Bike Friday
Friday, August 24, 2006

Bike Friday is on a mission:

Save $, get healthy, use less energy, emit less carbon

It is time for Bike Friday to focus on being part of the solution for High Gas prices, Global Warming, our national obesity epidemic and the high cost of personal transportation.

Originally we were focused on just creating a solution for people wanting to bring their nice custom bike with them to far off places. We then realized that a folding bike can solve many more travel problems than just air travel. People must get many places daily to live an active and productive life. Since the bicycle is the most energy efficient transportation machine of all time you can solve daily transportation problems with the bicycle package thats right for you.

We feel strongly about this. Bike Friday founders Alan and Hanz Scholz are taking steps to waste less energy and decrease global warming in their personal lives. Alan rides his bike to work every day of the year and Hanz commutes on his bike often. Hanz is currently installing a full solar photo voltaic system on his house. Alan's daughter Hanna Scholz (Bike Friday Marketing Manger) lives car free, she walks or rides her bike to work every day and has installed a full solar photo voltaic system to run her house.

8 out of the 31 Bike Friday employee's ride bikes or walk to work daily. Alan and Hanz are also starting an incentive program to encourage the rest of the Bike Friday Employee's by giving them a bonus if they ride their Bike Fridays or use public transit to get to work.

Bike Friday also runs on %100 wind power for all our electricity needs.

Lots of Bike Friday customers have liked their bikes so much that they have decided to use them for their daily transportation needs. Here are just a few along with several resource links to help you picture yourself using your bike for more of your daily travel needs.



"I got the Crusoe to fold for the bus in case the bike racks were full. In a year and a half, they never have been. We did make it onto the local "Smart Commute" TV ad. This is me and 'Moo' on the way to catch the bus for our morning commute. Our regular mocha is just one stoplight away. We hit the road to work at home in North Carolina or in Philadelphia, England, France and (next time) Italy. (Photo by Tom Fuldner) - Doug Wilson.

COMMUTING ON A FRIDAY?

Bike Friday owners tell how they do it:

Michael Rasmussen's Commute Challenge: Follow our very own Pocket Llama owner and born-again commuter Mike Rasmussen on his daily ride through life

Franklin Furlong: 2x Bike Friday owner gets all poetic about commuting

Monday to Sunday on a Friday: Wesley Lum, hardcore commuter

Car-free and carefree on a Friday Their other Bike Friday is a Bike Friday

INTER-MODAL COMMUTING ON A FRIDAY Using your bike in conjunction with trains, buses, cars and ferries

SF to Davis and back using the BART, Amtrak, the Friday, there and back


Read about John Fricke's Bike To Work day

STOP PRESS: TAX-FREE BIKING! May 11, 2006:

The bicycle may finally be taking its rightful place in the passing lane thanks to a new bill introduced in the Senate last month that would give employers a tax incentive to offer employees $40 to $100 a month to cycle to work. Read about it here. This is none too soon given the ground-breaking initiative in the UK that Fred the BF Parakeet paraphrased sometime in 2005 ...

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THE CYBERWORLD OF CYCLE COMMUTING

There are numerous sites about bike commuting, ranging from the pragmatic to the born-again evangelical and downright nutty. This listing was supplied by die-hard Bike Friday Salesguy and uber commuter Walter Lapchynski, who does his 35 minute commute on his fixed-gear Bike Friday which includes a sobering stretch on the delightful I-5. What are you complaining about?

Paul Dorn's brilliant How To Commute by Bike site: Incredibly detailed tips

Clothing for Bike Commuting: Or, how show up for a meeting without looking like a drowned rat

Commuting Safely: How to end up at your destination in one piece

Silverio's Tips: C J Silverio's tips to compare with Paul Dorn's

Sheldon Brown's Beginner Cyclist Page: Tips for the absolute beginner by cycling luminary Sheldon Brown

Bike Summer's Commuting Tips: A Reader's Digest condensed version of what you need to know to get started

Locks and Lights: Make sure your bike is still there where you left it, and be seen on the way home

Bicycle Transportation Alliance Bits'n'Bobs: Some merchandise you can wear en route which also supports a great advocacy organization

The Cycling Congressman Earl Blumenauer: You're in good company - we need more politicans like this

Cycling and the Senate: One of the country's most respected bicycle advocacy organizations, The League of American Bicyclists, keeps you up to date on the latest cycling breakthroughs in the Halls of Power. Note: LAB members get special discount on a custom Bike Friday. See their entry on the Bike Friday Links Page for details

A to B Magazine: A rainjacket-sized little journal chock-full of articles about folding bikes and alternative transport, and oh, so delightfully British!

