I’ve written about our Taga Bike before, and how it can convert in under a minute (even with me doing the converting) from a bike to a stroller. Taga sent us their wooden double seat to review, and it has gotten a lot of use carting Lily to and from preschool!
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This sturdy seat has a rain cover, which is also great for keeping the kids warm on chilly mornings. You can either hook it together quickly with the elastics on the ends (what we usually do for cold weather):
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Or you can zip the sides securely shut for when you really need to keep the rain out. In a full-on rainstorm, a little water will get in through the wooden handles you see in the photo above – but only in a real downpour.
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When the weather is nice, Lily and Anna prefer to ride with the sides rolled up. They wave and yell hi to random people (and cars) that we pass on the street. About half the time people ask what kind of nifty contraption they are riding in.
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Taga also offers a second seat that attaches to the blue seat at the end of this post (which was featured in my first post about the taga bike). You can still use the Taga in stroller mode with the second fabric seat, but not with this wooden seat. I still prefer the wooden seat since it allows enough space to fit backpacks or other items in addition to kids – and because it has the rain cover for wet or cold days. Right now, Taga is even offering the wooden seat for free when you purchase a Taga Bike-Stroller!
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This seat was a little challenging to put together – I put the hood on backwards (the pocket should be facing the rider) – but we left it that way because it fits (although that’s why the fabric is wrinkled) and it allows more room for taller riders like Mike – who at 6’2” is definitely on the taller end for riding this bike. He makes it work, though! I’m about 5’7”, and the seat is about perfect for me when it’s at its tallest height. Here is a video clip of it in action:
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I also wanted to add a few photos showing how the bike transforms from bike to stroller mode with the single seat. Here it is in bike mode.
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You can lift the seat off without having to unstrap your child, and sit them on the ground – so they remain strapped in (and unable to run off into the street). Then you lower the seat:
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Lift a handle with the press of a button, flip the back wheel into the front, and snap the handle back in place. Notice that this happened so quickly (even with me photographing the steps) that Anna isn’t remotely worried about sitting on the ground.
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Snap the seat back into place, and you’re good to go. This works if you have the single mode basket on, also (see the photos in my original taga review post) – but I had taken it off to use the wooden seat, and didn’t bother to put it back on to photograph these steps. Anna prefers using the bike in bike mode because she likes to go fast, but she prefers riding in the Taga in stroller mode over our actual stroller, so the seat must be pretty comfy.
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What is your favorite way to get around with kids?
COMMENTARY: Love the Taga bike. I have a feeling that it will be very popular with moms and dads. It's a great way for parents to get a good workout and have fun with their young kids. BTW, Taga bikes are priced at $1,495.00. Accessories are extra. Click HERE to order one.
Courtesy of an article dated March 12, 2014 appearing in MamaSmiles
The Sandwichbike is a flat-pack wooden bicycle that can be assembled in less than an hour has gone into production.
PedalFactory claims the Sandwichbike can be unpacked and put together in just 45 minutes. The company declares.
"If you can make a sandwich, you can make a Sandwichbike."
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The single-speed bike is constructed from 19 parts that are packaged and delivered in a box along with the tools required to assemble it.
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The frame is made from panels of weatherproofed beech plywood and is held together by milled aluminium cylinders.
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Stainless steel spokes sit within the 26-inch tyres. The completed model weighs 17 kilograms.
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Pedalfactory was co-founded by designer Basten Leijh, who originally developed the bike with his Amsterdam design studio Bleijh for the 2006 International Bicycle Design Competition in Taiwan.
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The bikes are now available to order and the first deliveries in Europe will coincide with the official launch event, taking place in Amsterdam on Sunday. International orders will be dispatched early next year.
COMMENTARY:
Product launch Sandwichbike: innovative designer bike now in production
The Sandwichbike will be launched in Amsterdam on Sunday 1 December 2013. This innovative wooden bicycle that already drew unprecedented attention worldwide in the design stage is now being shipped.
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After a period of extensive research and development the bicycle has now gone into production. The Sandwichbike can be delivered worldwide from December 1, 2013 onwards. The prototype was recently exhibited at various fairs and websites and was an instant hit among bicycle lovers and design.
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The Sandwichbike is a unique product on all fronts: material, design and production method. Its distinctive frame is composed of two weatherproof beech wood panels. Its advanced production technology makes self-assembly easy while a high quality standard is maintained.
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Postal package
The bicycle is flat packed in a box containing the parts as well as all the tools needed. This creates a great unpacking experience. For enthusiasts, putting the bicycle together is part of the charm and the logistical benefits are huge as this enables worldwide delivery. Anyone from Amsterdam to Honolulu can receive a Sandwichbike by post.
