"Swiss Army" Bike - Dahon Tailwind Bicycle

I was recently given a bike in exchange for cleaning up my sister-in-law's bike. It was the strangest looking thing... almost ugly. But hey, it was free.

After I got it home I immediately hit the internet to do a little research about it. Turns out this Dahon Tailwind is a very famous (and surprisingly expensive) brand of bike. Its strange shape and size is a clever design that allows it to be folded in half with handlebars out of the way creating a compact package. This makes it an ideal bike for city-living or for people doing travels with limited trunk space.

Well in our house there are two constants for new bikes that come in: my son wants to try EVERY one (whether or not it fits) and he wants to keep each and every one. I thought this would be one bike that he would make an exception for because it is so... homely. It is the polar opposite to his other bike: a racy Specialized mountain bike with shiny loud modern paint, large wheels, a suspension fork, and many gears.

But I forgot one thing...as in the "Be Careful What You Wish For" thread, he loves gadgets, especially multi-function tools. And of course he did it to me again. He loves the thing! A bike that can fit into a suitcase and then be "Swiss Army Knifed" out into a fully functioning bike. I should have known.

I know, I know... wearing flip flops and no helmet. Yes, he heard about it from his dad.