Interesting thread about Bromptons, and I'm genuinely surprised there is so much enthusiasm for them here in the Riv group. Regarding the low trail issue, I've always wondered why Brompton doesn't offer a higher trail fork since many riders use their Bromptons for commuting without much need to carry anything heavy.
Kind Regards Matt D ________________________________ From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Benz Ouyang, Sunnyvale, CA <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, June 20, 2025 8:38:48 AM To: RBW Owners Bunch <[email protected]> Subject: [RBW] Re: Any Brompton Owners Out There? Resurrection of an older thread! :) I bought a Brompton in 2009 to use in a bimodal commute to work. The Brompton took care of "the last mile" of the commute, bookending a 30-minute train ride. While Caltrain did (still does) allow bicycles onboard, in those days, there was only one train car that was set up to accept bikes. Those bike cars were often oversubscribed, leading to cyclists getting "bumped" (i.e., unable to board). A Brompton (or any folding bike) allowed one to bypass that restriction because they were not considered bikes but luggage (like backpacks) when folded. My Brompton remained in service when Caltrain added a second bike car to every train to alleviate "bumping", because it was fine for my "last mile" that was really 2 miles; much longer, and I'd had preferred a "proper" bike because I find my Brompton a bit flexy, takes a tad more effort to keep speed, and the gears on the 3-speed IGH are spread too far apart (33% jumps if I remember correctly, corresponding to almost 3-gear shifts on a more conventional "road" cassette). Nowadays, with the post-pandemic train ridership being dismal, and my employer offering a generous office-remote ratio, my Brompton sits mostly dormant. Note: if you're considering a Brompton, always test ride with a front load. Bromptons have low trail front geometry intended to carry front loads, and can get a bit squirrelly if there's no front load. You can get used to this squirrelliness, but it often catches riders who are used to more conventional mid or high trail geometry (of most other bikes) off guard. I often question why Brompton dealers send test riders out without a front load, because I'm sure they lost some potential business from this quirk. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this topic, visit https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/7fTQT-m5goA/unsubscribe. To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/07a6e5db-e477-483b-9bd4-d1768ee9217bn%40googlegroups.com<https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/07a6e5db-e477-483b-9bd4-d1768ee9217bn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/BN6PR1001MB2210704C2D12A542AD2014E4A17CA%40BN6PR1001MB2210.namprd10.prod.outlook.com.
