Bicycling Magazine reviews Co-Motion's Co-Pilot
Originally published in the October 2001 issue of Bicycling Magazine
Photos are not from the original review
WORST THING ABOUT THIS BIKE:Travel's no longer an excuse for skipping a ride. RIDE QUALITY A PRIORITY: This is a travel bike designed to be a good road bike. Other travel bikes are designed with foldability and portablility as principal considerations. On a group ride, you won't meet with the wariness small-wheel travel bikes elicit. (And all the coulings are hiddent between your legs, nearly invisible.) Plus, the standard-size wheels and tires make spares easy to get and sidesteps any gearing issues you may have with a small-wheel bike. SEMI-AGGRESIVE RIDE: Our 60cm test bike's 74-degree head angle is on the steep side, so you can turn on a whim, confident the longish 42cm chainstays will keep you stable. The 73-degree seat angle and well-proportioned top tube (58.5cm) make it a good fir for most riders. Steering is quick and responsive, with just enough edge taken off to make it stable and easy to guide through the corners. The ride is smooth and supple, but there's good rigidity for big ringing hills and unleashing your sprint. CLEAN TOUCHES This bike is a beautiful piece of art, with natty little TIG welds, crisply defined head tube reinforcing rings, pearly clearcoat and smartly finished dropouts. The braze-on seat collar, head tube reinforcing rings, pump peg and bladed chainstays are disappearing on production steel- and it's a shame because they're functional, visually pleasing elements. |
Race-worthy steel road bike that fits in a suitcase
THE ONE THING YOU GOTTA KNOW IS...
travel is a snap. Couplings and cable splitters (for the derailleurs and rear brake) allow you to
disassemble and pack the frame in about 20 minutes- just about 5 minutes longer than opacking a
standard road bike; reassembly takes about 10.
Durable, clearly-labebeled Cordura and foam pads come with the case, and fastening them to their respective parts and tubes takes no lnger than removing the handlebar and wheels, and breaking the frame in half. S&S Machine's BTC couplings are exquisitely machined stainless steel couplings silver-brazed into the top tube and down tubes. The coulings, stronger and more rigid than the tubing they replace, actually strengthen the Co-Pilot. Once tightened with the supplied spanner, they're completely trustworthy.
Nesting the parts into the case is tricky the first time, but after that it's no more difficult than assembling a cabin from Lincoln Logs. The $270 soft case (26x26x10 inches [note-orignal text misquoted 27x27x10"]) can be carried like a suitcase, or hands-free with the tuckaway backpack straps. (A hard case is $360.) Hand the case over at check-in , don't mention what's inside and you save $150 in round-trip baggage fees.
The fact that this bike could, conceivably, serve as your one and only bicycle is only icing on the cake.
 S&S coupling locks with safelike security
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REVIEWED BY: Garret Lai |
(END OF REVIEW)
Note: Pricing and specifications for Co-Pilot models have changed. Please see our Single Bikes Menu
For more info on the Co-Pilot Option, now available on most Co-Motion models, please refer to the Co-Pilot Option page.
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