Taiwan In Cycles

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Missionary Killed On Bike in Taichung

Earlier this week and LDS missionary, David Smith Hampton, was killed while riding his bike within the space Taichung City has allocated for bicycle traffic. The 18yo. Utah man who had been in Taichung for approximately four months, was struck and later died of his injuries.

Regardless of what you think of LDS or to missionary project in general, it was another senseless death on the roads of Taiwan's central metropolis-- a metropole that sits at the doorstep of the bicycle industry, yet has no discernible space for safe cycling on the roadways.

The government does not keep statistics on bicycle deaths, so we can only guess how often this is replicated each year. Sad, but a fact of life and death for cyclists in Taichung.

Monday, April 11, 2016

Let Them Ride Bikes! : Toy For The Wealthy Makes Cycling Safer

Vox has recently published some very good articles on how bike share programs are faring in the United States and elsewhere with some interesting findings and it provides an opportunity to reflect and consider how Taiwan's bike share systems differ from those elsewhere, and how many of those differences are structural, political and cultural.

This blogger has been, as usual, critical of Taiwan's bike share programs and trails for being either dangerous, ineffective, wasteful, ill-considered or cynically shortsighted for political stature. While they occasionally get things right, there are still few places where the bicycle is treated like traffic. Taipei has even gone out of its way to encourage sidewalk riding in conflict with pedestrians. In Taichung, where I live, within 30km of Giant, the major player in Taiwan's bike share schemes, there is almost no space allotted for the bicycles on roadways. Still, with more bikes on offer, more riders are taking to the streets. Meanwhile, Seattle, a city with a mature cycling culture, is looking at a budget shortfall for its Pronto bikeshare program.

Vox points to the disparity of income and race in the use of American bikeshare programs.

Bike share users skew significantly whiter, wealthier, and more likely to be college-educated than the overall populations of the cities they live in. That's despite the fact that nationwide, the people who bike regularly are actually disproportionately low-income and nonwhite.

It is in this light that some critics feel taxpayer money could be better spent on other needs beyond a perpetually niche toy for the wealthy. As one critic pointed out in the TiC comment section:

But this is reality, and I make do with 150cc "Grand King" motorbike. And the reality is surely that for the majority of people in Taipei and elsewhere, bicycles are toys (and often very expensive ones) rather than a serious means of transportation. And so it is hard to see why should the Taipei city government spend vast sums of taxpayer's money altering public infrastructure for the benefit of a relatively well-off minority who already have alternatives available to them.

The great thing about Taiwan, is that its urban areas are still tightly nucleated clusters with high population densities spreading upward rather than outward. There is still a little bit of the egalitarian sense of space in urban areas where neighbors at different ends of the income scale can live in relatively close quarters without the income apartheid experienced in other countries. Daily needs are still within walking distance or a short distance from home. Of course, the housing bubble compounded by income stagnation is rapidly changing this... and not for the better and younger members of the workforce are pushed further and further from their places of employment. It is far more possible to realistically integrate cycling into the urban environment if there is the political will to do so.

Currently, through my own empirical observations, the majority of You Bike/Ubike users are students skipping the bus and still too young to legally drive scooters. These systems are cheap and efficient. There are stations mounted near libraries and shopping centers and places students use.We know that fossil fuels are limited and polluting, we know in Taiwan we regularly experience weeks on end of unhealthy air pollution from stagnant air held against the high mountains, so what is keeping the rest of the population tied to their cars and scooters? Are bike lanes really just a wasteful bone throw to the wealthy boys and their toys? Does any little bit to help count?

I am inclined to believe not. Remember that automobiles were once the domain of the wealthy and now look at the networks we have provided for them. If you build and enforce lanes for bikes in the cities and integrate them into other forms of transportation, like busses, trains and other forms of mass transit, it removes the obstacles that prevent a potential user from hitting the road. Currently, it is too easy for a user to find excuses for not riding. There is no space, it is inconvenient, the MRT station is too far, there is too much traffic, there are no places to park the bike. If those obstacles are removed, it clears the way for more bicycle use. The other thing it could do, is intentionally allow less space for the automobile, providing an incentive to non-polluting transportation or mass transit and a punitive for personal engine traffic. If the roads are packed and the bike lanes are clear, the bike lanes are bound to fill up. But that would take either environmental disaster or strong political will to implement.

