I’m looking for some hive mind input…
I run a small boat business in Salcombe Harbour which needs diversification. I had a thought that people might like to hire fatbikes from my little car park to ride round the local beaches and bridleways and explore local villages (& pubs).
So, would you hire a fatbike to liven up a day on the beach, or give some members of the family an alternative to sitting around on the sand?
Do you think people like on-one would do a deal to supply (or part-supply) basic fatbikes in return for marketing & potential sales? Alternatively I was thinking of buying them up from people who have got bored of them!
(I’m aware what salt & sand do and I’m comfortable with doing lots of mechanic work!)

There’s a place on the gower that does this, seems like a fine idea if you ask me.

Great idea, yeah I’d hire one.

You gonna supply lifejackets too, just in case?

Good idea, put extra bouyancy on them so they can be recovered!

Which place were you thinking of Prawny?

I work in bike hire (and transport) in Inverness and I don’t think I’d even go near this 🙂

The ACT and CTC have Bike Hire Guidelines documents you might want to read. They’ll give you some idea of what might be involved.

https://www.actsmart.biz/uploaded_files/cycles-files/C3.%20Hire%20guidelines.pdf

http://www.cyclinguk.org/sites/default/files/ctc_hire_standard.pdf

I’d be very surprised if any manufacturer will give you a “deal” and AFAIK On One are pulling out of fat bikes anyway (the market has peaked apparently).

I’d also advise against acquiring a rag-bag of makes and models. Fatbikes standards are all over the place with hub widths, front hub disk spacing, BB lengths, crank spacing etc. You’d want to have everything the same. Have a look at the Calibre Dune or the Voodoo Wazoo if you want cheap/decent bikes but be prepared for a high maintenance cost – especially given folk are bound to end up in the sea with them.

You’ll want a range of sizes. You need to work out what your market is. Mostly, I suspect it would be non-cyclists looking for a wee spin. Once they work out that pedalling on soft sand is really hard work, they might not get very far. Also work out the safety issue – are there spits/coves etc that folk could get to and would land them in trouble?

Thanks scotroutes! some really useful stuff.
I was thinking of a ‘manky’ (map/hanky, an idea from Rotorua) to keep people on the straight and narrow, but there aren’t really any dangerous areas.

just got one of these from the LBS, it’s great.

About SplashMaps – weatherproof maps of anywhere on fabric

Nice! Cheers Mr Thumb. A charming advert, just what I had in mind.