Assembling a Sandwichbike is easy and takes less than an hour. "If you can make a sandwich, you can make a Sandwichbike."
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Pedalfactory
The Sandwichbike is a Pedalfactory B.V. product. Co-founder Basten Leijh (also: Bleijh Industrial Design Studio) designed and developed this bicycle. Leijh is an expert on bicycle design and innovation. Among many other product innovations Leijh developed a city-bicycle that could be locked by twisting the handlebars.
Now that's what I call a cool bike!! !!@@!!
Courtesy of an article dated November 28, 2013 appearing in Dezeen
RECON, WHICH BILLS ITSELF AS A GOOGLE GLASS FOR ATHLETES, HAS ALREADY SHIPPED THOUSANDS MORE DEVICES THAN GOOGLE AND SECURED INVESTMENT FROM INTEL CAPITAL TO BOOT.
Recon, maker of a $600 Google Glass-like wearable device marketed toward athletes, reports it has already shipped 50,000 of its "Snow" model, geared toward skiers. That's many thousands more than the number of Glass devices Google has shipped to date. Google has instead chosen to roll out its device very slowly, to only a few thousand people to start.
Recon has also secured an investment from Intel Capital to continue development on what Recon calls "the world's most advanced wearable computer." Although the debate over which wearable device can claim the title of "most advanced" is still up for discussion, Recon's current niche is high-performance athletes, which means it's more durable than the shatter-prone Google Glass.
Intel VP Mike Bell, who manages the corporation's new devices group, said.
"In Recon Instruments, we see compelling technology and a solid strategy to capitalize on the wearable revolution. This is an area of significant focus for Intel Capital, and our investment in Recon Instruments is a key part of our approach to innovation in this emerging space."
COMMENTARY:In terms of design, Recon glasses are reminiscent of the futuristic Oakley sports shades that are so popular with many top tier sports professionals. An interesting difference between the Recon Jet and Glass is that the former puts the display lens at the lower part of the wearer's vision rather than at the top.
According to a statement on the Recon Jet website,
"Research has shown that looking down is an easier eye movement than looking up. Jet is also designed for outdoor use, where looking up could result in looking directly at the sun, something we want to avoid."
Another important difference is that the Recon Jet is controlled only by a touch-pad on the side of the device, no voice control feature is included.
As for the technical specifications, the Recon Jet is equipped as follows:
720p HD video camera.
3D accelerometer.
Built-in microphone and speakers.
8GB of flash memory.
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capability
Micro USB port.
The device functions on an open platform that anyone can develop apps for, but right out of the box, the Pilot Edition of the Recon Jet comes with software that allows users to track their speed, distance, and heart rate. Users can also connect the glasses to their smartphone to see SMS alerts and caller ID.
And while you might think that Google wouldn't want to give exposure to a potential competitor, it appears that the company's reps were welcome at a Google recent conference. Recon Instruments CEO, Dan Eisenhardt, said,
"We introduced Recon Jet to the developer community at the Google I/O tech conference last month. To say the response exceeded our expectations would be a massive understatement."
Pricing for the early adopter Pilot Edition was $499, a deal that expired on July 21, to coincide with the end of this year's Tour De France event. Delivery of the device is expected to be December 2013 through early 2014.
RECON Jet Pilot Edition
The advantages of the Recon Jet over Google Glass are apparent:
Cheaper price (for now).
First to market.
Open platform (no worries about Google controlling your personal data).
Targeting athletes is smart.
Athletes have been looking for something like this for a while now, particularly now that wearable performance trackers are taking off. But the notion of a normal personal walking around wearing Glass in the same way that they might utilize a smartphone has struck some as impractical at best, and a capital offence against fashion at worst.
George Hincape wearing a pair of RECON Jet glasses (Click Image To Enlarge)
And, beyond all the other considerations, Recon Jet is simply the best alternative for anyone who wants most of the facility of something like Glass, but without having to lock yourself into Google's cloud apps that spread your data throughout the search company's software ecosystem.
Given those factors, the Recon Jet has a lot going for it. However, the major advantage Google has is that scores of people have been enthusiastically testing Glass in the public eye for months now. In fact, in July Google uploaded a video of Wimbledon tennis pro Bethanie Mattek-Sands training with Glass, a clear indication that the company is trying to get more sports pros to adopt the device.
RECON Jet Features (Click Image To Enlarge)
Tour de France veteran George Hincapie testing out the Recon Jet in the video below.
RECON Jet Technical Specifications
Recon Jet is a powerful standalone microcomputer with the onboard processing power, suite of sensors and networking capabilities you would expect from a tablet or smartphone. It's open platform and SDK allows developers to create apps for any activity where information, relayed direct-to-eye, changes the game.
