Folding E Bikes for our trip

M

maryvmcclain

New member
We had to decide between a kayak and folding bikes for our trip East and chose folding bikes. I've always wanted to have an e-bike and so, this time, I made my case and won. We chose www.velomini.com and purchased their 3 speed e-bike which is the smallest form factor and lightest e-bike we could find. Its still pretty hefty at about 32 pounds but is small enough to carry in a zipped carrying case. We also purchased a bike trailer by Burley http://www.burley.com/page_12208/travoy.html so we could easily go to the store or laundry while on our cruise. The bikes are a blast... we spent the day at St George Island State Park off Apalachicola and thoroughly enjoyed them. The Island is gorgeous and the beaches practically deserted. Apparently an unknown treasure. We posted a few pictures on our album here.
 
Those eBikes look sharp - small enough to take along on the boat. Nice! We took our folding bicycles when we cruised the Erie Canal and the Trent Severn Waterway, and found them invaluable. We have had electric scooters that we carried along in the RV in years past, but those that you have look like a good combination.

Enjoy!

Jim B.
 
Hi Jim,

Our bikes are a blast to ride. I'm sure Mary and I sound like a commercial but we're just enthused by them and want to let folks know of this option for boating and/or RV use. We weren't at all sure they would be comfortable and safe for us to ride and we expressed this when spoke to Doug at VeloMini. He understood our concerns and offered to ship them to us so we could try them, no strings attached. He would even pay for the return shipping if we decided against them. Once they arrived I was quickly struck by the quality and finish of each bike. Then we rode them... That day happened to be a typical windy desert day and they rode beautifully.

The bikes have 3 ways to ride them. One is typical peddling. We have found the range of the 3 gears about right. The second way to ride is by pushing a red button to start a battery powered electric motor that is hidden inside the front wheel hub (while the battery is hidden inside the lower bike frame). When the rider keeps peddling the engine engages in what is called pedal assist. The third way to ride is to engage pedal assist, twist a throttle grip, and then just stop peddling. By twisting the throttle the engine engages and you wizz along at roughly 12 mph, which seems fast to us when not peddling. As we tested the the bikes we received we found in pedal assist we could relatively easily climb steep hills. I have a nice Cannondale at home for recreational riding and this little e-bike climbed the hills nearby our house with much less effort.

Obviously we decided to keep the bikes. They were too much fun to return. We especially like that they don't look electric so that lessens the theft threat, at least somewhat. They are also far lighter than any other similar bikes we found.

They are a definite extravagance but for us worth it. We've only had them about 6 weeks so this is our first time taking them on a trip. They fit across the stern of our boat and each will be secured by a strap. Time will tell if they really fit the need we think we have, but we both love bike riding and these seem able to be taken just about anywhere in anything.

Rob
 
Perfectly understandable. The $1295 price seems high for a folding bike, but the going rate for "electric assisted" bikes of any size seems to be around $1k to start. We have had a couple electric scooters that we carried in a motorhome, but they weren't considered "street legal" since they didn't have pedals. I can see where that options makes your bikes more "street friendly."

A lot depends on where you are cruising... Lake Powell - absolutely no need for bikes there. Cruising the Loop and/or the ICW - perfect. Cruising the PNW - could go either way.

Plus, the bikes have great use beyond boat cruising.

Remember when you were a kid, and you got your first bike? Sure "opened up" the world, huh?

The folding aspect makes the bringing-along easier. On the Erie, we strapped the bikes (unfolded) to our radar arch, on top of the boat. With some of the taller city walls, that was a breeze. When at a marina (as in New York City) for a week, we moved them to the bow.

Enjoy!

Jim
 
Hi!

Just thought readers would be wondering about the price of the bikes, so looked it up:

$1295 each for the 3-speed bike, shipping included, in the lower 48.

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
We bought a couple of Strida's from a store that was closing at a phenomenal price.

They will easily strap upright in the cockpit behind the head, I think. I've put two low profile strap-loops in place for that.

We haven't had a chance to try them out yet, but I'm excited to get going!
 
Joe got the price right. I suspect they routinely give in on that just a little because when we asked they dropped each bike by $100. Not a huge decrease by any means, but still nice. And not having to pay shipping or state tax was nice. Doug also threw in little LED lights for each bike - white for front and red for rear - that strap on for night riding.

Rob
 
ssobol":tnwxa2y4 said:
The e-bikes are nice but a bit pricy. Here are a couple at Camping World.

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/it ... bike/70091

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/it ... bike/70089

They may not fold up a small as the e-bike, but still for the money it's probably ok. The money you save (instead of getting e-bikes) will pay for a lot of taxi rides when you don't feel like pedaling.

Might not be as much fun though.
Click to expand...
Also, if you visit a smaller town or more rural marina there's often no taxi available (regardless of how much money you have in your pocket).
 
Roger et al, I agree, there is no justifying the "e" part of a folding bike for the C-Dory, although its really not much fun actually riding a folding bike... the small tires, even with adequate gears, just make it feel awkward to me. (But we haven't used them that much so maybe I'll get used to it... Rob says he doesn't notice that much of a difference). It was just the "fun factor" that really convinced us and the fact that I have had two full knee replacements... I only posted this because we found this size and weight to be the smallest so far.... and space on this cruise seems critical to us as our vehicle looks like a homeless person lives there... and I suspect the cockpit is going to rival Fibber McGee's closet... I'm really not sure how you guys fit all the stuff needed as our built in C-dory storage is already packed with just regular boating stuff and some food... all the stuff from the vehicle needs to find a home on the boat once we launch. The generator and gas can are also new additions for this trip, and we have brought that small Walmart window airconditioner... thinking we may want it this summer in the Northeast and Erie Canal (but it will remain in the car until summer...and where the heck is that going to go while we are cruising?) Other than the air conditioner and the bikes, though, I can't think of one single thing that isn't necessary to have with us. The generator may not be necessary now that we are getting a solar panel, but I guess we haven't any idea how often we will be anchoring out vs staying at marinas... and we also don't have a clear idea if the solar will be enough to keep the frig going. We had an issue at lake Powell after two days and we're probably over compensating.

