Bikes in the Med??

[freeman]

Do we take out bikes to the Med. We shall be away for 3 to 4 years.
Advice urgently sought as the bikes do take space on a 36 footer, but are useful.
Thanks in advance for all the good advice

 

[baggypipes]

have carried ours for two years wouldn't be without, often needed for quick shopping trips, they are fold up & even fit in the dinghy when we are at anchor.
if you can suggest you take them better than being sorry

 

[ccscott49]

Yep, take them, be very useful for shopping, sight seeing etc, etc. They do fit in the dinghy I take it?

 

[absit_omen]

We had six years in the Med. My advice is:

1. No need to buy them untill you need them. So little point in dragging them all the way from UK. We found that we hardly used them in the summer when at anchor and in the winter we ended up just buying the supermarket specials at 49 euro.
2. Do no buy anything expensive as they will deteriorate rapidly in the marine environment
3. Accept that they will eventually be stolen (we lost three in spite of chaining and locking)

Having said that, I would not be without one.

 

[TigaWave]

Yes and as as Anteak says, buy cheap ones locally S/H or bargain ones, I took my own racks and bags but the bikes were disposable. I'd also always go for full sized mountain bike, as I hate the fold ups on what is sometimes a rough track to the anchorage.

Carried them on the stern sometimes, they got rusty quickly, but they worked, a can of WD got them going again.

Next time I'll invest in a proper bike bag before leaving UK, keeps all the dirt inside and most of the salt water and spray out, wheels off they would have sat in the forepeak on my 40' boat.

 

[davidbains]

I suspect that most of the rusting bikes you see on decks are very rarely used.
This summer I will be buying a cheapie in the supermarket while living in the
boatyard, but I won't take it sailing.
It's easy to load up your boat with all sorts of stuff you think you may need.
But you then no longer have a sailing boat. I am trying to take stuff off my boat nowadays.

 

[scarlett]

I agree with anteak about delaying purchase but you will not get such a bargain in Greece and I suspect some other Med countries. Most communities on the coast in Greece do not have bikes, even for rent.
In Greek tourist resorts you can usually rent a motor scooter[MS]. You will be OK in France where push bikes are a similar cost or less, to the UK but MS rental is dear as are taxis.

 

[jerryat]

Definitely take them. One of the very best things we bought before shoving off cruising. We bought Bromptons which, though hideously expensive, are incerdibly well engineered and fold up small, so ideal on our 32 footer.

We have cycled up to 40 miles a day on ours, and seen far more of the places we've visited as a result. It goes without saying (I hope) that getting shopping back to the boat without them in most places would be a nightmare, as most supermarkets are sited on the edges of towns.

Yes, you can get far cheaper bikes down there (asuming the Med.) but they will take up FAR more room and deteriorate much more quickly. That's because they're too big to get below and sit along the rails or roped to the pushpit. I can't see any problem on a 36 footer.

 

[LadyInBed]

Not so mon ami. We couldn't have done without ours for trips to the supermarket and to collect fuel.

We carried 2 bikes on a 22ft'er

 

[richardwatson]

Anteak is right. Head for the nearest Decathlon and buy the cheapest bikes you can get, plus good padlocks.

 

[saltwater_gypsy]

Yup, Decathalon has excellent (Polish) bikes with 18speed Shimano and other good stuff for 75€. I think a folder is 90€.

 

[Jock89]

Definitely wouldn't be without my full-sized mountain-bike. With the wheels off, handlebars turned sideways, seatpost pushed right down, it'll fit under one of the single bunks somewhere in my 38 ft after I do some minor surgery under the bunk.

I try to keep fit with my bike & do some regular on/off-road training, to keep up the strength in my legs. I would think that liveaboard cruisers would find this quite important.? I'm not sure you could give any of these folding bikes a good hammering off-road. OK for the shops though.
Jock

 

[bazobeleza]

we got ours from the local supermarket in portugal for 45 euro each, they've lasted well and are well used by the kids.

It was throwaway money really, but the fact that they have survived the punishment they have had is a testement to their build quality.

 

[affinite]

I bought ours in the UK and took them our 34 footer when we relocated to Greece a few years ago. We wouldnt be without them. We bought alluminium so we dont have the rust problems reported here. Also chose foldable because, although not as good as mountain bikes, they can at least be stowed in the fwd cabin.
PS do get a rack on the back/or front- I forgot and regret it now.

 

[trouville]

Quote:"Yup, Decathalon has excellent (Polish) bikes with 18speed Shimano and other good stuff for 75€. I think a folder is 90€."

Decathalon? There closed tommorow??I look when there open,sounds reasonable.My Dahon 3 speeds sliping again,can hurt!As bad it puts me off pedaling at all!

SWMBO2 is keen on bikeing about(not sailing though)if there Dahon size we (she)may buy a couple

I hope my boat grows a bit with all this rain??Or will she shrink even more?

 

[JamesFrance]

My last boat bike was left chained to a seat on the Paseo in Palma in around 1976. We left it because it was a complete nuisance on the boat. Needless to say it had gone when we returned a few days later.

Now the really useful bit of kit is a shopping trolley, which can also transport gas cylinders and batteries etc. Those are usually alloy framed and take up little space, as well as being cheap to buy.

Walking is better exercise than cycling anyway.

 

[MrCramp]

LadyInBed, thought I recognised the picture!! Were you on this trip then??
http://www.kahawi.co.uk/Baker/
Scroll down the pictures to the last one.

I've got a Swin Ranger and fancy doing the "Baker" trip sometime.

 

[Jock89]

"Walking is better exercise than cycling anyway."

Depends how fit you want to be doesn't it.?
After weeks or months of cruising you'll have lost a lot of strength from the legs. A few good workouts on the nearest hills puts the strength back in quite quickly but you'll never get fit by walking.
If you can find space for it I think it's well worth the trouble of carrying a full sized MTN-bike. You get around quicker, see more of the countryside & get fit as well.
Jock

 

[farquart]

We had fold ups for our trip, could not live without them. excellent for doing the shopping and sight seeing. We stoped in Paris on the way back and used them there as well.

 

[2nd_apprentice]

But why stop there, when you can have the best of both worlds?

Seriously though: I've never been too comfortable with transporting more than a small bag by bike. I do own a chinese "flying pigeon" but I've never been able to load it down like they do!
A proper shopping trolley on the other hand would be brilliant for that purpose. So why not combine the two? You could even store the folding bike IN the trolley when not in use! Think I like it.