Is Carrying a Bicycle a Good Idea ?

[thinwater]

42-50+ foot boats and there is no room? It's simply a matter of priorities; what you want to take and what you don't. Whether you ride bikes as a matter of life style.

Space for safety equipment? I cruise with 5 rodes, 3 anchors, fenders, many dock lines, a Seabrake, and inflatable tender, lots of spares and all the rest. And 2 bikes on a 32-foot boat.

Perhaps I am thin on cleaning supplies and old parts, and the many things that accumulate on a boat we don't use. We aggressively clean out the "stuff" that builds in corners.

[conachair]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

You guys amaze me -- where in the world do you find space to store bicycles on board?!

I could get a couple into my lazarette, but the laz is already full of dinghy oars, fenders, mooring lines, buckets, things for cleaning and washing, shore power lines, kedge anchor & warp, spare lines, water hose, boarding ladder, etc., etc., etc. Modern boats don't have enough deck storage! Especially center cockpit boats!

Mine gets folded up then tied to the ceiling in the forepeak with webbing. Not the easiest of exercises up or down but more than worth it for trips inland and easy shopping.

[S/V Antares]

I have a folding 6 speed Dahon in a sailbag lashed to the stays midship. I replaced the tires (Tyres) with higher pressure (90PSI) as I am heavy. It has served me well for 4 years routine maintence and Eureaka "Filmoil" has kept it like new. I can lash a folding trolly to the rear carrier and tow a load of groceries or several cases of beer

[buhrly]

I have wonder about taking the 50cc razor type scooters aboard. They wouldn't take up much space and pretty fun to ride. The bike rack off the back of the boat would definitely be a space saving item and give the option of using full sized bikes. Which sounds pretty good.

Buhrly

[Unicorn Dreams]

What amazes me, is that people don't know how to store small equipment on a large boat. And then male up stories about boats they have never been on.
As posted earlier, on a no storage CC boat that allegedly has no storage, we manage to store 3 bikes, not folding, just remove the front wheel and put them in the engine room which has plenty of room for probably 3-4 more if we wanted.

[savoir]

Not too many yachts have engine rooms.

[Unicorn Dreams]

Only about 25% of cruising yachts I see are CC's, and that is jusr a rough figure that I have noted in my travels..

[boatman61]

Maybe its just down to two different storage methods... those who like it 'Garage Style'.... equipment, lines etc hung and racked so's easily accessable....
or.... the 'There's a hole ... FILL IT' style...
Some just 'need' more space than others...

[capnorv]

I carried a full size Giant 970 on a 27' and 34' boat for about 10 years, on deck in a zip up plastic bag. I don't anymore, though I still use the bike. The logistics of getting the bikes in and out of the dinghy just got to be a pain. If you have a large enough dinghy, that wouldn't be a problem, mines only an 8' fiberglass and in any seaway, the bikes stayed on deck, wasting space. But bikes are definitely doable and useful in some circumstances.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by buhrly

I have wonder about taking the 50cc razor type scooters aboard. They wouldn't take up much space and pretty fun to ride. The bike rack off the back of the boat would definitely be a space saving item and give the option of using full sized bikes. Which sounds pretty good.

Buhrly

Actually, just regular razors are great when you have kids. Almost as good as a bike, and tiny.

When I don't carry bikes I still hide one of those; much faster than walking, particularly if you have a sore foot or back.

[Hillbillyfunk]

Bicycles put the fun between your legs! I want to weigh in on this discussion since I know way more about bicycles than boats, I ran an illicit re-cyclery in my back yard when I was still land based, I have built 20 or more monster bikes (tall stackers, low riders, bakfiets) and have given away at least 200 bicycles in the last 5 years.
Regarding a bike on-board, consider that walking 5 miles to get groceries sucks, cab fare is less food money, carrying 30lbs of laundry even a few blocks sucks. a bike with baskets solves these problems easily.

I had (literally) hundreds of bikes to choose from when I moved onboard, here are some of the things I considered when I chose my single speed 1968 Murry Montery

Small wheels don't handle bumps easily and it takes (me) more energy to get around with little wheels
Rats are attracted to shiny things, an ugly bike is less likely to get swiped.
pre-rusted bikes are already weather protected.
Cables are going to rust fast.... really fast
more moving parts is more crap to break



Waltzing Matilda is only 24' but I still have room to strap a full size beach cruiser on deck

[Microship]

I've been trying to find room for my BEHEMOTH bicycle, but I would have to trade in my Amazon 44 and get a barge...

(This weighed 580 pounds when fully loaded for touring, and had 105 speeds. It's now in the Computer History Museum. The name is an acronym for "Big Electronic Human-Energized Machine... Only Too Heavy.")

[Hillbillyfunk]

I read the book this man wrote (If I haven't mis-identified the bike), old school geeks and bicycles, reminds me of this guy
* Confessions Online

[Microship]

Ah, I read Paul's manuscript ages ago - good stuff!

As to my own adventures... I'm in the process of writing a combo book of the three bike epochs, long overdue!

[Sailing Mermaid]

Good morning,

We are also shopping for bikes to carry on board and very interested in others methods and suggestions for bikes, maintenance, storage, and transporting. The thread has been interesting and helpful. Thanks to all of you who've contributed thus far.

Please, could someone show us photos of their engine rooms with bicycles stored within? This seems incredible. The possibility of storing multiple bikes even more so!

Currently, the port cabin berth is the primary available storage for these two (hoped for) bikes. We'd rather not do this and will scour the boat with measuring tape when we return in hopes of discovering a more suitable location.

We just looked at a Raleigh 8I folding bike - 30 lb total wt, 20" wheels, 8 speeds, in hub gears at a cost of $650 each before taxes. :} Anyone have experience with this bike?

Thanks in advance for any assistance offered.

Sailing Mermaid