In another article posted by Vox, the conclusion abroad is that bike share is safer than when users commute on their personal equipment.

Bike sharing has seen explosive growth since 2007, with systems in at least 94 citiesand more than 35 million trips taken. There have been some serious injuries, yes. But — knock on wood — we've seen zero US deaths from bike sharing so far1. Contrast this with the overall estimated cycling fatality rate of 21 deaths per 100 million trips.

On Facebook several commenters were scoffing at this figure as applied to Taiwan and Taiwan's notoriously reckless or clueless drivers. Unfortunately, for statistics sake, because the bicycle is not regarded as transportation, the figures on bicycle injury and deaths on Taiwan's roads are not recorded. This may also be a defensive strategy to avoid the political ramifications of constructing bicycle space in urban areas.

Currently, Giant is being asked to build or consult on several more bicycle programs in other countries.

Ralph Jennings has been posting a lot on this issue and reports in Forbes:

In other cities with share programs, company founder King Liu tells Forbes in an interview, “riders have no feeling for their bikes. They’re old or they break down a lot. The air pressure is too low, the chain falls off or the bell doesn’t ring. But bike sharing is a trend in global cities. Traffic in the cities is increasingly bad.”
The Taipei program just breaks even and the company acknowledges it must think hard to perfect rental systems in other cities. It’s got four others in Taiwan at the moment. But whether or not it makes money, operation of a quality bike sharing program excites riders about cycling, says the company’s Chief Executive Officer Tony Lo. As a case in point, sales of Giant’s recreational bikes in Taipei have risen along with the popularity of the Taiwanese capital’s YouBike sharing program since 2012. Giant’s 6 million bikes produced last year for sales were largely for sports and leisure rather than just getting around town.

That brings me back to the trouble with Pronto.

Could it be that with such a wide-spread cycling plan and space for cyclists (3ft), enough people have their own equipment and don't need to borrow?

Sunday, April 10, 2016

Heyman Breaks Through At Roubaix and Feng Fails To Finish

For anyone who found a feed for yesterday's running of the Paris-Roubaix, they were treated to a classic of a classic.

This year was billed as a sort of passing of the torch between the older generation of classics heroes with two of the most storied one-day specialists in Tom Boonen and Fabien Cancellara both healthy enough to go toe to toe on the cobbles after several years of one without the other as the foil, and the 26yo. Slovak, Peter Sagan seeking to build on his Flanders victory last week to affirm his ascendance. This was to be Cancellara's last Paris-Roubaix and the great Yaroslav Popovych's last race. Everything seemed to be conspiring for this to be either the final hurrah for these old warriors or the heading of a new era.

The thing about the Paris-Roubaix, is that it is never the type of race to lend itself to storybook endings. We had Boonen join an early chase group with Cancellara close behind. We had Sagan without teammates left to cobble together brittle alliances in the hopes of catching Boonen. As the pressure began to build with each section of cobbles beyond the crucible of the Arenberg Trench, tight, slippery, mud-caked corners took the legs out of the peloton, thinning the herd and bringing dreams of a victory at the velodrome in Roubaix down like a house of cards amid the brutal thud of tires over pave.

Of the heavy favorites, Cancellara was the first to drop in a fall on the Monsen-Pevele sector-- the same sector the big Swiss had seen in a pre race premonition as the key to his race. Sadly, he was unable to recover and contend for the victory. He almost took out Sagan in the process, leaving Sagan to demonstrate his superior, but futile bike handling skills as the break out bunch led by the powerful Tony Martin, drove ahead to reel in a five-man break. When Boonen's group took to the front it looked like the battered Belgian 4x Paris Roubaix champion might finally, at age 35, surpass the famed Roger DeVlaemink, for a record fifth victory. It was so on.

As all eyes looked on, Boonen could not muster enough energy in the velodrome to beat out Mathew Haymen, the 37yo. Mathew Haymen from Orica-GreenEDGE. Meanwhile, Fabien Cancellara crashed on his farewell lap around the velodrome in a final gesture of appreciation to the fans. He may be reconsidering his retirement plans to redo that unceremonious farewell...or simply take it as a hint.

So in the end... the Paris-Roubaix was won by one of the old men of the peloton... just not one of the old men everyone was guessing.

