8 speed vs 9 speed?
My friend let me try his Dahon Mu D9 folding bike and rode it around town. It's a nice looking folding bike, quite speedy, but I don't really have anything to compare it to since there's no bike shops within a 3 hour driving distance to even try other folding bikes.
I've been reading up on the topics in this folding bike section of the forum, and I think I know what folding bike I want to get. The one I want to get just hits the sweet spot in terms of price affordability and speed. I will be getting an 8 speed folding bike because the 9 speeds are $300-350 more expensive. and this is where my question leads me to. Before I buy the folding bike, I want to know something.
Can someone enlighten me on the difference between an 8 speed vs 9 speed for a folding bike? how significant of a difference is it in terms of speed/mph etc? Is 8 speed good enough for the price I'm willing to pay I plan to take this bike on weekend trips out of town (san francisco, southern california, national parks, joining the local bike rides that the LBS sets up that goes through rolling hills, practically all the riders have road bikes, but i dont want to get a road bike.)