How do you cover your last mile?

One mile of runway can take you anywhere... that you can hoof it a mile to finish the journey? :)
 
That bike looks nice - but it is rather heavy. I have a Dahon Espresso, which has an aluminum frame - so is noticeably lighter. It is a model they don't make anymore (has 26" wheels - current models are mostly smaller).
Still, I'm happy with it. In fact I carry it in the trunk of my daily driver, and go for impromptu bike rides whenever the mood (or opportunity) strikes.
 
Depends upon the trip.

Youngest and went to St Simmons Island for the day a few times. Walked to a nearby bike shop and rented bikes.

Middle daughter and I went to Jekyll Island for a tri. We brought the bikes, but got the hotel shuttle to pick us up with our light luggage and my tri gear. We rode around the island wherever went we t the rest of the weekend.

Often we'll get a Uber/Lyft/taxi. Sometimes a rental car if we need to drive around more.



Wayne
 
I bought a dual motor 1,000 watt Mercane WideWheel scooter. Oh it’s a hoot or ride but let’s not kid ourselves, it’s nowhere as stable as a bicycle. Unlike a OneWheel or a skateboard however at least you have some handle bars to hold onto when you go down. I honestly wouldn’t take it down the driveway to the mailbox without a helmet on. The other downside is that it weighs about 50 pounds. My vision was taking it up next time to the High Sierra Flyin and scooting across the dry lake but chances are next to nil that I’d ever take it into town along an open road. For now it sits in the hangar and I use it to buzz around the airport and shoot the breeze with everyone on the weekends. Well, I used to until about a month ago.....
 
This has been an age-old problem. Most of the time what everyone said but I’ve never heard of a One Wheel before. Form factor is good but not a generational solution for me. I’m a skier but I want nothing to do with snowboards or skateboards. A suitcase cycle would be great however. I have forever been looking for the affordable folding bike with excellent form factor, tractability and weight, but would need two, one also for the wife.
 
MajorTurbulence said:
This has been an age-old problem. Most of the time what everyone said but I’ve never heard of a One Wheel before. Form factor is good but not a generational solution for me. I’m a skier but I want nothing to do with snowboards or skateboards. A suitcase cycle would be great however. I have forever been looking for the affordable folding bike with excellent form factor, tractability and weight, but would need two, one also for the wife.
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I've put two Bromptons in the baggage compartment of my 172, and with only me and a passenger there's the whole rear seat for baggage.

The contact points (saddle, crank, handlebar) on the Brompton M6L and the gearing with the small wheels feels virtually the same as on my custom Waterford RS-22 road bike, so even with the small wheels riding the Brommie feels similar to riding my road bike.

Affordability is pretty subjective; you get what you pay for. I've never regretted paying the premium for the Brompton.
 
Folding bicycle works well enough, but hate getting all sweaty for that last mile. So I have a folding electric scooter that works well and doesn’t take up much space. Only drawback is the battery in mine is not that strong, so I would recommend getting one with a strong battery to get some usable distance.

Otherwise rental car, crew car, or Uber/Lyft as needed.
 
Ride share, rental or crew car. Usually a crew car if I'm not going to be there long. Rentals often end up cheaper than multiple ride shares, especially if you anticipate doing more than just out and back from/to the airport. I'll walk a mile or so, weather permitting.

Martin Pauly said:
Walk, bike, crew car, rental car, Uber, cab - really depends on the circumstances, but I've done all of the above. Plus inline skates when I was a bit younger.

- Martin
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Of course, you have that bike roof rack for the Bonanza :p

MooneyDriver78 said:
Uber/lyft are only available in cities, I usually use small airports in small towns.
Last time I used a crew car I ended up taking the wrong one, fortunately they got word to the cops before they did a felony stop.
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You'd be surprised how spread Ubers are. Can even find them in small towns.
 
N1120A said:
You'd be surprised how spread Ubers are. Can even find them in small towns.
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Some places are still quite hostile to Uber. Like banned.

Been a while but I found a small Nebraska town where they were not allowed.

But the town had a cab company that worked just fine.
 
I’m trying to figure out how to go the last 13 miles. Thinking of flying once a month into a small town in Iowa and then would need to get 13 miles from there. Might buy a junker and ask to keep it at the airport.
 
N1120A said:
Of course, you have that bike roof rack for the Bonanza :p
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Right! :)

All kidding aside, the large cabin doors for my A36 help tremendously with loading and unloading full-size bicycles. And sometimes the destination of our flight in the Bonanza is actually a bike ride, in which case the last mile becomes the last 100 miles or so.

- Martin
 
Uber has greatly improved the utility of GA flight in regard to an increased value in transportation. Uber has greatly cut down my need to rent a car on quite a few trips. I am a big fan - it sure makes life easier now that you can get that service in almost any town of decent size.
 
I used to have this folding bike, and the name is as cool as the bike itself: the Honda Raccoon Compact Shuttle. Electric assist, with the battery pack fitting inside the main frame extrusion.

I bought it years ago on a business trip to Japan. Quite a sight at Narita, where I and an associate (who also bought one) had to box them up on site. We somehow got a hold of some cardboard and tape, and made these giant makeshift pizza boxes so the airline would accept them as luggage!

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I’ve had Uber and Lyft both fail me even in decent-size cities. Flying into Grand Forks for UND hockey led to multiple rides being accepted and eventually cancelled after wasting a lot of my time. Trying to get back to KGFK on Sunday morning when all the ride share drivers had punched out after a long night of rides between bars after the hockey game.

In my small hometown, I just checked and Uber lists prices for a ride across town but says “no cars available.” Not sure what would happen if I tried to proceed to request a ride. Lyft gives prices but doesn’t say if cars are available. I’m also mad at Uber because it started giving me spam notifications and the only way to turn them off was to turn off all notifications including “your ride was canceled” or “your ride is here.” (Specifically, it told me to try Uber Eats, and that people in my area are eating a lot of Chinese food. But Uber Eats is not available within 90 miles of me.)

I am always trying to find better options for the last mile when I’m in a suit. I can walk forever in sneakers and jeans, but showing up sweaty and dirty from walking on muddy gravel roads doesn’t fly for fancy business meetings. And sometimes the crew car won’t start, for example when you need it most.
 
I thought the "Last Mile" was traditionally done with the Warden and a guard at your side and a chaplain praying for your soul.
 
My wife and I have a couple of 16 inch folding bikes (not Bromptons) that fit through the baggage door and in the baggage compartment of the Tiger. They work ok for transportation alone, but I made the mistake of planning to use them to carry some cargo. During the peak of blueberry season we flew to an airport in the center of our blueberry farms and biked a couple of miles to a farm store to get a couple of flats of fresh berries. I planned to bungee cord the boxes to the luggage racks over the rear wheels of the bikes. But shortly after we got on the road the boxes began to shift and slide off the racks. Nothing I did corrected the problem. So we walked 2 miles back to the airport pushing our bicycles with their loads of berries:rolleyes:.
 
Stuff your shirt and hitch hike!
 
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