ONBOARD SENSOR FRAMEWORK
9-Axis sensors • 3D accelerometer • 3D gyroscope • 3D magnetometer
Optical touch sensor for UI control Works in all weather conditions, and with gloves on
PROCESSOR SUBSYSTEM
1 GHz Dual-Core ARM Cortex-A9
On-board memory • 1GB DDR2 SDRAM • 8GB flash
ULTRA-COMPACT DISPLAY
Wide screen 16:9 WQVGA display Virtual image appears as 30" HD display at 7' Power-saving sleep mode High contrast and brightness for readability in high ambient lighting
NETWORKING SUBSYSTEM
Wi-Fi (IEEE802.11a/b/g/n)
Bluetooth 4.0 (Bluetooth Smart) • Apple MFi Bluetooth support
The Footloose by Mando is doubtless going to make you want to test ride it. Asserting that it is the world’s first chainless hybrid electric folding bike, Korean auto suppliers Mando Corp and Meister Inc have collaborated to bring us this beautiful design.
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Designboom states it can go up to 18.6 miles with the motor alone, and farther with pedaling by the rider.
“By directly transforming electricity via an alternator connected to the crank, power is generated directly from the user. The energy stored in a lithium-ion battery, which is then used to actuate the engine. Using an electronic control unit (ECU), the ‘footloose’ works with sensors and an automatic gear changer to monitor terrain and adjust the motor’s output as necessary. It monitors the system for problems, which it displays via a handlebar-mounted human machine interface (HMI).”
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It will apparently be available in the European markets starting 2013. Here is a video illustrating the bike a bit more:
COMMENTARY: This is a paradigm change in the e-bike world for sure. It is a clean and simple design. It removes all of the typical bicycle drivetrain components: the chain, chainrings, cogs, derailleurs, and shifters. This also removes the dirty, greasy chain!
Of course it adds the alternator and some other electronic components but overall it appears to be a system with less components. As long as it proves to be reliable, the series hybrid system could be a great e-bike drive system for the future.
The Footloose was developed in a partnership project of Mando Corp. and Meister Inc. (automotive suppliers in South Korea). British designer Mark Sanders and Dutch e-bike expert Han Goes were very involved in the design.
Footloose Design By Mark Sanders
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Footloose Advanced Technology
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Footloose Specifications
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Footloose Color Options
Mando Footloose in white and black colors (Click Images To Enlarge)
Mando Footloose in grey and light blue colors (Click Images To Enlarge)
Courtesy of an article dated November 26, 2012 appearing in FeedBox
THE STORY OF HOW ADAM VOLLMER LEFT IDEO TO MAKE AN ELECTRIC BIKE AMERICANS COULD LOVE.
Up until last year, Adam Vollmer had been making a pretty good run of things as a mechanical engineer at Ideo. He was responsible for developing groundbreaking new instruments for spinal surgeries and had worked on solutions for improving access to drinking water in developing countries. Today, Adam Vollmer is the founder and CEO of a company that makes bicycles.Just one bicycle, actually--the Faraday Porteur, a handsome $3,800 ride with bamboo fenders, pistachio accents, and a cleverly hidden on-board lithium ion battery and front wheel motor. Yep, it’s an e-bike, a designation that’s at the heart of the challenge Vollmer’s facing with his new venture: how to build an electric bike for a country that just doesn’t really like the things all that much.
It’s a problem the designer first had to start thinking about early last year, when Ideo was invited to participate in the Oregon Manifest, an annual competition that challenges designers to build "the ultimate modern utility bike." Vollmer was informally known as the bike guy at Ideo’s Palo Alto office--the person you went to if you needed a flat fixed or a recommendation for a new ride--so he was the obvious choice to head up the effort. As an avid rider, he was enthusiastic about the new project, but he also knew that electric bikes, at least in the U.S., were perceived as a decidedly uncool way to get around.
To be fair, that’s mostly true; electric bikes overwhelmingly are uncool. It’s an unfortunate consequence of how they’ve been conceived by manufacturers here for years--namely, as something entirely different from regular bicycles. Vollmer told me.
"I think electric bikes have been sort of dominated by a mentality of, 'this is not a bike--this is a different category: an electric bike,' That meant we got a lot of high-powered monstrosities that tried to set themselves apart from conventional bikes by being able to go longer distances at faster speeds."
Vollmer refers to these as "do-all creations," overly ambitious bikes that were saddled with cumbersome battery packs, complex controls, and expensive price tags.
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In some places around the world, the usefulness of such vehicles has won out over whatever aesthetic warts come along with it. In Europe, Vollmer says, if the utility’s there, so are the riders.
"I think people there are a lot more willing to say, 'I don’t care what it looks like--if it gets me from home to work cheap, fast, and fun, I’ll take it.'"
