It's yellow. With full suspension. And a 14 speed rohloff hub. And a SON dynamo. Front and back carriers. Smooth leather seat. A stand. (A stand! must be an age thing...). And it folds. In 15 seconds. Without trapping the folder's fingers. Or toes. Or blackening their finger nails. Or traumatising their ego.
In its short life it has already charmed its way onto trains. And buses. And down to Cambridge. On night routes with cats eyes. Up and down curbs. On pavements. Lots of pavements (sorry officer). To the Scottish Parliament. To Scottish Enterprise in Stirling. To a wedding even. Into student quarters. And back out again. And into the Standard Life building. To Green Monday. With a lot of smart people watching. And out a couple of hours later through the aforesaid's revolving doors (on the third attempt).
It stops grown men in the street. Some of them give it a whirl. Marvel at the techie stuff. And old ladies. Och, look at that hen.... And young lads "nice bike Mrs!" And sniffing dogs. And clambering toddlers. And half dressed laddettes swaying slightly in the evening breeze.
When you've been run over by a truck you need a bit of a treat. Something comfy. That will treat your knee and foot with respect. That will potter up The Mound without causing a sweat. That will jump a curb at the first sound of a distant rumble. That will beg forgiveness from pedestrians on the pavement.
Yeah yeah. Whatever. There's a load of excuses for buying a high spec Birdy. But in the end we pay a fortune simply because its cuter than a cute thing - and nothing, absolutely nothing else is more important.
In its short life it has already charmed its way onto trains. And buses. And down to Cambridge. On night routes with cats eyes. Up and down curbs. On pavements. Lots of pavements (sorry officer). To the Scottish Parliament. To Scottish Enterprise in Stirling. To a wedding even. Into student quarters. And back out again. And into the Standard Life building. To Green Monday. With a lot of smart people watching. And out a couple of hours later through the aforesaid's revolving doors (on the third attempt).
It stops grown men in the street. Some of them give it a whirl. Marvel at the techie stuff. And old ladies. Och, look at that hen.... And young lads "nice bike Mrs!" And sniffing dogs. And clambering toddlers. And half dressed laddettes swaying slightly in the evening breeze.
When you've been run over by a truck you need a bit of a treat. Something comfy. That will treat your knee and foot with respect. That will potter up The Mound without causing a sweat. That will jump a curb at the first sound of a distant rumble. That will beg forgiveness from pedestrians on the pavement.
Yeah yeah. Whatever. There's a load of excuses for buying a high spec Birdy. But in the end we pay a fortune simply because its cuter than a cute thing - and nothing, absolutely nothing else is more important.
2 comments:
Hey Ellie! (?)
Nice bike - I'm looking for a folder, maximum budget £1500.
How do you find the ride of the Birdy? I couldn't afford a Rohloff hub, maybe just the City 8 speed Nexus.
It's a toss up between this and an Amiiva Quartz:
http://www.amiiva.com/
No front suspension (though there is a carbon fork option) but a proper rear air shock instead of an elastomer block.
Keep up the physio and the blog!
Derek
x
Hi Derek - I dont know the Quartz. The Birdy is a great ride - fairly heavy for carting around though - good on cobbles and off road - and will load up with full size panniers. The dynamo is fabulous, and the bike folds easily and quickly. They are over priced though! Am taking it to Mexico and El Salvador in the new year - which I guess will be the real test x
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