biking on the road

My boyfriend brings his bike with him. It is an expensive bike, so he carries it in the truck with him, on the top bunk. He uses it for transportation, for exercise, and just for a break to get out of his "prison cell" when the walls start to close in on him. Often he is too tired to ride, but other times it does cut the boredom for him.

 

I would not put it on the front. i have seen many drivers put it behind the sleeper.

 

I know this thread has been dormant for awhile, but it is a topic of great interest to me. Bicycling is my fun and my get away from the truckstop transportation.

Question: How the heck to carry my bike?? Oh, yeah, I've tried a lot of ways, but as a company driver, I am limited.

I have seen successfully done:
removing passenger seat to get bike in and out easily, (cant do - company truck)
Hooked between headache rack and cab (cant - van dragger)
Folding bicycle (did that - pooh on 16" wheels)
What I want to do is hang behind cab, and I thought I had it worked out using a quick release front wheel bar on the airflow wing brace and lashing the backwheel to the battery box cover (freightliner columbia). All was well until I hooked up to a container out of the BNSF. Yikes! First 90 degree broke my bike right in half!
Got Ideas?

 

I just copied my reply to another thread:

The truck I'll probably be in is a Freightliner condo, and I'll be more than happy to wrestle a full-sized road bike into the sleeper if it means not leaving it on the outside of the truck.
I've seen bikes strapped on to the back of the sleeper before, and I think it's perfectly do-able, but I do recommend a good cover to keep the water and road grime off.
Also, I'd suggest a decent bike tool kit (a bike specific multi-tool and a couple other items will do just fine for most things) and a short course on bike maintenance/repair. You can get the training at many good-sized bike shops, such as Richardson Bike Mart north of Dallas.

 

My old stomping grounds! I wonder does Woody still work the shop? I'm reluctant to wrestle my bike in and out of the cab because I'm sure to tear the passenger seat up before long. I wish I could see a full-size bike strapped and wrapped at the back of a cab. I am so mechanically declined... (pun intended)...

Next home-time, my son says he will find a solution. When he does (I have confidence in My Tech Sargent - brag brag) I will take pix and upload 'em.

In the meantime... can you give us a review on your $700 folding bike? Wheel size, ease of fold, gears, etc? Thank You!

 

My bike is a Montague Paratrooper, size XL (frame size is pretty versatile with this frame style), with 26" wheels. Most parts are readily available at any bike shop or online at Nashbar.com or any other similar outfit.
The bike folds in half along the seat tube, and the front wheel is removed with a standard quick-release lever. The front brake is a disc, so there are no tire-clearance issues, nor do you need to worry about knocking the brake out of alignment when mounting the wheel. The seat post is also held in by a quick-release clamp, and slides out of the tube when you stow the bike. I recommend having a thorough fitting session when you get the bike, and mark the seatpost where it's supposed to be on the frame. This way you'll be able to keep your geometry correct. (Very important!)
With a little practice, you can have the bike fully rideable (or stowed) in about 30 seconds. A minute if you're casual about it.

The tires were serviceable, yet heavy, Cheng Shins, and the wheels... ergh. I can't remember the brand, but they were schrader valved, and all my pumps are set up for Presta (cars and trucks use the former, and I've only seen Presta valves on bicycles), so I swapped for a nice pair, and mounted Kenda Krisp tires. These tires have side knobs for softer conditions, but have a relatively smooth center for easier rolling on smooth, hard surfaces.
I replaced the original riveted, stamped steel chainrings/crankset for a stout alloy TruVativ Hussefelt downhill crankset. I mounted some Nashbar SPD pedals for a while, which worked great, but replaced 'em with 'normal' flat pedals for the intended use of the bike (spur-of-the-moment rides, without taking time to gear up).
I also had to replace the stock seatpost with a longer one, to get a proper pedaling position for my 6'4" self, and I used an extender to raise the handlebar stem appropriately.
To be fair, my height and riding style brought about the aforementioned upgrades. A stock 'trooper oughta work just fine with just about anyone. The bike rides like you'd expect a mid-range mountain bike to ride: not as light and responsive as my old Cannondale ($1700 new), but then you can't fold the Cannondale in half, either.

I also added a quick-release rack and trunk bag, as I've used this bike for light commuting and riding into downtown during off time. The frame is stout enough to handle a good load, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to folks who need to lose a bit more than a little weight. Just remember to ALWAYS check all the quick-releases before riding off. I was in a hurry one day, and wondered why the bike felt squirrely... and found that I'd forgotten to clamp down the frame QR. Oops... fortunately they designed it so that it won't easily come apart on you even if you do make that boneheaded mistake.

As for gearing, I can't remember the tooth counts off the top of my head, but it's pretty standard 3-ring, 7 or 8 cog (depending on what was in vogue when your bike was built) drivetrain, with low enough gearing for loaded hill climbs. The higher gears won't support low-cadence/high-speed cruising like a road racing bike, but that's not what it's for anyway. Besides, I'm in no shape to cruise in the top gear right now anyway.
Also, there are a few less-expensive models as well, the primary difference being lower-tier components.

If anyone has any questions about this bike, or wants to talk bicycles in general, don't be shy. I love this stuff.

I wanna get back in shape and do RAGBRAI.

 

Oh... and about RBM... I used to join the weekend rides out of there. Even went with the first groups for a while, but I slowed down a bit and ended up splitting rides between them and the next bunch down.
Jim was the guy I talked with most (bought three bikes from the guy, including our Santana tandem), and while I knew some of the mechs by sight, I'm terrible with names.

 

That bike looks Sweet! I can tell you really do love this stuff. I used to own a trek touring bike. It was my pride and joy. Nicest thing I ever did for myself. Rode in the MS150 Red River Challenge 3 years in a row. We may have crossed paths. Don't ya know it's a small small world (even if our waistlines aren't) "( As soon as I submit this note, I'm gonna zip over to that Nashbar site and check out the bikes. Thanks!