But in America, the birthplace of the automobile, we’re a little bit more sensitive about what we use to get around--and how we look while doing it. Vollmer says.
"I think Americans are particularly emotional about transportation. If you think about the importance of car culture to us--it’s like an extension of our identities."
In the last five or 10 years, bikes have become an increasingly popular means of doing that identity extending. People are getting on bikes not only because they’re cheap and environmentally sound, but also simply because they’re cool (perhaps in large part thanks to those factors). But another part of that coolness depends on companies making high-quality, stop-you-in-your-tracks beautiful bikes. And that’s one place, Vollmer says, where e-bikes certainly haven’t had much to offer in years past.
"There’s definitely not a product on the market right now that I think a whole lot of people really want to be associated with, as an extension of their identity, in the electric bike world."
So the designer set out to make an e-bike that avoided these two common pitfalls: the "do-all" ambition and the general unsightliness it engendered. In this sense, at the start, it wasn’t so much about building a great e-bike as it was not building a bad one. But as Vollmer started putting together his first prototypes, he quickly discovered that a bit of electricity could do a lot to enhance a bike ride--without turning it into something else entirely.
He told me.
"There’s something totally magical about hopping on a bike and having the experience be a little bit easier, worrying a little bit less about headwind or sweat or hills. Nobody manages to ride an electric bike and come back without a smile on their face. I just wanted to add just enough of that to a beautiful, high-quality bike, that you could have that experience whenever you wanted."
The key insight here is recognizing that an electric bike could get by with "just enough" electricity. And not just get by, in fact, but benefit immensely from the restraint. Where earlier e-bikes had incorporated monster power packs that could last for the marathon weekend rides, Vollmer decided his bike could do with a battery that was good for 15 or 20 miles, enough juice for cruising around town during the week. The next challenge was making it all disappear, integrating the entire electric system "so seamlessly you just don’t notice it." That’s where Paul Sadoff came in.
Paul Sadoff is the founder of Rock Lobster Custom Cycles in Santa Cruz, California, and he’s built bike frames for over 30 years. He wasn’t thrilled about the prospect of working on an electric one. Vollmer says.
"If there’s a voice for the traditional purist--a stubborn voice, at times--it’s gonna be the conventional frame builder, and that’s Paul."
After having Sadoff ride a few early prototypes--crude, jerry-rigged contraptions that basically looked like "bombs on wheels," Vollmer told me--the master frame builder was enlisted as a collaborator, albeit a reluctant one.
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But his guidance was indispensable as the Faraday took shape, making sure that the bike never sacrificed low-tech sensibilities for high-tech performance. Vollmer says.
"He kept us honest. He made sure we didn’t overlook things like the quality of the ride, or the geometry, or the attention to detail in the frame making. And those are a lot of the reasons the bike is still, first and foremost, just a delightful bike."
Maintaining that was about more than simply hiding the battery, though; it meant making the electric aspect a part of the Faraday’s character, not its defining trait. More than anything, the duo worked to preserve the 'get on and go’ simplicity that’s so central to the joy of riding a bike.
Vollmer says.
"The team strived to keep the experience so intuitive and similar to riding a bike that you really don’t notice a difference, other than the fact that you get on and you feel like you’re having the best day of your life."
That meant getting rid of all the trappings that previous e-bikes had flaunted, things like whiz-bang electronic displays and elaborate control mechanisms. Instead, they focused their attention on genuinely useful features like LED headlamps and brake lights and a removable, front-mounted storage rack.
After a short three months of feverish development, the first version of the Faraday took the People’s Choice prize at the Oregon Manifest competition. Vollmer left Ideo, started Faraday bikes, and worked tirelessly to perfect the vehicle. The bike that won the competition, however, was far from ready for primetime. Vollmer admitted.
"When I go back and ride that now, it’s not great. We were very happy with the external details of the bike, but since then we’ve gone back and re-engineered everything inside of it. The result is a 300% better product."
In July, Vollmer put the Faraday on Kickstarter, where it flew past its $100,000 funding goal and found 46 early takers. It gave the bike’s designer a chance to step back from the work of nurturing his fledgling company and think about the people he was trying to serve. He told me
"You can get really abstract when you’re developing a company and thinking about pitching and marketing and who you think you’re selling to, but getting the concrete stats on 50 people who bought the bike and what they’re all about and how they’re going to use it is really fascinating."
That initial wave of buyers was somewhat surprisingly diverse. It included baby boomers who were looking for a way to get more exercise as well as recent college graduates who were moving to cities for the first time and thought it made more sense to invest $4,000 in an electric bike than putting the same amount in some banged up used car. Vollmer says.
"Just seeing the breadth of it is really encouraging to me."
