Round*Up 2007: The Fabulous Philly Folding Fest!

TROPHY BIKES, our Bike Friday dealer in Philadelphia, once again hosted his quirky festival for connoisseurs of the two-wheeled collapsible conveyance.

It's a fun three days to 'explore the compact bike universe' as shop owner Mike McGettigan calls it, to rub tire treads with folks who've got nothing better to do than romance the folder. And how romantic it is - what's not to love about a glorified roller skate that some fanatical Japanese tour on (the Carry-me), the funky Mobikey, the collectible jelly-roll Bickerton, the artsy Strida, the ever-clever Brompton, the flying Birdy, the speedy Swift, the classic Moulton, the ubiquitous Dahon, the all-performing, all-packing Friday … and of course, the newest brat on the block, the Bike Friday tikit?

The attendance at this event do date has been small but enthusiastic, and we have to thank customers like Al Gilens who offer beaming representation for Bike Friday when we can't make it.

The inaugural Round*Up in 2003 attracted manufacturers from overseas and we're hoping this event will grow so they'll once again make the pilgrimage to Philly.

Philly by Chinese chicken bus. With a round trip fare of $25 from NY to Philly, or indeed, NY to a number of places, I expected to be sharing my seat with a bunch of caged fowl, just like in Asia. No, these are decent buses that simply ply the popular direct routes and are operated by entrepreneurial Chinese merchants. You can Google them, pay online, and just turn up where they tell you to. One operator, the Fung Wah Bus Company, made the news when it rolled over, but for a deal like this that shouldn't concern you …

I'd just landed back in NY from Italy, and 'the two Daves' from the BF Club of NY agreed to come with me to Philly. David Lam is our Bike Friday dealer in NYC www.bikefriday.com/dealers
and owner of Bfold Bicycle Shop, a tiny folding bike shop between 2 and 3rd avenues on East 13th.

The bus driver insisted on us stowing our bikes in the hold, in case they flew around and decapitated passengers.

I always keep the BF travel bag folded up to protect the bike from surly bus conductors or railroad Nazis, and here I sat the package atop the big spare tire where it nestled nicely in the hole …

The Great Wall of Manayunk. Round*Up is always staged on the same weekend as the USCF Pro Championship Philadelphia bike race. One of the segments of the race is a 17% hill climb up a steep street called the Manayunk Wall. Each year a time trial is staged in various categories. Mike McGet always tries to get as many folders as possible to partake. They always get a lot of attention.

After some cool starting line banter about my VeloGirls jersey with the Racer Announcer, Todd Gogulski, I did horribly, starting and ending in the wrong gear. This, despite my Pro Petite being outfitted with a terrific compact crank and the Capreo (read about it at www.bikefriday.com/galfromdownunder-gear)

It certainly helps to know a hill before trying to attack it at speed. The winner was a man of steel from Uruguay who did it in 1:20. I think my time was close to 3 minutes. The fastest folder was a titanium Brompton who achieved 1:46. The next day we attempted it again, and I did a lot better – don't be a wuss, push that big ring and stay in it!

Later, Todd sauntered over and proceeded to tell me about the Pocket Rocket Pro he'd borrowed from BF customer Chandler Spears. He was thus far impressed. Salesguys, sic 'im ...

Mike is speaking of a Trophy trophy and fiscal incentive to get folding folk to enter next year – start training!

There's also a flat time trial on the Saturday but this requires one to be up at the crack of dawn, so most of us pass it up, preferring to do the Wall for maximum exposure and REM sleep ...

Folding Forums. The Saturday morning session of Round*Up is a discussion held in a room of the university across the road. This year it consisted of a discussion panel featuring speakers from the folding world: Peter Reich, inventor of the Swift, now made by Xootr; Jeff Potter, publisher and outdoor renaissance man of www.outyourbackdoor.com, and yours truly, representing Bike Friday.

Peter, a gentle and self-effacing man, talked about the latest developments in the land of Swift. This is an elegant, pared-down folder similar in style and performance to a Bike Friday, characterized by a horizontal main tube and a somewhat larger vertical fold. Now made by Xootr, we're sure to see more of them.

Jeff Potter, father of three from talked about his latest project, translating, updating and republishing Gunnar Fehleu's book called 'The Folding Bike' (German). He already re-published 'The Recumbent Bike'.

I talked about whatever people talk about on a Friday!

Several customers showed up with their favorite Friday. We had the BF Club of Central Jersey leader Ben Blum come all the way from New Jersey, John Chiarella from the NY 5BBC and even author of Bicycling with Children titles, Trudy Bell, popped by as she was attending a conference on the floor below.

