A Broken Chain and a Busted Pedal
Max Hirschberg missed the last dogsled out of Dawson, Yukon because he was recovering from tetanus. So he rode a bicycle for two months to get to Nome, Alaska in order to join the Klondike gold rush in 1900. Hirschberg was 19 years old when he started the trip.
The day I left Dawson, March 2, 1900 was clear and crisp, 30° below zero. I was dressed in a flannel shirt, heavy fleece-lined overalls, a heavy mackinaw coat, a drill parka, two pairs of heavy woolen socks and felt high-top shoes, a fur cap that I pulled down over my ears, a fur nosepiece, plus fur gauntlet gloves.
Along the way, Hirschberg suffered from exposure, snowblindness, and a broken bicycle chain. He came close to drowning. His money was gone. Still, he made it to Nome. Link -via Metafilter
(image found at Center Scene)
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BuckyBalls Magnetic Toys are 216 rare earth magnet balls that can be shaped and molded into virtually any shape. Tear 'em apart and snap 'em back together in unlimited ways for hours of fun! Watch the video for a quick demo of what BuckyBalls can do. Remember to get two for twice the fun! Link |
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Cycle-Through Windows Emerging
While it seems most establishments with drive-thru windows are in agreement that bicycles are forbidden, and refused service, Washington-based restaurant Burgerville is leading the way to change that. All 39 of their stores now allow cyclists in their drive up lanes, giving free smoothies to the first batch earlier this month.
The intention of our Bike Friendly Service program is to create a consistent policy and experience for our guests in the drive thru. To support this program, a cross-functional team, including members from Hawthorne Burgerville and community members from the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, have designed and are beginning the implementation of the first phase of the program.
Link via BikePortland
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Forkless Cruiser Bicycle
This working bicycle is also a work of art! The Forkless Cruiser is a graduation project by Olli Erkkila, a student at the Lahti Institute of Design in Finland.
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Around the World in 174 Days
James Bowthorpe of London pedaled his bicycle 18,000 miles around the world in 174 days, 20 fewer days than the world record holder. He arrived back in Hyde Park to complete the journey on Saturday.
Mr Bowthorpe cycled through France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States – taking flights where necessary – before coming back to Europe.
This week he pedalled through Spain and France before catching a ferry across the English Channel to Portsmouth where he met his mother and father.
He finished his ride back at his Hyde Park starting point accompanied by his brothers and 20 other cyclists.
The trip around the world raised £55,000 for research into Parkinson’s disease. Link -via Unique Daily
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The Cycologists: A Bicycle-Themed Band
(YouTube Link)
Linsey Pollak, Brendan Hook, and Ric Halstead comprise The Cycologists, an Australian band that bases its preformances on a bicycle theme. They’ve fitted their instruments into their bicycles, as the video above demonstrates when the musicians use their seats as clarinets. Other instruments include tuned bicycle bells, flutes that work as handlebars, and panpipes powered by tire pumps. The Cycologists’ stage shows are quite complex and you can see videos of them at the link.
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Bike Dancing
[YouTube - Link]
Forget Lance Armstrong! Carla and Henriette Hochdorfer, German Artistic Cycling champions, certainly take bicycling to a whole new level …
– via carla-henriette
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DIY Floating Water Bike
Humans may not be able to walk on water, but an invention by Li Weiguo let us bike on water! Behold the amphibious bicycle, made by water containers jerry-rigged into pontoons:
Li Weiguo’s daughter Li Jin rides the human-powered amphibious bicycle on the water in Wuhan of Hubei Province, China on May 30, 2009. The amphibious bicycle made by Li Weiguo is equipped with eight water buckets as pontoons and adjustable vane wheels as driving power. This kind of bike can walk on land and on water.
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The Shweeb -- A Human-Powered Monorail
(YouTube Link)
The Schweeb is an experimental transit system in New Zealand that combines the bicycle and a monorail track. Users lie down individual pods and work the pedals to move forward:
Our proposal to get you safely and quickly from one point in the city to another would be to elevate you onto a network of interconnected monorails where you never have to stop at traffic lights. The ideal vehicle for such a system already exists. Fully faired recumbent cycles, because of their low aerodynamic resistance, are breaking all bicycle speed records and currently reaching speeds of 90 kph (56 mph) in sprints. Suspending these comfortable and highly efficient machines from monorail tracks has the added advantage of taking away the rolling resistance of pneumatic tyres. Trains of Shweebs can further reduce the aero drag – ten people travelling at 40 kph will each have a lot less work to do than a single rider at the same speed. A single rider requires only a fraction of the energy to achieve the same speed as a normal cyclist – thanks to the significant reductions in both aero drag and tire friction. The vehicle is completely weatherproof, you can’t derail or fall out while on the cellphone or blackberry!