It’s easy to write off a $3,800 bike as an out-of-touch luxury item. And you might ask why someone who had found success in developing breakthrough medical technologies would make a clean break for the high-end bike world. But as Vollmer sees it, electric bikes like the Faraday could usher in a more sensible, more sustainable model for transportation in the next decade. And that’s something that clearly deserves the attention of our best design minds.
He says.
"The most appealing problems to me are ones that deal with making people’s lives better and making the world a better place. There’s a great case for a lot of innovative medical products that are doing that. And there are consumer products that are letting us keep in touch and communicate better and be more creative … but bikes are a sweet spot for me … because I’ve always just believed in alternative ways of getting around, getting us out of our cars and getting us more active and more healthy."
So you really can’t blame a lifelong designer for being drawn in by it all, for wanting to take on that irresistible challenge of creating an electric bike that people can get excited about. And by sticking to his aim of building a great bike that happens to feature a little electric magic, the Faraday Porteur might be able to claim that rare distinction. Whether the masses are finally ready to accept it is, of course, another question. But it certainly doesn’t hurt that over in California, the state where the Faraday was born, gas is hovering around $4.50 a gallon.
COMMENTARY: Adam Vollmer might be on to something with the Porteur electric utility bike, but the $3,800 price tag is just too high to appeal to a broad audience. It's a niche product that appeals to inner city urban bike riders that want a well made, green, utility bike that will replace their gas-guzzling cars to ride to work and go to the grocery store.
Having researched the bicycle market for past clients, I discovered that some bicycle producers are designing bikes, to appeal to the urban bike rider. The Porteur could carve out a nice niche for itself -- the more affluent urban bike rider. I like the old-fashioned, almost folksy design of the Porteur, the leather seat and accents, handcrafted frame, large basket, and having the ability to shift to electric power while riding hills like those in San Francisco, is a great idea and point of differentiation that cannot be beat. San Francisco is not like most cities, and its liberal lifestyle which appeals to environmentalists, free spirits, techies and green products could be a great place to draw customers. Whether the bike will appeal to markets in other parts of the U.S. remains to be seen.
Having said this, anytime you can raise $100,000 or more through crowdfunding site Kickstarter.com, indicates that there is a demand for the product, albeit, a small market of bike affecionados that appreciate what the Porteur offers.
Courtesy of an article dated October 17, 2012 appearing in Fast Company Design
Dutch kindergarden students pedaling their bus to school (Click Image To Enlarge)
In the Netherlands, bikes abound. And now, they even take kids to school. Behold, the bicycle school bus.
The Dutch are bicycle fanatics. Almost half of daily travel in the Netherlands is by bicycle, while the country’s bike fleet comfortably outnumers its 16 million people. Devotees of the national obsession have taken the next logical step by launching what is likely the first bicycle school bus.
Built by Tolkamp Metaalspecials, and sold by the De Cafe Racer company, the bicycle school bus (BCO in Dutch) is powered entirely by children and the one adult driver (although there is an electric motor for tough hills). Its simple design has eight sets of pedals for the kids (ages 4 to 12), a driver seat for the adult, and three bench seats for freeloaders. The top speed is about 10 miles per hour, and features a sound system and canvas awning to ward off rainy days.
This pedal-powered school bus was made by De Cafe Racer and can be rented out for fun outings in the Netherlands (Click Image To Enlarge)
Co.Exist spoke with Thomas Tolkamp who built the BCO about its origins and how the idea is catching on around the world for the sets of 11 lucky kids who get to arrive in school pedaling their own school bus.
Co.Exist: What was the inspiration for the bus?
Tolkamp: I had already made other big bikes (like the Beerbikes) and a few years ago someone mailed me with the question if I could develop a bike especially for transporting kids. So for that other company (a child care) I made the first bicycle. Some other companies were also interested, so I began to produce more bicycles and have improved the bike.
How many of these have been sold? How many are in use?
We’ve sold around 25 bikes. They are still all in use, except for the very first one, which was a prototype.
Does it only come in yellow?
No, we’ve sold bicycles in green, blue, purple, grey, red, yellow, but all [standard] colors are available.
How much does it cost?
Around $15,000, so less than a taxi or normal bus.
Can the kids alone make it go?
It’s possible to ride the bike without the motor when most seats are in use, but it wouldn’t be safe to ride without an adult.
Do you have plans to export it?
We have already exported some bikes to Belgium and Germany, but not this kind of bike. We have gotten frequent requests for information about the bike from all around the world (North America, South America, Europe) but we’ve never sold a bike outside of Europe.
Do you think it will work well in other countries, or is it something special about the Dutch culture?
I don’t know really, but what I do know is that people from all around the world like the idea. We have gotten interest from the press all over the world and all people are positive.
