It’s a big day here at Bike Gallery. There’s a lot of buzz and excitement here today. No, it’s not just post-election emotion but enthusiasm and anticipation for our newest brand — Madsen Utility Bikes. The first shipment just arrived via special delivery by Jared Madsen himself. Jared did a hardcore drive from Utah to get here, sleeping at an I-84 rest area for a few hours, seeing the sun rise in the gorge, and pulling into our parking lot early this morning. Our first shipment of 30 bikes, which were packed into his pickup and a small trailer for the trip, were quickly unloaded — even owner Jay Graves was on hand to help Jared and our receiving crew stow the bikes and accessories in our warehouse. The bikes are now in the capable hands of our bike assembly crew. They are just getting uncrated so I’ve not had a good peek at the frames yet but I did help unload the colorful cargo buckets which do look totally bombproof. Jared also brought along prototypes of the locking lid and kind-friendly rain/sun cover he’s producing for the buckets. Talking with him and working with him to unload his delivery it is evident that he very proud of his work and I get the sense that he’s put a lot of thought into product materials and design. Oh, I can’t wait to take one for a test ride!
AND… if that’s not enough excitement for one morning we also got our first two samples of the Bullitt cargo bikes from Copenhagen. Named for creator Hans Bullitt Fogh of Larry vs Harry), these bikes are considered to be the best of the Danish cargo bikes and will provide another quality option for our cargo-carrying customers. Coming in at just over 50 lbs — which is super light weight for a cargo bike — the Bullitts also bring a bit of whimsy to their line with models like the Clockwork (it’s orange), the Bluebird ’71, and Milk Plus. I’m particularly intrigued by the small image of Chuck Berry on the Milk Plus. Don’t know the whole story there yet but it does add a nice bit of flair. The two that arrived this morning are not yet available to purchase but they will be available to view on Thursday evening during our Madsen unveiling. We’ll see more of the Bullitts late winter or early spring so stay tuned for details about these bikes, including how to get one of your own.
2 Comments
Not that either bike would be ideal for touring, but which would be preferable if one had to choose between the two?
I’ve heard the small front wheel on the Bullitt makes rough terrain difficult. But I’m sure the Madsen is much heavier, being made of steel, and the cargo platform is higher.
I don’t have any way to test ride either, so I’m just using the “how do they ride as touring bikes?” to get an idea of which I would like better.
My vote would be for the Madsen, having ridden both bikes under load. Besides handling charactics, the Madsen is a simpler design with more conventional parts, so repairs on the road are probably easier. And the non-bucket version of the Madsen has a long built-in rack, where you could attach several sets of panniers almost as low as gear on the Bullitt.