Aardvarks Travel Well

This is the inaugural multimode commute report on the Bike Friday Tikit. Thumbs up! There are things about the shifting and the feel of the bike overall that need to be dialed in. The tires are a little too soft, so I will pump them up. I find them bouncy right now. The grip shifter is really tight. It takes some force to downshift. I think that will loosen up as I use the shifter more. It might be my imagination but it seems even a scad looser already. Oh, but the actual use on mass transit itself...

The Tikit kicks ass for use on the Metro Train. I have read just about every blog/review/comment on the web about the Tikit, and a few people have said it is hard to roll when folded. Hogwash! This thing is easy to roll and easy to turn while rolling. I can even wheel it right on and off the train. The "gap" is no problem at all. I imagine a Brompton rolls easier overall, on its rack casters, but I doubt it could roll over the Metro platform/train gap.

Now, Bike Friday have made an upgrade/fix to the Tikit. The "handle" for rolling is a sort-of triangle on the frame, pointed to with the red arrow above, and known as the "aardvark". This replaced an older style handle that was recalled as some developed a crack over time. The new design corrects that, and makes a full loop handle. I think this new handle helps in holding onto and turning/pushing the folded Tikit. So thanks to the aardvark, I was rollin' easy.

As a reminder, my commute involves train and bus. So, A+ on the train portion. Scare on the bus portion! I used the front bus rack again. When I got off the bus to retrieve my bike, the spring-loaded swing arm on the rack that fits over the front tire, had slid off the tire. So, my bike was just hanging out in the wheel wells of the rack., possibly one big bump away from unintended flight. I damn near flipped when I saw that. It seems the tire is small enough that the swing arm had slid down the tire. (see green arrow pointing to swing arm in the pic).

The first time I used the rack this did not happen. So, I think I need to ensure the swing arm is really mashed down good against the wheel/on top of the front fender. This last time I think I was trying to get it to hug the tire below (in front of) where the front fender stops in front of the fork. Big mistake that could have cost me a bike. I don't imagine the Tikit would fare well hitting pavement at 55 MPH. "Uh, driver, can you stop so I can retrieve my bike from I-270?" Good luck on that one. Can you say "contemporary metal tubing wall art?" Whew!

Tonight I drive back with the bike safely in the car, so no worries. (there is no bus on Saturday and Sunday mornings when I get off work. It doesn't come for another 1.5 hours, so I shuttle myself on weekends). Given this scare with the Tikit, I will strongly consider using the bike cover and taking the bike on-board if I can. Most of the drivers are cool, and this morning the driver even asked me a bike question (about my helmet-mounted mirror) as I left the bus. Sounded like he did/wanted to do some riding. Alright! Happy riding everyone.