A New Bike Friday For My Trip To Aruba
April 16, 2008 by Darren Alff
Less than one hour ago I purchased my very first folding bike - A Bike Friday New World Tourist.
I also purchased a rear rack for the bike so I can hold my panniers. And in addition to all this, I purchased a suitcase and trailer for the bike as well.
With this setup, I will be a totally self-contained traveler.
When leaving the airport, I will pack the bike and trailer inside the suitcase and carry my other belongings inside my panniers. I will check the bike onto the plane like a regular piece of luggage… and because the bike is a folding bike, I won’t have to pay the usual fees for transporting a bicycle on a plane (normally a fee of $160 for a round-trip flight).
Then, when I get to Aruba, I will unpack the bike and attach the suitcase to the trailer and attach the trailer to the bike. Then I will be able to ride off, pulling the trailer and my panniers behind me.
It’s a complete touring setup for the traveling cyclist… and I’m super excited about it!
As soon as the bike arrives, I’ll shoot a little video and show you exactly how it works. And I’ll be sure to take a ton of pictures and video when I am in Aruba so that you can see the benefits of this incredible travel bike.
If you have a question about folding bikes, please leave a comment below. I am going to be answering a lot of questions that people have about traveling with folding bikes… and I’ve een arranged an interview with the people from Bike Friday, where we will talk about the benefits of traveling with a folding bike.
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For your own peace of mind, you might want to check out the website for the airline you’re flying to see if there will be other charges for your Friday (for the case being too large or too heavy).
The airlines have been chipping away at the max checked baggage dimensions and increasing their fees for overweight or oversize bags. I flew from London to Paris on EasyJet and they hit me up for $150, saying my folding bike suitcase was both oversize & overweight. I was not amused.
Bike Friday makes great, custom folding bikes. You should get plenty of use from it. Have a great trip!
Larry
RideTHISbike.com
Aruba Huh? Sounds like fun.
When I did Cycle Oregon there were some participants from Japan on Bike Fridays. One tandem and two on thier own bikes. They were carrying panniers and were pretty loaded down. They seemed to do just fine. I got a chance to ride one on Cycle Oregon of an hour and I was impressed with how it felt. Not at all what I expected.
Enjoy your trip. You are doing an amazing job with this site you’ve created. Keep up the good work.
Jack
Darren, Before I bought my Bike Friday I had borrowed a friend’s New World Tourist for a few months. The very first time I rode it the front wheel felt a little twitchy but after a minute or so I’d forgotten I was riding a small-wheeled bike. When I made the decision to buy, I drove to Eugene, which is only an hour and a half away, and spent several hours test riding different models. I have traveled several times with the bike. Because it is so easy to transport, I find myself taking it on business trips when I normally wouldn’t have brought a bike. I have flown with it once so far. I was scared to death the TSA inspectors were going to pull it apart and not know how to put it back in the case. On both legs of the trip they didn’t even open the suitcase. I did enclose pictures and packing instructions taped to the inside lid of the suitcase, along with my itinerary and my cell phone number. I have heard of folks being called on their cells by inspectors needing help with the bike. The first time I checked in, I was right at 50 pounds but they didn’t charge me anything. On the return, I took out the clothes and tools I had packed in with the bike to bring the weight down. No one asked me about my luggage, which I wouldn’t expect since it is a regular suitcase and I don’t think people necessarily think it’s odd if a woman travels with lots of stuff. I’m normally a very light traveler and don’t check luggage, so for me the biggest fear was just that my suitcase would get lost. But all went very smoothly. If you’re not a Yak member yet, definitely sign up for that — it’s Bike Friday’s online forum and you can get to it off the Bike Friday web page. I liked my Air Glide so much that I just purchased a used Pocket Rocket Pro from someone on the Yak list.
I’m interested in Aruba and the bicycling that they offer. My wife and I are avid biking tourists but we are “old” as the saying goes. I’m 66 and my wife is 63. We’ve taken biking trips all over Europe but we choose the easy to moderate. We’ve completed some very difficult rides in England but we prefer the sightseeing and not the physical challenge. How are the rides in Aruba?
If you could buy only one touring bicycle and planned to fly with it only rarely, would the Bike Friday be the one?
Thanks for creating this site.