Dear Friday Community,

I recently purchased a BF Pocket Tourist. It rides nicely and is very easy to get into cars, on trains, etc. I don't know why I didn't get one sooner, given my constant multimodal commuting. It also supports our commitment to being a single car family.

This morning, I used my Friday on the Minuteman Bike Path to take my young sons to the Reenactment of the Battle of Lexington. Even though it was dressed like the enemy, with it's very properly British red coat of paint and all, it was a revolution unto itself.

Because it is small, it was easy to get into the car so we could drive over to the bike path at 4am. We followed the path in the moonlight, on an old rail line parallel to the battle roads of old Menotomy. Since the Friday folds, we were able to take a young friend of my son's (and his bike) back from the event so his dad could go straight to work. My son Ian says "wait a minute - we have too many bikes. How will we fit him in?". I reassured him that I had it figured out. Says Ian "Oh! I know - your bike can fold up into the front seat!".

With that, we were off to the all-you-can-eat pancake breakfasts of Patriot's Day - a Massachusetts tradition.

Best to all in Freedom, Kate Parker Adams, April 2006
Bike Friday Club of Boston

The very worthy bicycle advocacy organization, League of American Bicyclists have posted a short commuting questionnaire for you to fill out. Bike Friday born-again commuter Michael Rasmussen has already lodged his as you can see here. Click on the link on that page to lodge yours.

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PROVING THAT for all the glamor of bike racing and performance riding, it's the more mundane use of a bicycle that can really enhance your daily life, authoritative roadie bible RoadBikeRider.com recently spoke about the joys and benefits of bike commuting. And when you have a folding bicycle, there's more joy.

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Permalink to the article: Permalink: http://www.bikefriday.com/bf/commuting


Inter modal* Biking
Special Offer!

Your choice Free Fenders or light set and saddle bag

If you order your Bike Friday by Sept 14th you get your choice of Free Fenders for those wet commuting days or a bike light set and saddle bag to prepare you for those short dark days. AND if you promise to commute with your Bike Friday to work at least 1 time a week we will give you an additional $50 off your order. Give us a call 1-800-777-0258.

-Mention magic code 1289.
-Not to be combined with other offers.

*inter modal - a bicycle that fits into various forms of transportation easily.


-- News from the fold afield --

*ONLINE STORE NOW OPEN* Order your Bike Friday goodies 24/7

*TOUR DE FRANCE ON A FRIDAY* Oui Oui!

*MISSING PERSON* Desperately seeing John Finley Scott, MTB pioneer?

*PICOS DE EUROPA* Four British Fridays hit the hills

I've wasted years riding other bikes ... new BF Club of Boulder leader raves about his BF

*HEINZ STUCKE UPDATE* Off to Greenland on a Llama

*RAAM* Lon officiates on his Friday

*CHICAGO/WISCONSIN* Gal in the most bike-friendly city in the USA

*ROUTE 66 ON A FRIDAY* 2488 miles on the Mother Road

-- News from the shop --

*NEW SATRDAY* New photo of a Gal SatRDay

*STELVIO* update on this popular tire

*GOOF PROOF GEARING* A reminder ...

*MAINTENANCE* Keeping your Friday running til Thursday

*PRAISE* Why they ride a Friday

-- Tours and events ... get packing! --

*EVENT CALENDAR* Rides and events

NEW BIKE FRIDAY CLUBS! Boulder, Houston, Wisconsin Check the Event Calendar for scheduled rides
Aug 12-19: WISCONSIN CAMP Kicks off the new BF Club of WI

Mar 10-17: BF ARIZONA TOUR OF HISTORIC INNS AND HOTELS More fun than fast!

more friday-friendly tour companies

-- PLUS --

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