About a month ago I fell down a YouTube rabbit hole, leading me to a few riders in Ireland and England documenting their journeys on their Bromptons. I’d never seen or heard of Brompton before and after reading about the design, I decided to find a dealer and take one for a very brief test ride. I found the bike surprisingly similar to my previous bikes in feel and was generally quite impressed. I live in an apartment and my previous bikes were difficult to get up and down the stairs and sat awkwardly somewhere behind some furniture, always making it a hassle to extricate, and consequently I didn’t ride nearly as much as I might otherwise; so I was really intrigued by this little bike that could.
I ordered a 6 speed explore in Ocean Blue and took out for its first ride yesterday; I think I’ve got the folding steps down (and actually find it kind of fun). I thought I might find the steering twitchy but really didn’t find it twitchy at all; I think the center of gravity might be lower than a non-folding bike, which ironically means I find it more stable and easier to navigate around the joggers and dog walkers on my local mixed-use trails. I also thought the I would take longer to adapt to the two different shifters, but honestly by the end of my ride I had become comfortable with them as well. I’m not a fan of the stock seat and have already replaced it; also the grips resulted in wrist discomfort so I’m trying out brooks ergonomic grips to see if that help, but otherwise it was a joy to ride.
I’m happy to be riding again and to be able to walk out the door bike in hand as quickly as I can put on a pair of shoes and when I get back it fits snuggly in my closet. I know its ideal purpose is for commuting, but in the end I found a bike that’s exceeded my expectations and is perhaps more fun than any other bike I’ve owned.
by Hidey-ho-neighborino