Folding bike downwinder.

[DavidJohn]

Having great downwind condition and having no one to play with can leave you very frustrated.. This happened many times last summer so I've decided to do something about it.

I've bought myself a folding bike that I can throw on the back seat of my little black zook and my plan was to lock it up at Sandy.. Then drive up to St Kilda.. Do the downwinder and once back at Sandy I can then ride my bike back up to St Kilda to get my car.. Then with my little folding bike back on the back seat again I can then drive back to pick up my board.. Easy.

Today I gave it my first test run and it worked great.. So I'll never miss another downwinder because I can't find someone to do the car shuffle with.. Here's a vid showing how today went.

DJ

[freetobeme]

Awesomeness!

[kayadogg]

Did you lock your board or just trust that nobody would take it?  How long did it take to bike back and then drive to your board?

[Bean]

Thanks for the inspiration, that's a great way to go.  Finding a way to secure the board should not be a huge hurdle.  

[covesurfer]

Fantastic video and concept!

Looked like some nice long surfs on the Glide too.

You are living the dream!

[surf monkey]

I liked it all nice job, the ride back shows what a cool place you live in.

Thanks

[PonoBill]

If the wind on the return trip is not too nasty you could add a mule carrier (or make your own) and haul the board back with you. I did it numerous times on Southside runs. The wind was often too rough and I flipped my board one time, which ended that experiment. I still do the bike shuttle, but I leave my board and pick it up.

I like the Croc Lock.

PS.  You're driving on the wrong side of the road.

[Mana Karma]

Definitely awesome.  How far is the paddle/bike?  Looks like a great day

I've done this before for distance paddles and usually drive my bike to the finish, then come back and launch... that way I have dry clothes and car waiting for me. 

[headmount]

That first glide went forever!  You closed pretty fast on that red log splitter.  Loved the thumbs up.  All looked great except the cobblestone street in the beginning of the bike riide looked rough.  After that you had many smooth great bike lanes to use.  Wish we had that.  To do that here means getting out on the road with the maniacs.  And like PBill said the wind blows real hard here even inland from the beach.  There's no refuge riding a bike into the wind.  Also leaving your board unguarded at HCC by Kahului Harbor is OK but almost anywhere else isn't. 

Loved the folding bike.  Clips or not? (you rode in croqs?)

[Muskoka SUP]

Gotta love a bike shuttle.. It's such a great workout when combined with a downwinder..
I did a few this past summer 'cause of no partners...
It's hard not to feel just a tiny bit smug about the whole deal... 

Thanks for sharing DJ, way to get some....

David S.

[PonoBill]

It's about a 50/50 for me. Half the time I feel smug and cruise back to the car, the other half it's a huge drag and I can't believe how far it is. Might have something to do with how tired I am, whether or not I surfed in the morning, and how late it is. When you're trying to beat the sun (dangerous enough without being dark) and you realize you're only halfway to the damned jeep all the smugness of doing a Maui Ironman (surf, downwind, bike) slips away. More like a Maui blubberman anyway.

[pdxmike]

Thanks, DJ.  I feel like I learn more about what it's like to live in different places from videos like yours than anything else--not that I necessarily want people to start wearing GoPros on helmets into the grocery store or office.  You have the greatest bikes, although I assume that folding one will get replaced someday when the inflatable bikes come out.

[DavidJohn]

Did you lock your board or just trust that nobody would take it?  How long did it take to bike back and then drive to your board?

I'm lucky to have a few options for leaving my board tht is 99% safe.. We usually leave our boards and come back and get them even with the car shuffle.. I'll have to check my vid again but I'm guessing it took about an hour to do the downwinder and took about 45 minutes to ride back at a caual pace.. The drive back only takes about 5-10 minutes depending on how many red lights I get.. 

DJ

[DavidJohn]

Thanks for the inspiration, that's a great way to go.  Finding a way to secure the board should not be a huge hurdle.  

Thanks and welcome to the Zone.. You could make a couple of metal tabs with holes in them that would fit in the in fin box and you could run the cable from the lock through it.

DJ

[DavidJohn]

Definitely awesome.  How far is the paddle/bike?  Looks like a great day

I've done this before for distance paddles and usually drive my bike to the finish, then come back and launch... that way I have dry clothes and car waiting for me. 

I'll check the ditance andlet you know.. I was dissapointed with myself because I fell in a couple of times near the end.. But the ride back into the warm north wind had them bone dry by the time I got to my car.. 

DJ