Mary
 
Bicycles and mopeds/motorcycles do open up a number of other alternatives when cruising. There are many marinas which have cars which are available for the use of guests. Also there are often people you meet along the way which will offer rides, especially in the smaller cities. Also many of the large cities have good public transportation. We have done a bit over half of the "Great Loop". We found that 2 Meters on Ham radio also opened up a number of invitations of rides to a grocery store, or even to some of the local sites, as well as a dock to tie up to every now and then.

Now how about a washing machine? No room in a C Dory for a even a washer dryer combo. We find that one finds out a lot about any local area from the people you meet in the laundries. Or one does hand laundry as our ancestors did.
 
An electric bike may be a better choice, recently I got an electric bike from eskute.co.uk. It really help me for commuting, no need to transfer by train or other way. It can run so far
 
Kayaks OR e-bikes? How about both? E-bikes can get you to the store if you are at a dock, but they can't get you to shore if you are anchored out! We had an inflatable kayak that got used every day to get Baxter to shore, and non-e-folding bikes that got used not as often as we had hoped on our Great Loop in 2017. The bikes were stored folded up in bags under the radar arch. We could not have justified the cost of e-bikes, but for sure, riding non-e-folding bikes is a pain, we called them "clown bikes"!
 
I'd be interested in learning more about that folding e-bike, but the link did not work. Colby
Late note, I did find them googling. However the weight limit of 230lbs could be an issue... :(
 
Colby, me too. I tried the link, no joy. Google but didn't find the brand. and the folding ones I found had another weight issue, the bike was over 100 pounds, but had a great battery, range and speed.

Only place I have used a shore bike was at Sointula, BC. The idea is appealing.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

IMGP2133.highlight.jpg
 
I bought one of these goofy thingswhen Costco had them for $326. I figured it would be handy for going to the boat during the hectic Buoy 10 fishing season when the parking lot is jammed full in the mornings. I could park the truck there overnight and ride the bike home and back in the morning.

The bike is pretty cool, but I do look goofy riding it. It scoots right along and goes 17 miles on a charge. The handle folds down to make it fairly compact and it will fit in the V-berth or the back seat of the truck.
 
We are coming up on 6 years of owning folding e-bikes. I still ride almost every morning. At the time, looking for a fat tire folding e-bike, there was a choice of one: SSR Trail Viper. Now, they are everywhere you search (Google folding e-bikes).

We used reasonably light-weight folding bikes on Wild Blue and found them very handy and comfortable (don't get the smallest folders, get what fits you). Bikes or a dinghy when cruising? The obvious answer is: both; they serve different purposes... just like you need navigation AND communication equipment when cruising.

Our current folding e-bikes wouldn't be the best on a small boat (not what we used on Wild Blue) - the Trail Vipers are at home on trails and bike paths. Folded, we can fit two of them in the back of our small SUV; but they would take up too much room in the cockpit of a C-Dory. Look for a "city folder" to take on a small boat.

I've joked with Pat about this: our style of cruising wasn't about finding places for our dog to poop (we don't have a dog). The boat was a conveyance to take us to interesting places to explore, whether cool cities or quiet natural areas. We spent 6 weeks on the Erie Canal and Hudson River; Pat spent 3 days. Different strokes. The bikes allowed us to get more than walking distance from the boat to see what each small town along the way was all about. We found them invaluable.

There seems to be a misunderstanding about e-bikes... some people think the bike does all the work (I often hear "that's cheating" when riding my e-bike). That's not the way most people use an e-bike. The pedal assist on mine gives me a consistent workout, no matter the wind direction or terrain. I have never used mine as an "electric scooter," although some do. I have used the throttle to move out faster when an unknown dog approaches, barking and snapping. I have used the throttle to get started when on a steep incline. I don't "commute" on mine, although some do. It doesn't replace a motorcycle or a scooter for me.

What we used on the boat...

BikesE.jpg

What we have for e-bikes...

12UsBikesBridge.jpg

Both folders, but a significant difference in weight and capability.
 
Might look at e-scooters instead. There are models that fold up and they are smaller than a bike. The ones like Lime, Jump, and Spin I find easy to use. I rent them in places where they are available, but I have seen them carried and used by boaters.
 
I met someone in the summer who had a Tern folding e-bike and was very happy with it. I have seen other Tern folding bikes since then and am very impressed.

Here's one from this website:
https://www.bikethesites.com/best-kids-bikes/

It's probably the bike I would buy if I was in the market for one. Unfortunately, it costs about £2000.
Don't forget BTW that folding bikes are often no lighter than normal bikes but are designed to be carried: with a motor and battery they are very heavy indeed[/url]
 
I suppose I don't get the need for an E-Bike when the vast majority of roads and trails accessed from a C-Dory will be flat.

I have a folder I used to use commuting (2 miles to the train station, ride Amtrak, 3 miles to the office) that weighs around 30 lbs.

I ride on trails sometimes and see people zipping along without pedaling and wonder "What's the point? You're outside, sure, but you're not getting any exercise..."
 
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