I hope I can sell the bike in the near future to a foreign country and see how people at other countries react on the bike. I think it will work well in other countries, because as more and more people [are] becoming fat and "green living" becomes more important, ideas like this get more popular.
COMMENTARY: The Netherlands is the bicycle capital of the world, with 40% of all traffic movements by bicycle. They have created a bicycle friendly country that promotes a healthier, more active lifestyle for its residents.
In 2009, over 1.3 million bicycles were sold in the Netherlands according to preliminary figures. The Revenue is expected to be around 950 million euros, an increase of 4 percent from 2008. According to the RAI Association FietsVAK, the exhibition for the bicycle industry.
When people buy a bike, they’d rather buy a good bike”, said a spokesman for RAI. The average amount that was spent on a bicycle last year increased 3.5 percent to an average of 713 euros. In 2008 that figure was 683 euros.
The rise of the electric bike set last year continued. An increase of 30 percent is expected for 2009 with more than 150,000 e-bikes. The electric bike has a market share of 10 percent, with an average selling price of around 1900 good for 25% of the total bicycle sales.
The market share for e-bikes will increase further.
Dealers are still gaining ground as a sales channel for bicycles. Last year 85 percent of the bikes were bought in a real bicycle shop and the previous year it was still 82 percent.
Since 2009, the Dutch bike fleet grew to a total of 18 million bicycles, and probably more by now.
It's difficult to tell whether these pedal-powered school buses would be allowed on American streets because of a lack of bike lanes on many streets, city ordinances, speeders and most children commute to school using public transportation, school buses or their parents drive and pick them up from school. You would definitely need an adult to supervise the children.
These pedal-powered school buses really need older children. In the above picture, the bike bus is pedaled by kintergarderners. I think these kids are just too young to pedal a bike this big and bulk. I think you would need older children to pedal it.
The price of the BCO at $15,000 is a bit too pricey for most public schools to bear, then you have potential liability issues. For those two reasons, I have a feeling U.S. public and private schools would not buy them, so adoption will become an issue.
Courtesy of an article dated February 11, 2012 appearing in Fast Company Design and an article dated January 26, 2010 appearing in the Dutch Daily News
Why should wheelchairs stay boring when the people using them have so much personality? That is exactly what Bill Lasher when he created his first sporty wheelchair.
In the six years since that first garage tinkering, Lasher has built Lasher Sport, crafting custom wheelchairs and handcycles that can roll on sandy beaches, ski on snowy mountaintops and careen terrifyingly fast down the slopes of the Swiss Alps. The chairs are also one of only a handful of products fully manufactured in Alaska, though Lasher does contract to Lower 48 firms for some processes. They are sold to clients all over the world – from Guam to Germany.
The Lasher Sport ATH- All Terrain Handcycle, another addition to the Lasher Cycles line. On road, off road, where ever you want to go.
The chairs aren’t cheap – from around $5,000 to upwards of $10,000 for a custom chair.
Anything but medical-supply beige, they’re inspired by Orange County Choppers and mountain bikes, often tricked-out with chrome details that wouldn’t look out of place at a car show. They range from basic but sleek with vibrant oxidized colored aluminum – like a fresh custom car paint job – to fanciful, like one with a dragon motif that features gold and red details, fire-breathing dragon cutouts and a foot rest that looks like two gold coins.
COMMENTARY: Much more than an off-the-shelf handcycle with fat tires, the all new Lasher Sport ATH -All Terrain Handcycle- was specifically designed for use off the pavement, yet is still very adept on the pavement. A generous 6” of ground clearance helps you get over rough trails and gnarly terrain. That’s enough clearance to pop up or drop down a standard height curb when biking in the concrete jungle.
The frame is built from custom extruded ovalized magnesium for maximum strength and durability. The forks and backrest are built from 6061-T6 aluminum. The seat back connects to the axle with dual adjustable supports for additional triangulated rigidity.
The ATH comes with more wheel options than any other handcycle. The standard 26” mountain bike wheels can be outfitted with any 26” mountain bike tire sold in your local bike shop, so servicing the wheels is easy. The standard wheel set includes quick release 26” (559) rear wheels with Schwalbe mountain bike tires, the same wheel size as a 25” (559) wheelchair wheel, so you can use the same wheels on your wheelchair as you do on your handcycle. You may opt for the bolt on rear wheel option which can be outfitted with or without hydraulic disc brakes. You can also get an extra set of 650c road wheels and easily convert your ATH to a road bike. This will also lower the cycle an extra inch to the ground. You may choose a Spinergy 29er wheel set which adds an extra inch and a half of ground clearance… a whopping 7.5” of ground clearance! Or, if you’re into winter biking (or beach biking), you may choose to go with a 4” wide tire on an 80mm rim. This provides for 7” of ground clearance.
