Is there an advantage in locking the forks on pavement? Is it for people who were really missing that feel of every little imperfection the pavement on their arms?
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I was confused by this too
I have had a multi-year obsession with Bike Friday.
Folding bicycles is a fun topic as are cargo bicycles.
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Got myself a boston model, which fit great in the trunk of my smart car. I have yet to try it in my new chevy spark.
At just over 6’, I love having a full frame bike that fits into my compact car lifestyle.
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Our teenage son acquired one of these when a friend moved, and it has been his primary means of transportation for the last three years. It’s honestly a very good bike - he LOVES it, and we love the fact that it can fit in the trunk of our Camry when folded. We’ve upgraded most everything on it to make it more suitable for a street commute, and in the process pared the weight down to an honest 26.2 pounds.
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Pedaling motion causes some up and down movement in the bike, which the shocks will dampen. This is lost power, so more work, less speed/distance. Generally, lock outs are common on serious mountain bikes for uphills.
There isn’t much gain if you’re a smooth pedaler on smooth surfaces though.
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The Paratrooper. Saw one of the Hummer models on the street the other day.
I got a fork with longer travel that can lock out. Mine was an old one that didn’t have this feature but it sounds like the new ones do. Part of my commute is on singletrack with tree roots and I appreciate the shock absorption. On the pavement it can be too bouncy so it’s nice to be able to stiffen it up.
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My buddy loves Surly–I can understand why you’d be sad to let it go. I’ve no experience with their other bikes but haven’t found anything really bad about them online. You’d likely be happy with a Montague.
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We’re fully nomadic. We live in a 40’ diesel RV and seldom stay in RV parks. Our migration takes us from Canada to Texas and Mexico. Not all roads are suitable for our rig along the way.
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Ayyyy, $1000 seems a little steep for Suntour XC, mechanical discs, and lower-end Shimano (admittedly better than Suntour’s derailleur offerings. You’re paying a lot more for the folding capability. 32 lbs isn’t that light for a mountainbike. Some of the lighter bikes with the right components get down near 20 lbs, and that’s for actual XC trail use. But it takes carbon components to get that low.
Look into Tubeless tires if the rims will take it, and those Kenda’s will do tubeless. You’ll have to fill less, you’ll reduce weight in the tires (which means faster acceleration due to less rotational weight), and you can do lower pressures in the tire which means better shock absorption and grip. Also, it will fill in small punctures. The tubeless kit is like $40-50, and you can either pay a bike store to install it or DIY with a $60 compressor (not a little plug in car compressor, something with a tank that can dump some CFM into the tire to inflate quickly, or use CO2 cartridges). You only have to do it once or twice a year if you get them seated correctly, just keep the air topped off.
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The Brompton does that, and even has a couple little guide wheels on the fender to keep it upright in that mode.
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Very interesting! Have you ever done this on a bike?
Had been thinking about one of these, very convenient and I saw them all over the place when I was in Belgium. Not a huge fan of the small wheels though.
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No, I haven’t. I don’t travel enough for it to be worthwhile for me.
This. Especially going uphill - my daily commute had a net height difference of about 300m - suspension sucks.
In general, I avoid additional moving parts. I have a long history of neglecting constant maintenance, and suspension is a thing which needs constant maintenance. My current Raleigh has front suspension, and the seals are loose. Again. I couldn’t fix them myself during the last two years. The bike mechanic recently had a quick look, shook his head and said “U riding that? U brave.”
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Depending on where you go, bike shed/garage/basement or even parking it on the street are options which might be culturally available. 
When I worked in rural Switzerland, one of my colleagues didn’t even lock his bike.
It got stolen, during the year, admittedly.
But I was dumbstruck by the very idea.
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