No riding this weekend - a storm has come in with fog and wind, rain and snow.
I was wondering if the six speed Brompton is worth the extra cost and complexity over the three speed so I found a web page that lists the gear inches of all the Brompton gearing options. It's at https://www.bikefolded.com/brompton-gear-inches/ Once you have the gear inches you can use the formula speed = gear inches x cadence / 336 to determine velocity. Let's suppose I keep my cadence between 50 and 80 rpm which is my efficient range.
Standard three speed gear inches are between 48" and 85". This gives me a velocity range of 7 mph to 20 mph. This is OK but a bit limited.
Standard six speed gear inches are between 33" and 100". This gives me a velocity range between 5 mph and 24 mph. This is very close to what I want.
My Serotta has a velocity range between 5 mph and 30 mph but I don't use the top end very much.
My conclusion is that the six speed is worth it.
One of the annoying things about taking bikes on Amtrak or a plane is the requirement to remove pedals and aerobars in order to box them. I just received some Flatbike removable pedals from Amazon. These pedals attach to the crankarms with one hand in just a couple of seconds with no tools and are removed just as easily.
I have some aerobars on order that do the same thing so I can remove a couple of the steps required to box up a bike. I just ordered my Brompton from REI - the M6L Black edition. I'll be using them on that. I see I can buy a rack for $170 on Amazon when I get serious about touring.
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