Wheel Sizes Options:
25" (559) wheelchair wheel
26" (559) mountain bike wheel
29er (622) mountain bike wheel
26" (559) 80mm wide winter wheel
650c (571) road wheel
700c (622) road wheel
Since the ATH is front wheel drive, the riding position is familiar and comfortable. With the seating designed to be more upright and forward, there is plenty of weight on the front drive wheel to get up relatively steep slopes without drive wheel slip. This bike wasn’t designed for extremely steep hills or crazy slopes, but it will perform exceptionally well when you want to go trail riding with your mountain bike friends.
The base ATH comes with Shimano SLX components (which are a pretty exceptional component set) and Avid hydraulic disc brakes, some of the best you can put on a bike. From there, you may opt for the Shimano XT or XTR component set. Or, mix and match each component individually. It’s your bike, so you can choose what goes on it.
If accessories are important to you, the ATH has got them. Your ATH can be outfitted with LED headlights and tail lights for night time riding, custom made frame mounted bag for cross country or over night trips, front and rear fenders, click strap seatbelt, integrated hydration system, cycle computer system from Garmin, even a headmount or frame mount ContourHD camera system to make your own YouTube adventure videos. The ATH was designed to accomodate all these accessories... and more are being worked on.
Finally, you want your bike to look good when you’re riding it. The ATH comes in 19 standard powder coat color choices, and 48 optional powder coat color choices for a total of over 60 colors!Then we put on our color matched reflective decals so your bike is more visible when riding at night.
If you’re looking for a handcycle that can take you beyond the pavement, this bike is for you!
The ATH All-Terrain wheelchair is one hell of a bike and gives individuals with disabilities and have lost the use of their legs hope and enjoyment in activities they thought were impossible. The folks at lasher sport have done a great job of designing an incredible wheelchair, or should I say wheelbike.
There's tantalizing data suggesting that biking could go a long way to solving America's obesity crisis. And much more.
Americans are getting fatter every year, and weight-related diseases kill us at a rate second only to tobacco. There's been lots of proposed solutions to that problem--rejiggering the food pyramid, advertising campaigns, soda taxes. But the simplest of all might just be bikes. Yes, bikes.
If you live in the suburbs where any bike trip would be riding along a highway, that probably sounds totally insane. But this infographic produced by Healthcare Management Degree actually provides several data points that suggest that bikes might not be so ridiculous after all.
A few stats immediately leap out at you: For one, 70% of America's car trips are shorter than 2 miles, which translates to about an easy 10-minute bike ride:
The stats really get eye-popping in the second half of the panel above: 13 pounds in a year, just from riding to work?! The second panel then looks at the obesity rates in various European countries and compares them to the percentage of trips taken by bike:
Obviously, correlation isn't causation, but given how much weight you lose by riding to work, the data is pretty compelling. Then again, could Americans really commit to the cultural shift that biking all the time entails? After all, it's not like our gas prices are going up to $8 a gallon, as they are in Europe, where gas taxes are huge. If you're trying to fight cars as an American politician, you'll be out of work fast. Especially since, as of this moment, only a tiny .6% of all errands and trips in this country are made via bikes.
But the last panel does actually suggest that change isn't totally impossible. Portland, which is covered with relatively new bike lanes, has 6% of its population commuting by bike; ridership across the country is growing.
There are suggestions that the government takes this trend serious: Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has been making noises about making biking easier and safer across the country. But nonetheless, the degree to which motorists seem to despise those on bikes is pretty amazing--in New York's own fights over bike lanes, the backlash has been vicious. How do you make cyclists safer without making drivers feel like they're under attack? The answer to that question could hold the key to our biking future.
COMMENTARY: I lived in Portland, Oregon for a year and a half, and it's definitely one of the most pro-bike cities in the country. I don't miss the rain much, but Portlad is a nice town, with lots of parks and plenty to do, especially if you love to bike. I can still remember riding all the way to Sauvie Island:
If there are any Portlanders, post a comment and let me know what's happening.
Courtesy of an article dated December 14, 2011 appearing in Fast Company Design
Their "Alpha" bicycle was rapid-prototyped entirely on campus and will make any cycling fan weak in the knees.
Geek cyclists, eat your heart out: engineering students at UPenn have reached inside your collective consciousness and pulled out the stuff of dreams to create Alpha, a concept bike so sleek and tech'd out you'll gladly cut off a pinky just to take one ride on it.
The student team has created a showcase website for Alpha with so much detail you could probably build one yourself, but the basic idea was "to create a bicycle that would push the boundaries of integrated systems": a fully enclosed drivetrain, an electronic clutch to flip between freewheeling and fixed-gear configurations on the fly, and an onboard computer for tracking cycling stats, all encasedwithin a custom-machined carbon fiber and aluminum frame. Practically nothing on the bike is exposed to the elements except the pedals.
