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WHAT problem did you solve on a Friday? A selection of 'aha!s' to life's most interesting problems from our 'can-do' community. There's no stopping Friday folks - they've got just the tool for the job. Please note that the views expressed here, especially of other bike brands, are solely of the customers quoted. Were just happy if a bike - any bike - solves your problem, and you ride it. - LC |
 Problem: My partner is blind. We'd like to find something that provides exercise for both of us. When a freak car accident left Yvonne, an avid tennis player, completely sightless, her husband Dave looked for a new activity they could do together and would provide good exercise. The couple amazed the 120 riders at the 2008 Australian Bike Friday Club Gathering by riding big distances with ease - then neatly packing their Traveler XL tandem into their classic Austin Healy. "I found an overseas tandem tour on the internet and the operator could only offer us a 20 year old clunker," said Dave, a car restoration enthusiast. "I did more research and came across Bike Friday – and I immediately knew we'd found what we were looking for." What's not to love about performance that packs into a roadster? See the couple in action in the movie clip "An Alternative View", featuring the Thompsons and another blind stoker, Pam and her dog Earl, in the in the ABFC '08 tour report. |
 Problem: I can't get a bike to fit me. The BF has proved a great solution for my particular problem of getting a bike that FITS! It's well known that women usually have shorter torsos so need a shorter top tube. This poses even more of a problem if you're a short-waisted woman. I am 5' 7 1/2", but have long legs and arms and a really short torso (I need to wear "petites" when buying dresses, or else the waist hits about 2" below my actual waist). Trying to find a bike that fit from the get-go, or even tweaking components to fit, was really problematic. I'd bought a Trek "woman's" commuter bike a few years back, and after 2 months of commuting had bad upper back and neck pain. So I started to look at a Terry or other women's specific bike, or even have a bike custom built, but hesitated to pay ~$3000+ (I'm just starting to get into biking/touring, and didn't want to commit so much $). Then I looked at Bike Friday, and discovered I could get a NWT custom made for my measurements for about $1500, nicely equipped (as they say in the car ads). Cool! My sweetie and I drove down to Eugene, took a test ride, and ordered on the spot. We've had our bike for about 9 months now and my bike fits! I toured the Oregon Coast on it last year, and ride it a few days a week for commuting/errands/recreation. No back or neck pain! But wait, there's more - this bike travels! Last month we shipped the bikes when we flew to SF for a weekend visit, and had a blast riding around the Bay Area. And in September we will be taking the bikes to France for a 3 week bike touring honeymoon. For me, the fact that my NWT fits me so well was the solution to my problem. That it also is such a great travel bike, for the price of $1500 makes it a "best buy" to boot. And I feel really good about supporting my local economy and buying a bike made locally, from a great bunch of folks. Regards, Lisa Wylie |
 Problem: I can't keep up with my dog! Jeanne, a lively Friday owner in her sixties, showed up with her early-prototype tikitTM from three years ago, designed by before Rob English joined the team. "I use it to walk the dog. But I now have some knee problems and can't keep up with him - the dog's faster than me. When I first saw the tikitTM a light went on. I bought it and now I can keep up with the dog." See Jeanne talking about this in the movie clip of the Bike Friday new dealer VeloSport launch. |
 Problem: Stranded without public transport We had just finished a tour on our Friday Tandem Traveler XL. The tour ended in Eugene, Oregon, so it included a tour of Green Gear. Our next stop was the train station to arrange for a box for our bike for the trip home (San Luis Obispo, California). Much to our surprise ... no ... astonishment ... the train wasn't running because of a fire in a tunnel somewhere near Lake Shasta. Amtrak wasn't running buses to accommodate people, perhaps because the fire situation was too recent. We could have cycled home, but really didn't feel like cycling that far, especially since my wife wasn't feeling 100%. We checked with airlines. $1400 per person seemed a little pricey. We ended up hiring a car from the nearby airport and drove home. It only takes about five minutes to knock a Traveler XL down enough to fit in the trunk of a car. Our other tandem, which is a standard bike, would have required a van atleast, or pickup truck. Stu Goldenberg |
 Problem: Gas has just hit $4 a gallon We just bought a used Family Tandem as a way to live up to our claim, repeated often over the last six or seven years, that when gas hit $4 per gallon, we'd change something about how we use our cars. It's not the price - we can afford the gas - but that number provided a nice line in the sand to spur us to action. We've had the bike for nearly three weeks so far, and we use it primarily for taking our 9-year-old son to and from school, 2 miles away. What's ideal about the Family Tandem, and why we bought it, is the ease with which we can adjust the captain's seat post and stoker's handlebars every day. I'm 6' tall, and my wife is 5'3", so finding a tandem that either of us could captain was a daunting prospect. (It would be even cooler if there were a quick-release adjustment lever and markings on the tubes.) So far we've avoided driving about 30 miles per week, and as my wife's legs slowly return to the strength they had when we did a long post-college bike trip 19 years ago, we're extending the distance we're comfortable biking instead of driving. And this is in Ithaca, NY, which is known for its gorges (and thus its hills). This afternoon, for instance, I'll bike 2 miles to pick my son up at school, and then we'll bike another 4 miles downtown to his doctor's appointment, and then 6 miles home (up a massive hill). I know it's not far compared to what serious bikers do, but every mile not driven More important, the unusual look of the Family Tandem means that we get a lot of attention, allowing us to explain just why we're doing our commuting on a tandem and telling people how many miles we're putting on the bike instead of the car. Cheers ... - Adam |
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