Kona Ute

[SouthernBelle]

The 2 bags included are small, but it says it can carry 4. I'd just swap out to some big grocery panniers.

[KnottedYet]

I would love it if the Ute could use Xtracycle bags and braces and decks and expanders and footsies and blender and stoke-monkey and such. Xtracycle has developed some great cargo stuff. http://xtracycle.com/index.php

Where is that picture of SaraLou riding the Xtracycle on the passenger deck with her husband and her dog? (they picked her up at the airport, LouLou was in the basket on the handlebars)

Edit: here it is! scroll down a few posts http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...light=footsies

And, oh, the Sacha White Vanilla longtail (Xtracycle goodie compatible) is sooooooo elegant... http://bikeportland.org/2006/10/04/v...ame/#more-2241 Now, *that's* the mixte I REALLY want!

[xeney]

I just found out that the Surly Big Dummy is not compatible with the PeaPod (Xtracycle child seat), so it is out of the running for me. And the Kona doesn't look quite versatile enough.

That Vanilla long-tail just became my number-one object of bike lust, though. Wow. I have never wanted a bike so much!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Nope. I already knew about this one.

It isn't compatible with any of the Xtracycle components, and it only handles little baggies (though it can take two on each side). No passengers, no goodies.

Hi Knot,
But what about the large platform along the top of the back rack on the Kona? There seems to be a piece of something there to create a flat platform deck- isn't that for loading things on top of the rack as well as in the side bags? Surely they didn't create a long flat deck there and not intend it to be used?
The Kona reminds me a bit of the higher end custom Sweet Pea Farmer's Market bike:
http://www.sweetpeabicycles.com/blog...armers-market/
(Naturally the Sweet Pea is way more $, plus a long waiting list.)

[margo49]

These remind me of bikes we used to see in news clips from the Vietnam War. Or Red China (as it then was) when western tv was first allowed in there.
And bikes I saw in Asia when I was travelling in my misspent yoof.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Your'e right, Margo,
What's more, people in third world countries would be appalled at the kind of money we might consider spending on a bike to haul groceries home with.
On the other hand- it's less wasteful than buying a huge SUV just to haul groceries home.

[HillSlugger]

May I show MY IGNORANCE? I don't even understand 26:32 or 24:34 or (19 gear inches). What does that mean? How do you know this stuff? Do they tell you when you buy your bike? Can I look at my bike and know?

Sandra, the formula is you take the tooth number of the front chainring and divide it by the tooth number of the back cog to get the gear ratio. You can then multiple that by the diameter of your wheel in inches (generally near 27 for a 700c wheel) to get gear inches.

(24/34) x 27 = 19

I think I learned this last year from Sheldon Brown's website or some other website.

[xeney]

My husband is now pushing for a Yuba Mundo.

[KnottedYet]

Hi Knot,
But what about the large platform along the top of the back rack on the Kona? There seems to be a piece of something there to create a flat platform deck- isn't that for loading things on top of the rack as well as in the side bags? Surely they didn't create a long flat deck there and not intend it to be used?
The Kona reminds me a bit of the higher end custom Sweet Pea Farmer's Market bike:
http://www.sweetpeabicycles.com/blog...armers-market/
(Naturally the Sweet Pea is way more $, plus a long waiting list.)

The Xtracycle has "Footsies" that peg into the lower part of the frame so your passenger can hold themself in place (use a tandem bar for a hand hold if you need it). Since the Ute isn't compatible, you wouldn't be able to use either the wide load braces (like SarahLou is in the pic) or Footsies on the Ute.

Of course Kona intends the deck to be used! My goodness!! But they need to cough up as nice a range of accesories as Xtracycle if they want the Ute to compete! I love Kona (proud owner of a Dew and a Smoke) but I'm a little disappointed in the Ute. Nice deck, groovy. But two little bags per side or use another brand of little pannier, well.... Kona should hire me to help them design a bunch of accessories! (and give me a discount, eh? ) They should also hire me to tell them to make the Ute in a steel frame.

I'd turn a steel pre-2008 Smoke into an Xtracycle if I had the $$ or the need. Now I've got a trailer, so my cargo needs (for the moment!) are pretty much met.

[KnottedYet]

Oooh! That Yuba Mundo is cool! I love it that all these longtail cargo bikes are flying around!

I still yearn for a Vanilla longtail. Unfortunately, I think the trailer is gonna do it all for me. <for now! hee hee! >

[xeney]

Yeah, the trailer should do it for me, too, except now that I have actually met my daughter I am pretty sure she is going to hate it! She hates strollers, carseats, cars, and pretty much anything enclosed or confining. She wants to see and she likes to be outside. I'm not crazy about baby seats in general but people who have used them say that the longtail + infant seat setup is more stable than an infant seat on a regular bike.

[KnottedYet]

I would rather have put SKnot in a babyseat on a longtail than in a babyseat on a regular bike. (especially if I could've had a step-though frame)

He got a kick out of the trailer, so there was no issue for him there.

That Sweetpea is cute, like a Long Haul Trucker with a front bracket and basket from Riv or Ant!

[no_expert]

Typically I find these forums to be a great democratic source of information . . . and I try not to read too much into them. However, I really am getting sick of people who act like experts on every subject. I have been in the bike industry for 20 years and have been involved in the design of hundreds of bikes and/or bike products. Yet, I still feel that I have a lot to learn.

These long tail bikes are of keen interest, as I have owned several Xtracycles and think that their design is backwards. Don't get me wrong, the concept and function are great, but could be dramatically improved . . . and bikes like the Ute and Yuba are a first step in the right direction.

I've learned that Kona is working on several different types of bags and load carrying options. I feel that this is the way to go . . . why would Kona design the hardgoods (frame, deck, etc) around another company's soft goods? Also, the Xtracycle bags aren't really all that special in the realm of bags. They aren't waterproof, there are no zippered pockets, mine are chewed up from getting tangled in the drive train, not easy to install/uninstall on the V rack . . . . and so on.

Also, for the Ute, you can simply add your choice aftermarket folding motorcycle pegs . . . instead of the footsies (see bikehugger.com). I think this is a more elegant solution (and less expensive), as I have ripped off 3 of the fragile wood footsies by hitting stuff coming home from the pub.

In any case these things all take time to develop and test. There are complex manufacturer sourcing issues, international economics/communications, patents, materials availability, seasonality, graphics, marketing, pricing . . . all of these things and more have to coordinate precisely to make any product come to fruition. So, you can imagine why I get frustrated and insulted when I constantly read "they should just do this or that" . . . "if they hired me".

Stroke your ego somewhere else . . . it's ruining my reading.

The Xtracycle has "Footsies" that peg into the lower part of the frame so your passenger can hold themself in place (use a tandem bar for a hand hold if you need it). Since the Ute isn't compatible, you wouldn't be able to use either the wide load braces (like SarahLou is in the pic) or Footsies on the Ute.

Of course Kona intends the deck to be used! My goodness!! But they need to cough up as nice a range of accesories as Xtracycle if they want the Ute to compete! I love Kona (proud owner of a Dew and a Smoke) but I'm a little disappointed in the Ute. Nice deck, groovy. But two little bags per side or use another brand of little pannier, well.... Kona should hire me to help them design a bunch of accessories! (and give me a discount, eh? ) They should also hire me to tell them to make the Ute in a steel frame.

I'd turn a steel pre-2008 Smoke into an Xtracycle if I had the $$ or the need. Now I've got a trailer, so my cargo needs (for the moment!) are pretty much met.