On the Taiwan angle of the Paris-Roubaix, our very own Feng Chun-kai of Lampre-Merida, was thrown into the fray once more by a team desperate to have a representative from the sponsor's home country. Feng, at 1.70m and 68kg, seems ill suited for these one-day races that are dominated by the big men who are often 10cm taller and 15kg heavier than Feng. Moreover, the terrain would be unfamiliar for a Taiwanese cyclist from a land of exquisite climbs, but few great stretches (any?) of unobstructed roadway with less than ideal pavement. Feng collected another DNF after getting caught in the rear group that failed to gain on the lead groups. Lamer-Merida collected their equipment and marched off for other events up the road where they have the personnel to better contend for prizes. Next for Feng will be next week at the Giro dell'Appennino.

Friday, April 8, 2016

A Match Made In Heaven...or Taichung: Taichung Bike Week and Eurobike Sitting in a Tree

Last month the increasingly obsolete Taipei Cycle groaned to a close-- a dinosaur of a show in an industry that has created more bottom bracket standards in the past ten years than I have changed flats.

Taipei Cycle has been increasingly directed toward the retailers and the emerging markets with many of the major players sleepwalking into town for an expensed drink...if they even bother coming at all.

The real action in the bicycle industry heats up during Taichung Bike Week in October, when industry managers converge on Taichung to finalize the specifications on the products and their prices that will be coming out the following year or two. As opposed to Taipei Cycle, Taichung Bike Week is entirely about looking into the future.

With the current state of the bicycle industry when even the Giant mega-empire has lost a quarter of its value over the past year, getting a jump on manufacturing has become essential as it can allow brands to implement new technologies they hope will invigorate stagnating sales, or to nail down the production details (prices) for an extended model run for more than a single season. Production errors and unforeseen market problems in the past have led to far too much overhead failing to sell in the premium market with brands hoping to break even elsewhere in smaller markets past the model's expiration date.

Taichung's central location plays an essential role in allowing 90% of the top OEMs to be within 40min. of the city. Representatives from the OEMs and brands can hustle off to iron out the details immediately following a presentation.

One of the advantages of Taichung Bike Week is that it is a closed convention by invitation only, organized by industry volunteers for the industry without having to play ball with the local government or the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA). It also caters to Taiwanese OEMs and their supply chain, keeping the center fixed in Taiwan for the time being.

This year Pro-Lite CEO, Steve Fenton, who also serves as the chief organizer of Taichung Bike Week, has reached out to Stefan Reisigner, a board member of Eurobike, to help with the organization and logistics of the event aimed at putting more brands in contact with their OEM counterparts more efficiently. Taichung Bike Week, which has often struggled with Taichung's limited exhibition space, has also procured space at the Lin Garden Hotel as a 4th location to host presentations and visitors.

Bicycle Retailer Reports:

The seventh edition of Taichung Bike Week will be Oct. 18-21 this year. Eurobike is working with TBW to provide attendees with a new "matchmaking tool." The matchmaking tool will enable exhibitors and visitors to show off what they have to offer and what they are interested in before the event starts. Using their accounts, they will be able to make appointments and receive contact suggestions customized to fit their profile.

According to Fenton:

It is all important that we use the 4^th location to bring in even more brands that need bigger space to present their ideas and products and the 4^th hotel will do this. The hotel is Called The Lin [Garden]and is about the same distance from Evergreen Hotel that Splendor is but in the opposite direction. It’s easy for us to arrange a shuttle bus every 30 minutes and as you know it’s never hard to get a taxi in Taiwan as they are everywhere. The location offers a huge amount of space for brands who need either large presentation rooms down to a small booth of say 3 x 3 mts. Best of all its got a huge space for the TBW party which we have struggled with over the last 2 years due to no space left in the three venues we use now. We decided to go ahead with a 4^th venue after asking many exhibitors about whether they feel we should talk to the City Government about using the exhibition centre they are building and the answer was a very clear no. As you know the event is run by the industry for the industry and we are a team of volunteers who do not get paid or take anything out of the event for free.

With the dual pressures of a dim forecast for the entire bicycle industry through 2018, and the rise of the direct sales model for branding online (the Canyon model), what happens in Taichung and how it happens only increases the importance Taichung Bike Week plays as the linchpin of the entire industry and possibly the most important week of the cycling calendar.

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Also:

Don't miss the this Sunday's 2016 running of the Paris-Roubaix and Taiwan's Feng Chun-kai as he supports Lampre-Merida. Feng scored as DNF last year and also failed to finish last weekend's iconic Tour of Flanders.