First, the frame. Carbon fiber ensured minimum weight (in fact, Alpha weighs less than a standard steel frame bike, even with all the specialty gear they packed into it) and the students fabricated the frame and handlebars on campus using CNC machining, laser sintering, and 3-D printing.
Next, the electronics suite. Alpha's onboard computer, handlebar-mounted LCD screen and LED lighting all need juice, which is provided courtesy of a drum brake and dynamo on the front wheel hub, as well as two capacitors charged by the spinning wheel. The LCD screen displays real-time data on cadence, distance, speed, and gear status. If you're into personal datavis, you can pop out an SD card from under the Alpha's handlebars and download the info onto your PC.
Finally, the SWIFT drivetrain (which stands for Switchable Integrated Free-Fixed Transmission). This is the magic between the pedals that lets the Alpha be all things to all riders: a take-any-grade-in-stride freewheeling geared bike, or a quadricep-punishingfixie. (Or both during the same ride, as your mood or company changes.) I'm not enough of an engineer to understand exactly howthis little knot of bronze, steel, and titanium actually pulls off such a feat, but the fact that these students designed it into a package that doesn't look like a hairball coughed up by Optimus Prime is impressive enough.
The UPenn team had nearly 30 corporate sponsers and manufacturing partners backing them up, so I'd be surprised if we didn't see ideas from Alpha gracing bike shops in a few years.
COMMENTARY: As a former bike rider, mountain and road, I have seen some fantastic bikes in my riding days, but nothing like the Alpha Bike. I appreciate the Alpha bike's unique fully-integrated design, carbon fiber composite frame tubing, fully integrated and encased drivetrain, shifter and brake wires concealed within the frame tubing and its ultra-sleek high-tech look. Sort of reminds me of my old trusty Treak carbon fibre road bike. That was one sweet bike. I can easily see Lance Armstrong riding this bike to victory in the Tour de France. The Alpha Bike is just a prototype, but how much does it weigh, how fast can it go and how much does the darn thing cost. It has to be one ridiculously expensive bike.
The math on your bike doesn't seem to add up. The sweat from all those thigh-burning, hill-climbing miles evaporates into thin air, as you change batteries in your bike light and drag your GPS inside to charge it. Now a German bike company says it can transfer all those pedal revolutions into energy you can actually use.
Starke by Silverback is a new series of innovative bikes that hope to offer equally innovative solutions for their riders. While the Starke bikes definitely look sharp--think sleek adonized metal with colors like "exotic spice"--it's one particular feature that's getting the most attention: a front hub that converts forward movement into power for your iPod.
Click Images To Enlarge
Deon Retief, the founder of Silverback Technologies tells Co Design.
"Our goal was to offer something new, something different and totally awe-inspiring."
In looking how to best serve the contemporary city rider, Retief and his team noted a proclivity for using tech-savvy devices while on the streets. They fitted the bike with a tiny hub dynamo--basically an electric generator built into the wheel--which can produce enough power to light two bike lights (one in the front, one in the back), plus the USB port situated on the handlebars. Retief says that a speed of 7 to 9 miles per hour is enough to charge iPhones, iPods, or a GPS, and the lights will stay illuminated for up to 5 minutes after you stop pedaling.
Click Image To Enlarge
While some bikers add their own dynamos to their wheels that can power their devices, and a few bikes are equipped with dynamo-powered lighting, this might be the first bike we've seen to offer both lights and USB as a standard feature. The benefits of the lights are obvious as they solve a huge issue for bikers when it comes to safety. How many times have you ended up somewhere after dark, only to find the last bit of juice flickering from your light, or worse, find that you left your light at home? Making leg-powered lights standard and automatic on bikes could drastically increase the visibility of bikers by compensating for our own stupidity and forgetfulness.
While a USB port packs plenty of gee-whiz convenience, it doesn't quite guarantee the same level of increased safety, although a constantly charged navigation system or phone might mean you're less likely to get lost and can call for help if you need it. But it does open up some pretty awesome possibilities for more cool peripherals we can attach to our bikes. It's aspirational, of course, but that's exactly where Silverback wants to be, says Retief.
"We want to be the Apple of the industry."
COMMENTARY: What a cool idea, whose time has come. If we can use DC port to charge our phones and other mobile devices while in our car, it makes sense to be able to charge them while on a bike. For those interested, below are the Starke Sub Zero specifications. Sorry, don't have prices. Please post a comment if you know.
Silverback bicycles are available in Europe, Australasia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Southern Islands and Eastern Europe. Not presently available in the U.S.
Courtesy of an article dated September 16, 2011 appearing in Fast Company
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