the bike I ended up getting - a Brompton P6R.

• P-type handle bars
• 6 gear Sturmey-Archer hub (drive train)
• R for ‘with rear rack’, implying also ‘with fendors’

I like beer

That’s probably the most succinct reason. That, and I don’t really appreciate the ponch I’ve been developing.

Since I work as a computer programmer, I spend most of my day relatively sedentary. I have enjoyed Yoga and jogging as ways to exercise and have had a lot of success with them in the past. Unfortunately, I’ve been having a hard time practicing Yoga since I moved to Ottawa (where the Bikram community has mostly fallen apart), and running has proven difficult on my joints.

So, cycling is a great compromise!

Why a folding bike?

A few weeks ago I was watching Netflix with my girlfriend and her sister, and we settled on “The Barkeley Marathons”, a documentary about a crazy, multi-day race in the US, about the length of 5 marathons. Somewhat incidentally, one of the (European) contenders rode a folding bicycle to this rather eclectic race.

It mesmerized me! The bicycle (which I haven’t confirmed was a Brompton since watching it, but I suspect it is) handled all his gear, and got him across multiple continents. When he got to the race, he just folded it up neatly and stowed it away.

I actually already had a bicycle, which I have had for years - but I don’t use it much now that I’m in Ottawa. This is mainly for two reasons:

• Living in an apartment, a bike takes up quite a lot of space. So, I typically have to store it somewhere quite out of the way since I don’t use it often. This makes me use it even less, because now it’s also hard to get at.
• Another annoying thing about living in an apartment is that I have had to take the bike up and down stairs or in an elevator, which is quite awkward and a real test of patience. This forms another negative association to using the bike
• My bike is in a very poor state of repair because it has spent much of its life outside, and it’s not very enjoyable to ride.

All of these issues are solved with a folding bicycle:

• It takes up very little space, and fits pretty well anywhere. It doesn’t get in the way at all, and is easily moved.
• It’s super easy to carry up and down stairs, it’s like holding a brief case.
• Since it can stay inside, it won’t be as exposed to the elements. Also, since it’s a bit more of an investment (and my last bike fell to shit), I’m more inclined to actively take care of it - so riding it will continue to be enjoyable.

Wait, aren’t folding bikes slower or less efficient?

Well, I did quite a lot of research on this before my purchase. At first glance, you would intuitively think that they are for one apparent reason - the wheels are significantly smaller. In my research though, I discovered that this really isn’t so simple.

The average bike wheel is 26 inches (that’s the diameter of the rim). This is fairly standard for road and mountain bikes. BMX bikes use 20 inch rims, and a bunch of older bicycles use these as well. The rims on the Brompton are a mere 16 inches - this is the size you are likely to see on a child’s bicycle; it is perhaps the most distinguishing and immediately apparent feature of a folding bicycle. There are a number of other folding bicycles with 20 inch wheels, but you won’t find a Brompton with anything other than 16 inches.

So, a smaller wheel means that you need to turn it more in order to cover more distance - that’s not up for debate, it’s a fact. You might then think “oh, that means I will need to pedal faster or harder to go the same distance at the same speed”. That is simply not true. The pedals do not turn the wheels - the gears turn the wheels. The efficiency and speed of the bike have much, much more to do with the gearing of the bike than the size of the wheels. Smaller wheels are actually mechanically easier to turn. So, if you rotate the pedal a single rotation, the gearing of the bike’s drive train can cause the wheel to rotate multiple times, resulting in you actually covering the same amount of distance!

Where wheel size actually does matter a significant amount though is for:

• Impact / shock absorption: A mountain bike is more likely to hit a tree stump or a rock, so having a large wheel makes this easier to overcome, as the obstacle will strike the lower.
• Stability: In the case of a road bike, a larger wheel means you can go really fast without having to deal with wobble.
• Maneuverability: A larger wheel means you have a larger turning radius (meaning you are more stable), but less maneuverable. This is why BMX bikes have smaller rims - they need to be more maneuverable.

So, all this to say - no, the smaller wheels are not less efficient at all. However, you should definitely invest in at least a 6 speed gear hub if this at all concerns you.

As a point of fact, I have been able to zip past many people on my Brompton already, and I’m not even in very good shape right now.

Why Brompton?

In my research, Brompton really came up over and over again as the best quality folding bike. They’ve been in the business of folding bikes a long time, and pretty well all the other modern equivalents seem to just be imitations.

The two biggest factors that brought be to ‘definitely Brompton’ though - aside from the quality - was that it was the best fit for my own physique. I looked at the MEC Origami, several Dahon bikes, and a few other folders - nothing could take a 6’4” person of my weight. Not really a problem for Brompton though!

Brompton is also though, by a wide margin, the most expensive. In my case, I don’t have children, I have a well-paying job, and I don’t have a car. I allocated a certain amount of ‘transit’ budget per month, and since I sold my car I never really use it. I justified the decision to myself as “well, I want to exercise more and I can consider this part of the transit budget”. So, after agonizing of it for a day or so, and doing a lot of research to make sure I knew what I was getting into, I decided to take the plunge and by the darn thing.

I haven’t regretted it!

Progress so far

The recommended maximum weight limit of the Brompton is 242 pounds. On the day mine arrived, I clocked in at 250 pounds. I happen to be a tall guy, but the extra weight is definitely getting to be quite noticeable on me (and, I place the blame squarely on Ottawa’s delicious craft beer scene!).

So, my first goal has really been to just get within the recommended weight tolerance of the damn bike! I’m happy to say that after 2 weeks of riding every day - 225 KM later - I’m down to 245. A couple more weeks at this pace, and my fears of causing premature structural wear on the bike will be abated. To accelerate the process, I’ve been cutting back a lot on beer and other snacks, and being much more conscious of my approximate caloric intake and expenditure.