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Bicycle + Treadmill Hack
Photo: frankh
Remember the mobile treadmill posted on Neatorama a while ago? Well, Flickr user frankh spotted a DIY version at MIT (where else?). Apparently, it’s what you get when you cross a bicycle with a treadmill – via GadgetLab
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Parkour on Two Wheels: Danny MacAskill Rides a Bike
Most of us can ride bikes, but I bet you not like Inspired Bicycles team rider Danny MacAskill. Here’s a video tape of a collection of what can only be described as parkour on two wheels: Link [YouTube clip]
Kids, don’t try this at home. Or on the streets, either.
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Why settle for a boring computer mouse when you can surft in style with Road Mice, a cool wireless computer mouse that looks just like the car of your dreams? Road Mice is available in various Chevy, Chrysler, Dodge, and Ford models including the popular Dodge Viper shown to the left. It's the perfect gift for the auto-enthusiast in your life! |
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Bicycle Contrails
Contrail is a fun little gadget developed by Studio Gelardi to let bicyclists "mark" their bike paths. As more an more bikers ride on the same path, the contrail lines get brighter. Ostensibly, they say that the gadget allows other bicyclists the path that is safe to ride on but I’m sure that a big part of the appeal is the sheer fun in making roads look like Skittles rainbow.
Link – via Gadget Lab
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Didi Senft: Cycling Superfan and Builder of Outrageous Bicycles
Ever sport has got its hardcore fan, and cycling is no different: it has Didi Senft, a 56-year-old cycling superfan better known as "El Diablo" (yes, he wears the devil’s cape everywhere he goes).
Didi is quite famous in the cycling world; he has over 100 unusual and record-breaking bicycles. Deborah of Life in the Fast Lane has more on this guy:
Didi Senft has also built a recumbent double-decker tandem, and a giant rickshaw 42 feet (12.4 meters) long, on which the passenger sits at a dizzying height of 21 feet 10 inches (6.65 meters) above the ground.
Didi made the world’s largest soccerball bicycle out of more than 100 footballs and rode it around to promote the World Cup 2006 in Germany.
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Derringer Cycles
Motorized bicycles have always been one of the the aspirations of "green" transportation, but let’s face it: most of them are clunky.
Well, no more: Industrial designer Adrian Van Anz has created a stylish, retro moto-bike that looks like a cross between a Ducati and a Schwinn. Behold, the Derringer Cycles:
Derringers can be pedaled as a traditional bicycle, propelled via engine power, or pedaled with the assistance of engine power. While under power, the pedals can also remain stationary, allowing you to operate in the style of a traditional motorcycle. Capable of fuel economy ratings that can exceed 150 mpg, Derringers are the first product to take the compromise out of environmentalism …
Link – via diskursdisko
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Skinless Skin-Tight Cycling Suit
Cycling suits are usually pretty skin-tight, but what happens when you remove the skin? Tomek Pietek created this anatomical cycling suit that’s equal parts gross and neat. The elastic suit shows off what a person has going on beneath the skin’s surface – muscles. The creation may not be for everyone, but it definitely stands out from the rest of the pack.
Link – via boingboing
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How the Bicycle was Invented
Baron Karl Christian Ludwig von Drais de Sauerbrun of Germany patented a two-wheeled foot-driven vehicle on February 17th, 1818. It had no pedals, gears, or brakes. His invention was inspired by the shortage of horses, but didn’t catch on for public transportation during his lifetime.
The two-wheelers really needed paved or at least smooth surfaces, of which there weren’t many. It was also way too easy to fall off the contraption, and people’s leather shoes were nowhere near as durable as a horse’s iron shoes. What’s more, the Laufmaschine also faced competition from another new invention: the railroads.
So, the utilitarian-inspired mechanical horse instead became a fancy toy for aristocrats and the rising bourgeoisie. The French called it a draisine, the English a hobby horse. The devices were often graced with equine figureheads, or even carved dragons and elephants.
Later innovators built on Von Drais’ “running machine” over time to make the bicycle what it is today. Read the whole story at Wired. Link
(image credit: Flickr user Mark Stosberg)
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Bike Washing Machine: Pedal Your Clothes Clean
A middle-school student in Guandong province in China figured out a way to run a washing machine without electricity.
He rigged up a washing machine to a stationary bicycle and pedaled until the clothes were clean. He demonstrated that you can wash your clothes, keep in shape, and protect the environment at the same time.
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Marry Me
(YouTube link)
Directed by Michelle Lehman, last year’s Tropfest Australia winning film, Marry Me, tells a little love story about “a little girl who likes a little boy and a little boy who likes his BMX bike”. The film was inspired by a true story when director, Michelle, at 5 years of age, would chase Jason Mahooney around the school in a pretend wedding dress (her mother’s nightie).
You go, girl! -via I Am Bored
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