Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Terry Burlington


The Burlington from Terry Bicycles made its debut recently at the 2011 Interbike. Want to have a better look? Velouria of Lovely Bicycle has a nice photo of the Interbike display bike here. The Burlington is expected to be available in stores in late December and the MSRP is $749.

The Burlington (Terry is based in Burlington, Vermont) looks like a class act... it comes with fenders and a rear rack, both painted to match the frame. It also includes a kickstand, matching 26 x 1.5 tires, and a bell. Terry opted to go with a Shimano Altus 8-speed rear derailer rather than an internal gear hub. Here are the specs (click on the photo to make it big):


Essentially, The Burlington looks to be an upright, comfy, steel city ride. Terry's slogan for The Burlington is "Ditch the car and go green on our new commuting bike." The bike itself is green, deep evergreen, but it will also be available in pearl.

Georgena Terry founded Terry Bicycles as a brand of bikes that fit women. Women, on average, are smaller than men, and Terry typically offers smaller sizes. The Burlington will be available as small as 41 cm. Nevertheless, men can ride this bike, too, although they may want to swap the Terry Liberator saddle for something else (Terry is famous for its saddles that accommodate women's anatomy, but they sell men's saddles as well).

Still, it's great to see commuter bikes marketed specifically to women. There really aren't that many (Metaefficient had a nice roundup in 2010). Just as there is a gender gap in the sport of cycling, and there's a gender gap when it comes to riding bicycles for transportation. Elly Blue has an interesting commentary on the subject. With The Burlington, Terry is offering an answer of its own.