Scooting (Razor A5 vs. A6), and Folding Bikes

We got Henry a larger Razor scooter (the A6) for Christmas last year. He wasn't immediately taken with it, but Kate was very happy, since Henry would no longer be stealing her old Razor A5. But with the shutdown, he's using it more. During the early part of the shutdown, Henry and I took both scooters out for a ride around our neighborhood. It was fun, and a new form of exercise, even if there isn't a lot of dignity in an adult riding a kid's scooter. But as a guy who rides a bike with 20" wheels while wearing knickers, clearly I'm not too concerned about dignity.

So I ordered a Razor A6 for myself, then Kate wanted a new scooter as well, and suddenly the garage is a awash in scooters. A few weeks back, I had an idea for a "big scoot." I drove my car down to the Dublin rec center one Saturday morning (~7 miles away), and unfolded my Xootr to ride home:

I have to have some way to justify having two folding bikes while I can't travel. 

My plan was that we could have a pleasant glide down to Dublin (it's a net downhill), and then drive back. Unfortunately, Kate wasn't feeling well that Saturday, so it was just me and Henry. And, the prevailing winds pulled a 180 on us, and we fought a headwind all the way into town. But it was still fun. We packed a picnic lunch, stopping at the playground near our old house to enjoy our manly picnic of nuts, beef jerky, and Coke:

The Razor A6 has bigger wheels and a taller bar than the A5. It's marketed for teens and adults, and I'm pretty happy with it so far. One other key upgrade over the A5 is the folding release nut that also tightens the scooter, taking out the slack that gave Kate's old A5 the nickname "Ol' Rattly."

A few Saturdays later, the weather was good again, and it was Kate's turn. This time I took the Bike Friday for the ride home:

Maybe I just got lucky, or maybe I'm getting better at folding the BF, but this time the chain didn't come off, and I got it in and out with minimal hassle. And it rides so much more energetically than the Xootr. I'm starting to make a niche for each folder: the Xootr is for local rides with the kids, while the Bike Friday is for longer solo rides into town.

I had moved my front rack and bag to the Xootr, with an idea I might end up selling the Crusoe, but I don't see that happening now. I moved the bag back to the Bike Friday this weekend. The handling is much improved with the bag onboard--it's a little darty without it.

Kate and I stopped for lunch in Avery Park, where we saw this giant koi fish in one of the ponds as we left:

Kate and I have matching scooters. We had to add some stickers to tell them apart!