Comments on: Xtracycle Build : Getting it home

By: MontclairBobbyB

MontclairBobbyB — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:42:38 +0000

Arleigh:

Thanks to you, there’s a new lease on life for my 650B Ala Carte… Thanks for the inspiration!

Peace,
BB

By: Alex Y

Alex Y — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:03:23 +0000

Good to know. I guess I’ll have to give it a try if I ever make it back there. No better way to know a city than on the bike.

By: Ghost Rider

Ghost Rider — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:52:06 +0000

I figured as much…it’s pretty fun to document the process and I think lots of folks will appreciate a step-by-step tutorial (especially when they see how easy it is to put one of these beauties together)!

By: Arleigh

Arleigh — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:47:51 +0000

Ghost Rider – I needed to document the whole process and taking up shop space for 3-4 hours wasn’t going to be good for me or my sanity.

By: Siouxgeonz

Siouxgeonz — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:40:06 +0000

+1 on Columbia! Getting over the water

By: Ghost Rider

Ghost Rider — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:58:17 +0000

Arleigh, this may be a silly question, but why didn’t you just build your Xtra up at the shop?

By: Arleigh

Arleigh — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:09:30 +0000

Alex -

Riding in Charlotte isn’t too bad. I’ve lived in many major cities, Boston, DC, Baltimore and the worst was Columbia, SC. You simply need to know the area, and the roads you can ride on. Be smart.

By: Arleigh

Arleigh — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:08:24 +0000

Scott- I think 700x 38 is the limit on the Xtracycle. Thankfully my wheels are shorter so the tire size is fitting in the fatter area of the frame.

By: Alex Y

Alex Y — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:35:51 +0000

I am a new reader of the site and I am amazed you are carless in Charlotte, NC. I grew up in Asheville and a lot of my friends lived in Charlotte. After spending some time there I would never get on my bike in that city. I ride the streets of Manhattan almost daily, but they at least tolerate bikes here. It seems like in Charlotte they might make a sport of running down cyclists. Maybe I’m being judgemental but that’s the impression I got. I have a great respect for you and your efforts in cycling.

Just to tie this note to this post, I love reading about Xtracycles and wish I could get one but I could never get it up the stairs much less store it even in my decent sized apartment. Also, it seems ironic that transporting bike parts on your bike is always awkward. I’m sure I looked kind of odd when I had an Ebay frame strapped to my back and two forks sticking out of my bag riding my schwinn road bike to get the frame to the shop for some work. Keep up the great work, I can’t wait to see how this bike turns out.

By: Scott

Scott — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:48:02 +0000

I can see how the bus driver would have taken that frame for a crutch. Funny.

Will you still be able to rack the long bike on the bus? It would seem to me that it would no longer fit in the bus rack’s wheel wells.