Dahon Allegro

This blog is all about design, right? So, why posting about a taiwanese bike? Because I'm currently in France for studying, so I would sale my soul for a performance bike that I could have brought from Canada and then travelled with. So come the Dahon Allegro. It's a full size road bike the folds in an airline friendly case. The idea is to avoid the pay for either the airlines fees and 500 $ plane-tough plastic box. The Allegro strenght is how clean is it's breakaway design. Just two special lugs, just 98 extra grams. It may sounds scary that the downtube is held to the rest of the frame by just a small collar, but it was designed by Tom Ritchey, so it inspires confidence. Ritchey's component have always been strong, functionnal and lightweight, without being overly complicated. So the Allegro should be. The frame is made from WCS steel tubing. Altough heavier than aluminium this frame is probably below the 3.5 pounds mark, the entire bike weighting just 18.3 lbs. The Allegro have an Ultegra 10 speeds drivetrain and ultra light American Classic wheels for just 2000 USD. So you have a fine steel bike for the less than you would have paid for a similary equiped bike. Pictures: dahon web site.