demon.co.uk, or
they can be reached by telephone or fax on 01963 351649, address 19 West Park,
Castle Cary, Somerset BA7 7DB, England. A subscription to A to B is only
£10 per year in the UK, or $24, and the magazine is published ever two
months and is packed with news, reviews and other interesting information on
effective integrated transport systems in general, and folding cycles in
particular.
Note: The views expressed by contributors
and correspondents are those of the writers, and are not
necessarily those of The Folding Society or its organisers.
Back Numbers
Back numbers of all issues of Folding Society News are
available on our web site - go to
http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/fsn/fsn.html
for the full list.
Contributing material for FSN
We would very much welcome articles, photographs or any other material
for inclusion in future issues of FSN, or on our web pages. Please send any
material to The Folding Society at the address given below. However, if you
are planning to send pictures by email, please send them at an
appropriate resolution to avoid high telephone bills - a JPEG
picture of 50K or less
is ample for use in FSN or on the web pages.
The Folding Society
email: mike@foldsoc.co.uk
Web:
http://www.foldsoc.co.uk
If
you have any news or other information of interest to other members of the
Folding Society, please email us at the above address.
If for some reason you wish to be removed from this mailing list, please
send a message to this effect to the same email address.
All information given here is provided in good faith, but no
responsibility can be taken for errors or for any consequences arising from the
publication of this information.
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Copyright (C)2001 Ferrets Anonymous
Last updated:
4 February 2001
URL:
http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/fsn/fsn069.html