The China Posts reports on an up and coming cyclist.

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Disappearing Into The Nantou 56: Nobody Can Hear You Scream

This is a story about a road. In cycling culture there are roads-- the ones we all know and enjoy-- the ones that lace across common stretches of countryside and draw the fabric of our community tighter together with shared experiences of triumph, failure, surprise and heartache. In central Taiwan these roads come with the shorthand monikers of Guguan, Wuling, Bagua Shan and the 136. We all know these names and rides along with a slew of others that carry some of the most absurd titles the lust for Strava glory can inspire. There are roads-- and then there are fucking roads. These are the chunky scrapes of mountain slopes slathered in a veneer of budget asphalt that arc, coil and slither through the psyche-- the roads that stamp your passport across the border of the local. These are the roads that, for good reason, hang like phantoms high up on ridge lines where the periphery begins and toys with the imagination.

The 投101 through the 投56 is one of these routes that practically defines local knowledge when it comes to cycling routes.

I rode this route for the first time last year and wrote about it in Nantou 56: The Lost Highway of Central Taiwan. Since that ride this road has been a regular visitor to my imagination as I reflect on what makes it such a defining gem among the tangle of roadway engineering projects that meander across local maps and terrain.

This time I was eager to show this route to Michael Turton from The View from Taiwan. Michael is a good friend, experienced local cyclist and an intelligent critical blogger who has seen a lot of roadway from a bike in Taiwan, but he had never seen anything like this. Showing a special route to someone can be a bit like a Masonic handshake-- imparting of the secret knowledge.

We were also joined by the slight, yet salty Eva L. Eva is a relative novice rider, but has close ties to the cycling industry.

For us, this route started in Taichung and took the unremarkable Highway 3 to the Highway 16 in Mingjian. As we passed through the urban nightmare between Taichung and Nantou City, the air pollution was unbearable. I donned a mask several times to keep from directly inhaling the atmosphere of Venus.

We soon turned onto the placid 投131 toward Lugu. The 投131is a great alternative to the busy 投151, which skips the foreplay and charges directly into the weekend tourist Hell of Sitou.

Not too far up the 投131 is the turn-off to the 投101. It is such a nondescript roadway it could easily be missed.

The 投101is something of a growing rarity as it hosts a living local culture rather than a packaged vision of a consumable local culture that appeals and panders to the exotic expectations of a tourist junket. It is a meditation in cycling as the road follows the mostly gentle contours of the river valley.

The asphalt is in excellent condition and the climbs are neatly contained between plateaus that seem to appear just when they'd be convenient. The lower reaches of the 投101act to lull the rider into euphoric complacency, clobbering over each rise amid a panoramic landscape of earthy greens and golds. Although the surroundings are unquestionably rural, there is still a sense of safety of the occasional car or the mechanical sound of a distant irrigation pump.

Under the flickering shade from leafy overhanging trees, it is easy to forget about the gradual rise in elevation as the road stair-steps into the tea fields of Lugu. A few windows occasionally open up onto the hills below and out into Zhushan.

The 投101spills out onto the 投56 and effective ends the Sunday drive for the day as the sights and sounds are entirely the calls for the tourist dollar. There are hostels, restaurants, walking trails, campgrounds, tea emporiums and souvenirs. We stopped for a quick lunch before continuing on out way into the 投56 or into the Heart of Darkness.

The opening section of the 投56 is a long, straight, smooth, subtle grade that passes the tourist Disneyland for tea drinkers. The hills peek out over the shops and fields. The entire atmosphere is remarkably tame for a Taiwanese local road.

Then, just as it seemed the road had ended at the Phoenix Valley Bird Sanctuary (鳳凰谷鳥園生態園區) parking lot, the ride took on an entirely different character.

As you approach the gate to the bird park, there seems to be no way through as they have set up an official looking sign and false ticketing counter. If you make your way past and keep right, the road drops into a narrow, crumbling gorge surrounded by nothing but wild.

Crossing the threshold beyond the bird sanctuary is like dropping into the Land of the Lost. The road becomes an almost random collection of bends and humps amid overgrown embankments and decaying infrastructure.

