The Show Stopper
The IF Mode folding bike from New Hampshire-based Independent Fabrication and Taiwan-based Pacific Cycles is for sailors looking for a bike that is on par with their boat. (The company describes it as “the Aston Martin of folding bikes.”) When unfolded, the IF Mode gives you a smooth ride atop its 26in tires. When folded up, it looks like a unicycle from the future. But the really neat part about the Mode is the bike’s Swiss-made Schlumpf 2 Speed Drive gear system. In this setup the gear system rests between the pedals, so to shift you simply tap your heels against the buttons on the crank arm (tap with your right heel to cruise, your left to go climb hills). The Mode weighs just over 32lb and folds down to approximately 16.5in by 10in by 39in, though it looks so slick you might not want to put it away.
$2,750. Pacific Cycles, pacific-cycles.com
