It just feels really, really nice: like a BMX, as opposed to a big, heavy bike.
You tap in your credit card details for a small hire rate, then hoick the rather clumsy, heavy bikes out of their stand.
A heavy bike, driver and cameraman pushed me along the asphalt for nearly 40 yards before coming to a stop with my torso under the front wheel.
I'm pretty unfit, have a heavy bike and have done no training whatsoever, so am rather daunted by what lies ahead.
At weekends "Ae-Up" runs an uplift service to carry riders and their heavy bikes to the top: good racers are back at the bottom in three minutes.
The handling is surprisingly capable for such a heavy bike, and the 60-inch wheelbase makes it both steady at speed and forgiving over rough pavement.
I had a fanny pack when I started, and sent it home almost immediately — I stuffed a lot of junk in my handlebar bag — along with a heavy bike lock (I bought a slender cheapie instead and rarely let my bike out of my sight), and several items of clothing (T-shirts, undershorts, socks, a button-down shirt, the things you go overboard on no matter where you travel).
Many little details show that the team behind Haiku are heavy bike riders.
Harley-Davidson (Forbes, Mar. 10), which owns 46% of the heavy bike market, has a one-year waiting list for most of its bikes, including cruisers.
About half are what Harley is most famous for cruisers, such as the famous Softail, low, heavy bikes with big back ends that cost about $15,000.