We had the BF Club of Central Jersey leader Ben Blum come all the way from New Jersey, John Chiarella and Rhonda from the NY 5 Boro Bike Club and even author of Bicycling with Children titles, Trudy Bell, popped by as she was attending a conference on the floor below.

Route 66 on a Friday. In the evening we convened at the upstairs bar of Fergie's Pub as we've done for previous Round*Ups. I showed my latest excuse for being out of the office, my Route 66 by Bicycle movie, to the assembled crowd. I brazenly schlepped my Pro Petite up the stairs to the hoots of 'there's a bike rack outside' from the intoxicated herd below.

USPro start. A Round*Up tradition on the Sunday is to assemble at the starting line of the race and simply parade around with our folding bikes. A number of Friday folk showed up including Jay Prensky with his Classic diamond frame Friday. On this day was the opening of an exhibition of Japanese scrolls and prints, the catalog was co-created by Mike McGet's wife Kathy. We made our folders look like broken bikes and chained them to a guard rail and there were still there when we returned. Whew!

Round*Up Valley Forge ride. This nice, bike-path-only ride of around 25 miles on Sunday is always pleasant. We all head around the block to the train station, buy the $3 ticket and head out to the start point, riding back on bike path all the way. There was quite a crowd, more than a dozen. The route back allows some pretty fast riding and I enjoyed drafting Jeff Potter on the Trophy Titanium Brompton!

On the way back we stopped in Manayunk to have a second shot at that hill, and to eat ice cream. Why did that hill seem so much easier today?

The Fast Folding Showdown. And now, for the highlight of the weekend: the Fast Folding Showdown. The challenge takes place down near the river on a stretch of pavement. You must ride, stop, fold the bike, carry it to the stairs, sit down, cross your legs, uncross, unfold the bike, and ride back to the start.

See above for the 7-minute video of the challenge.

The winning times in order were:

David Lam 35.5 seconds, Bike Friday tikit. He dropped the chain in his haste but still finished first. No bikes likes to be flopped around, that's for sure! The tikit has an unfair design advantage over most folders – with its 'umbrella-like' cables that tension and hold the bike open in lieu of quick releases and catches, folding is simply a matter of 'popping the bike open' then allowing it to 'collapse' when folding.

Mike Cherry 42.3 seconds, Moulton AM2. An impressive showing for this Rolls Royce of folding bikes. We marveled how he unspun a central screw and simply separated the bike in two halves. Perfect for popping in the back of your Jaguar.

You wouldn't want to be carrying any shopping at the same time, though …

The Galfromdownunder, 52.3 seconds, Pocket Rocket Pro Petite. I'm somewhat amazed that I got third place, probably because Mike McGet dropped the chain on the Brompton, something which is pretty hard to do. And last year's winner (Brompton) elected to sit it out this year. The video shows I didn't completely fold the bike either, the front wheel got a little hitched up on the rear end … but thanks to Walter Lapchynski's folding without dropping the chain technique, http://www.bikefriday.com/foldingpacking, I kept the chain on and my hands clean.

John Penrod 53.3 seconds, Xootr/Swift. This simpler folder, which is more similar to a Friday in design than any of the other folders, suffered from a seat post needing a little more grease, but John still put in a great performance for what is truly a performance folder - it regularly wins the folder Time Trial.

I took some creative license in my video which may come across as a bit mean, but it's well intended, Swifts have their staunch fans and hey, that's entertainment!

Dave Holowka, 56.7, Brompton. Dave put on a great performance, showing how the Brompton requires a deft twiddling with wingnut-type screws if you want to beat the clock. Last year's winner, on a Brompton, showed us how you spin those nuts while releasing the seat catch in one beautifully orchestrated sleight of hand – like a Japanese Teppanyaki performance!

Michael McGettigan 59.3 seconds, Brompton. Mike 'This is the first time I've ever dropped the chain' dropped the chain - the pressure was intense!

Erin Fitzpatrick 1:06, Brompton. This was Erin's FIRST DAY with her hands on a Brompton, so she gets mega kudos for not only making the trip to Philly with David Lam, for being one great sport.

Rounding it all up: The NY contingent and I boarded our Chinatown buses for the relaxing 2 hour trip back east. The same driver who expressed dismay when we left was enamored by our folding bikes that slotted neatly under the bus.

"I love it!" he said in a thick Korean accent, envisaging an antidote to his sedentary job (except when loading suitcases).

Another person sold on the fold.

Copyright 2007 www.galfromdownunder.com