Dahon is the world's largest manufacturer of
folding bicycleA folding bicycle incorporates special design features enabling the bike to fold into a compact form, thereby facilitating transport or storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings, into workplace or onto public transportation — or more easily stored in compact...
s with a two-thirds marketshare in 2006. The company was founded by David T. Hon, a former laser physicist, in 1982 and is headquartered in
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
, with assembly factories in
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
,
MacauThe Macau Special Administrative Region , commonly known as Macau or Macao , is one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China, the other being Hong Kong...
,
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
and the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
. Dahon markets bicycles under its own name as well as other brand names, including
Ridgeback (bicycles)Ridgeback is a brand of cycles under the Madison Brand which in turn is part of the H. Young group of companies. Madison, based in Stanmore, Middlesex, also owns the Genesis and Saracen brands of cycles....
, the affiliated Yeah Bicycles, and Novarra for
REI-People:*Rei, the Biblical term for those who retained their allegiance to King David when Adonijah rebelled, as mentioned in 1 Kings 1:8*Rei Hiroe*Rei Igarashi*Rei Kawakubo*Rei Kikukawa*Rei Mikamoto*Rei Munakata*Rei Okamoto*Rei Omishi...
in the U.S.
The company is a member of the
Global Alliance for EcoMobilityThe Global Alliance for EcoMobility is a non-governmental organization founded and launched in Bali on 10 December 2007 , on the occasion of the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference...
.
Several Dahon bicycles use a patented single hinge frame design, whereby the handlebar folds down and the frame hinge swings to the left, leaving the handlebar inside.
Dahon is the world's largest manufacturer of
folding bicycleA folding bicycle incorporates special design features enabling the bike to fold into a compact form, thereby facilitating transport or storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings, into workplace or onto public transportation — or more easily stored in compact...
s with a two-thirds marketshare in 2006. The company was founded by David T. Hon, a former laser physicist, in 1982 and is headquartered in
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
, with assembly factories in
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
,
MacauThe Macau Special Administrative Region , commonly known as Macau or Macao , is one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China, the other being Hong Kong...
,
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
and the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
. Dahon markets bicycles under its own name as well as other brand names, including
Ridgeback (bicycles)Ridgeback is a brand of cycles under the Madison Brand which in turn is part of the H. Young group of companies. Madison, based in Stanmore, Middlesex, also owns the Genesis and Saracen brands of cycles....
, the affiliated Yeah Bicycles, and Novarra for
REI-People:*Rei, the Biblical term for those who retained their allegiance to King David when Adonijah rebelled, as mentioned in 1 Kings 1:8*Rei Hiroe*Rei Igarashi*Rei Kawakubo*Rei Kikukawa*Rei Mikamoto*Rei Munakata*Rei Okamoto*Rei Omishi...
in the U.S.
The company is a member of the
Global Alliance for EcoMobilityThe Global Alliance for EcoMobility is a non-governmental organization founded and launched in Bali on 10 December 2007 , on the occasion of the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference...
.
Folding bikes
Several Dahon bicycles use a patented single hinge frame design, whereby the handlebar folds down and the frame hinge swings to the left, leaving the handlebar inside. Biggest sellers are the models with 16 or 20 inch wheels, but models are available with wheels from 12 inches to 700C. Models are available with derailleur or
hub gearHub gears or internal-gear hubs are a type of gear system used on bicycles.Hub gears are used mostly on utility bikes and various types of small wheeled bicycle, such as folding bikes...
shifter, or both or none.
Models
Dahon in its 2009 product catalog offers 35 models of folding or portable bicycles in wheel sizes ranging from 16-26” with aluminum alloy or steel frames. Most of the 2009 offerings are true folding bicycles with some, like the Flõ mountain bike, using
RitcheyTom Ritchey is a bicycle frame builder, designer, welder and founder of Ritchey Design. He is an accomplished road and mountain bicycle racer.-Early years:...
"break apart" technology.
One of the company's best selling bikes is the Boardwalk D7, an entry-level, steel-frame commuter bike.
Special bikes
In 2008 to celebrate 25 years of production Dahon produced a special edition based on the Mµ series of bikes - the Mµ XXV. 250 of these machines were produced.
In March of 2009 they announced that they would produce 1,000 sets of a special edition bike based on its Curve D3 folding bike with the Spanish design firm
KukuxumusuKukuxumusu is a company from Pamplona, Navarra, Spain specialising in clothing and product design. Its name means flea's kiss in Basque....
..
Awards
Dahon received an Innovative Products Award each for a folding bike entry and a suspension postpump, which combined an air suspension system and bicycle pump inside a single seatpost, at the 2009 Tapei International Cycle Show.
Smithfield Nocturne 2009 Folding Bike Race
The winners of the Smithfield Nocturne 2009 folding bike race, held in the Smithfield Market area of
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
, both rode Dahon folding bikes. Keith Henderson took first place in the Novice Commuter category riding a Mμ SL while James Norton was first in the Seasoned Commuter category on a Mμ EX.
External links