This entire section of roadway assumes the haunted air of the abandoned, like the ghostly images of failed humanity in Chernobyl or Fukushima--a derelict archaeological layer of a recent and much different past that was deserted at a moment's notice. It instills an innate sense of anxious unease juxtaposed to the tranquility of humanless noise. There is an urgency in this loneliness and it weighs heavily on the mind. Can I safely get out of here?

The 投56 is only 20km in length, with much of it taken up by flats or a lengthy final descent, but it launches upward for almost 250m in about 2km of thigh snapping climbs.

In this section the tiny mountainside lane keeps a tenuous grip to the section of mountain that was not cleaved from its perch by a massive earthquake and landslide.

Each bend is a revelation of sights, wonder and sobering fear.

The road is unrelenting in a sickly comical freehand scribble of lines flopped upon each delicate grassy terrace. Michael and Eva took it easy for a little hike below with the valley of the Xinyi district reflecting back upon the mountain.

The heavy shade of forest evaporated and we all simply marched our bikes through a silent bamboo grove with the only conversation being between the pops and cracks beneath skinny bicycle wheels.

The crest of the road could not have come any sooner and we were soon negotiating the claws of neglected and damaged pavement that can rip any rider off a bike in the blink of an eye.

The road drew us faster and faster through the fulcrum of each bend...slingshotting each rider toward the river in Ai-guo Village.

The final act of this ride was the Highway 21. Everyone was tired and spent from the slipshod grades of the high mountain road. The two or three rises in the Highway 21 were simple torture when we simply wanted to arrive in Shuili at the train station. Of course, the upside was that the Highway 21 toward Shuili is also running downhill and it was easy to build momentum and cling to a good draft on the way out.

Just as the sun started to hollow out long, deep shadows against the hills, we rolled into Shuili for a train to Taichung after a quick transfer in Ershui.

We were tired and spent, but we had all spent a day together riding one of those special roads that most people are never ever going to see in person. It was a phenomenal experience for all and really shows what can be done on the bike. For cyclists, roads like these are the C-Beams in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. Riding these roads stays in the memory for a very long time as something wondrous and truly special.

Dont Miss: Michael's take on the ride.

Route 3473635 - powered by www.bikemap.net

Saturday, April 2, 2016

An Adventure Comes To An End

This has been a pretty busy month at TiC. I have had the pleasure and excitement of following some cycling friends come to Taiwan and enjoy this country the best way possible--on two wheels and without a motor. Sadly, the month of March was normally abnormal for its weeks of cold and drizzle, but I guess no adventure comes without hardship. Earlier Inposted on riding with Andrew and Alison on their way to Sun Moon Lake. It was a magnificent day and a rolling conversation. It was one of those great days to be on a bike.

Well, Andrew and Alison have just concluded their spectacular adventure around Taiwan and Andrew has written up a little summary of their Taiwan adventure.

The full article can be found at: Rolling Bicycle Tours

Andrew was kind enough to allow me to post on their experience as I got to bike vicariously through them and enjoy seeing their Taiwan come into focus the same way mine has for me.

For those interested in details, with the intent to whet your appetites, here is a summary of what we did:

Cycled 1,100km around the entire island: Down the Taiwan Straits on the west coast and back up the Pacific Coast on the east, almost exclusively on specially demarcated cycling lanes and paths

Cycled up towering mountains and into deep gorges, to magical lakes and waterfalls; through long tunnels and over suspension bridges, through forests and rice paddies

Marvelled at the many ornate Tao, Buddhist and Confucian temples and shrines, adorned with colourful dragons, mythical birds, gods and goddesses; with offerings and incense and a constant stream of devoteesExplored bustling cities and towns with bright neon lights; indigenous village regions, quiet fishing villages and beach areasStayed in some great hotels, B+Bs, guest houses, a monastery, a love hotel, beach cabins, and a faux castle

Enjoyed the end of the cherry blossom season and relaxed in many hot springs
This is a small country, yet the people, culture, landscape and scenery is so different from place to place. There is something for everyone to enjoy - be it temples, Hakka culture, indigenous people, nature, mountains, ocean, architecture, cities, fishing villages.

........

Please visit Andrew's blog and read the full, well written article. It reminds an longtime Taiwan curmudgeon like myself of all the wonderful things to be seen by bike. Moreover, their route and approach to touring may provide an excellent guide for others to follow.

I am looking forward to their future adventures and hope they will reprise their Taiwan tour in the not too distant future. Moreover, I have made some wonderful new friends.

This is what it's all about.... All of it!

Friday, March 25, 2016

Giant Bike Rental: Biking Taiwan on Borrowed Time

How To Rent:

1. Choose the closest Giant rental location from the store locator or one of the shops listed at the bottom of this post. Only corporate stores may participate in the Giant rental program. You can contact the individual store via email or telephone to place your order. Giant will find someone on staff or someone's nephew who got his MBA overseas and understands some English, to take care of your request. Try to reserve a bicycle two weeks prior to pick-up. Include your height in centimeters and you inseam. Giant bicycles use compact geometries and are sized by the general rule of Small, Medium or Large.

2. The rental costs NT1500 for the first three days, and NT200 for each additional day.

3. Pick up your bike on the requested retrieval date and pay with a major credit card. The rental agreement requires the rider be responsible for the safe return of all the equipment issued with each bicycle-- Giant values each bicycle at almost NT$30,000.

What You Get:

1. Giant's multi-day touring bicycle for this trip was a Fastroad SLR- ALUXX, aluminum framed, flat-bar hybrid, coupled with 700c 28-30mm road tires, triple chainring and disc brakes.

2. Each bicycle comes with a rear rack and waterproof panniers (You may not substitute with your own gear).

3. Equipment includes: saddle, headlight, tail light, Cat Eye cycling computer, bike lock, platform pedals, 8-piece multitool and mini-pump.

4. Giant does not include tire levers, inner tubes or patch kit. You must remember to purchase your own flat repair equipment.

5. Each frame is marked with a Giant serial number for tracking.

Giant Serial Number

Cockpit

Rear

Mini-Pump

Lock

Multi-Tool

Frame

Review

Pros:

The best thing about the Giant rental program is that Giant has a nationwide network of stores that provide numerous return locations and some standard of service and accountability, as well as a roadside assistance service in case of mechanical or other roadside trouble.

The bikes are reasonably priced and reasonably equipped for many riders. The waterproof panniers are an excellent choice for Taiwan. The bikes are relatively light for easy portage and the triple chainring should be ample for most conditions if riders stick to more moderate routes.

Bikes are relatively well maintained. (Though we did have the alloy kickstand break off immediately. The bike was a little dirty and in need of some chain oil upon pickup.)

Cons:

I can imagine an experienced cyclist becoming frustrated with this program and I feel Giant hopes the more experienced riders will simply bring their own gear. Experienced riders tend to have finely honed preferences in regard to their interface with the bike--pedals, saddle, bars and position. The rider may want to swap out the pedals and saddle for their own, but they are then required to carry those items with them the rest of the journey.

An experienced cyclist may also be uncomfortable on a hybrid, but Giant does not offer a drop-bar road bike for rental, nor do they even make a dedicated touring bicycle. The positioning of the hybrid would probably make an experienced cyclist feel slower and less coordinated on the road and throw off expected arrival times at intended locations. a hybrid bike is not exactly ideal for loaded touring.

Giant does provide many excellent components and safety devices for a safe trip. Unfortunately, the location of the tail light makes the light partially obscured by the rear racks. This could be potentially dangerous, especially in some of those tunnels along the Highway 9.

A major annoyance is Giant's unwillingness to provide tubes and a tire kit. I can imagine a novice cyclist taking off on a tour without thinking to ask, and getting stranded somewhere. This is a major oversight on Giant's part.

Another major oversight is the exclusion of a bike bag for portage on trains and busses. The simple addition of a bike bag would give riders much added flexibility in planning their trips as the regulations only require the removal of the front wheel and a covering to stow the bike on any bus or train rather than being limited to the infrequent trains equipped with a bicycle car. The addition of a bike bag could be of great convenience for cyclists who decide they can't carry on and still want to make a hotel reservation further up the road.

This blogger would recommend that any experienced cyclist try to bring their own bike if at all possible, to ensure a period of travel on a known commodity. You know your own bike like no other and bringing your own bike will remove a set of unknown variables so you can focus on enjoying your trip.

I feel Giant's bike rental program is really aimed toward the novice or casual cyclist who is simply looking for a different way to tour Taiwan.

The individual bicycle rental program seems to be a little undersold. It may be that Giant would like to direct international customers toward the more lucrative Personalized Tour package. This tour is for groups of fifteen or more riders and includes a support vehicle and a luggage vehicle, a guide and a mechanic.