Random Bicycle Crap Fridays: Innovative Design

Second Thoughts on the Copenhagen Wheel

The last week of the Copenhagen Climate Conference saw a lot of buzz for something completely unrelated to climate change. While world leaders tried and failed to put together a sensible plan on climate change (who am I kidding, there is nothing sensible about anything related to politics) an announcement out of MIT's SENSEable City Lab basically stole the show for many in the bicycle community. The Copenhagen Wheel combines hybrid technology (think Prius), connectivity through the use of a smart phone, and the best, most reliable, and technologically simple form of transportation to yet exist... the bicycle.

This really is a great idea, for more information watch the video here, but after my initial WOW reaction to reading about this invention, I started to think about how I would find the Copenhagen Wheel practical to use in my everyday journey by bike and I came instead came away with two concerns.

First, the Wheel main means of generating energy to be stored is when a rider uses the coaster brake. This goes against the basic operation of a bicycle where a person attempts to conserve as much forward momentum as possible and braking makes up a very small portion of a person's time on a bike. In the attempt to conserve forward momentum cyclists blow through stop signs and even red lights (I'll admit to doing exactly that when there is no traffic to worry about).

It's highly doubtful that people would significantly change their behavior just to get a little charge. Unlike with a hybrid vehicle, whereby people changing their driving behavior to fit the dynamics of a hybrid and thus driving becomes more efficient, changing behavior to fit the mechanics of the Copenhagen Wheel would seem to make a ride less efficient.

However, Christine Outram, a research associate at the SENSEable City Lab informed me that the Copenhagen Wheel does take these facts into account having an additional "exercise" mode that can be switched on. In this mode, excess energy from pedaling is used to charge the batteries. Of course, this mode is meant for those who like to ride at a fast clip and so may not be of much utility to those cyclists whom prefer to take a leisurely ride.

The second concern is the distraction of operating everything through a smart phone. A large debate surfaced this summer surrounding the safety implications of texting and driving, and I see no difference here just because the bicycle is a few thousand pounds less. Texting or talking on a cell phone while biking is extremely distracting and dangerous, I can attest to this by witnessing plenty of people attempting such feats and thereby swerving all over the place, losing their balance, and generally becoming unaware of their surroundings.

While the Copenhagen Wheel smart phone interface is integrated into the handlebars of a bicycle, this system still requires that a ride look down and take one hand off the handlebars to operate; creating a distraction and making the bicyclist take their eyes off the road. Its not hard to imagine someone fiddling with their smart phone and wondering into a busy intersection.

Random Bicycle Crap Fridays

Usually I post things relating to the ridiculous on Fridays, but today I want to highlight something inspirational, something that could utterly transform the usefulness and practicality of bicycles, and a few things seen around Missoula. Enjoy.

First, the Revolution:



Second, the Inspirational: A group of High School students in Florida have started their own "bike Bus" to school with amazing results.

High School Bike Bus from Keri Caffrey on Vimeo.

Third, something seen at Target:



Fourth, seen in downtown Missoula, who needs a bus stop when you have:

Pictures From Missoula's 2009 PedalFest

I finally made it through a few my photos from this years Pedalfest. So, I'll let the photos speak for themselves. Enjoy.

100th Post - Random Bicycle Crap Fridays

The Mustache Ride

Just a few pictures from the Sean Kelly's Cruise Tour held on Wedsnday Sept. 2nd. About 70 people showed up, their biggest turnout this season.

Random Bicycle Crap Fridays - Bicycles of Missoula Vol. I

Missoula has some great bicycles to be found around town. In the last few years a lot of vintage Bicycles have come out of hiding, adding a lot of variety to the streets of Missoula. Here are just a few.

This first one isn't vintage, but a custom fixed-gear build by Cody Gould. He sent me this photo after he saw a photo of my fixed-gear, joking that one of us was the evil twin since we had such similar setups - though I don't have wood grain wheels like Cody. The frame is a custom hand-built frame from a friend of his out of Helena.

I like the colorway of this next bike, but I think the bike is a little naked with that puny chain locking it up.

This bike was setup for a father - daughter ride. I don't know if people can make it out, but the second seat has a second crank that a little child can reach, although the little girl could only reach it with her toes.

I really had no idea what the lever was for, I just thought it was interesting

The handlebars caught my eye with this fixed-gear, also looks like custom paint.

Good example of the vintage style that is showing up in Missoula

Clean fixed-gear build, props for the color coordination

Bicycle Themed Music Videos: New Trend?

So... I usually hold this stuff in until Fridays, but I already have a post planned for then. Plus this is just too good of a bad music video to pass up. I mean its got everything the bike culture has to offer: fixies, road bikes, wannabe triathletes, bicycle clans, bad fashion, and trackstands.

Is this a new trend? I'm sure BSNYC will let us all know soon enough.



Via @Cyclelicious

Random Bicycle Crap Fridays - Panda Pr0n

And by Panda Pr0n I mean Panda portraits, which a are pictures taken from a moving bicycle.

Such as these:

Not this kind of Panda Pr0n:

Panda Love
by PeteRock

And then there is this video from Australia making the rounds... I guess its Hipster Bicycle Foreplay?

I'm Not Selling Out, I Just Really Like These Products

When you spend a considerable amount of time on a bike over the course of a day, you learn what types of products make it easier for you to get through a commute and make the ride a more enjoyable experience.

In my opinion there is no other product more important than the right pair of shoes. The wrong pair can be clumsy, painful, and even dangerous if they don't grip the pedals easily. I just received a pair of Toms as a gift and they are certainly not the shoes to ride in; flimsy, no support, and soles that slip off the pedals make them very bad for even short and relaxing rides.

The right pair of shoes I have found are Simples. The pair I have offer great support and are extremely comfortable my 30 minute commute. They are made from a considerable amount of recycled material including used water bottles, old inner-tubes, and old car tires. The rest of the materials usually come from certified organic operations.

The fact that the soles on my pair are made from used car tires makes them grip well and they are thick enough that my feet are still comfortable after 30 minutes.

The right equipment to carry things in is also important. For a very long time I got by using an old day-pack, but this was troublesome just because of the bulk, it not being easy to get into, and the fact that my back would get excessively sweaty when using it. I switched to a messenger bag awhile back, which was better, but it was heavy and cut into my shoulder.

Now, however, I have a better messenger bag that I really like and is very useful. My fiance bought it for me in Seattle, and after using it for a few days I already see its benefits.

The bag is a made by Alchemy Goods and is pretty unique when it comes to messenger bags. Made from used bike tire tubes, which is a cool idea for a product the cycling community uses. I know I've blown plenty of tubes in the last few years, and I always take them to the local bike shop to be recycled. To think that one of my blown tubes goes into making this product is really interesting and definitely adds value to the product and a connection to it. To actually see what your recycling can result in is a good feeling.

In terms of utility the bag is great. Light wieght and water resistant, it makes for a good bag that can carry a lot of stuff and be comfortable doing it. The pockets are very limited, and the inside is basically one big space, but that just means less material used and more space to cram things in on your commute.

Puzzling Appeal

This is a photo that I posted to my Flickr account well over a month ago on the first Saturday market of the season. It is really the only photo of mine that continues to get views everyday and has just become the most viewed (usually a photo gets heavy traffic right after posting that dies off within a few days). I really don't know what it is about the photo, but maybe it is the subject matter?

Could it be the fixie, and people are searching for images of fixies because they really have no idea what one is, but they hear about them more and more? Does the girl have something to do with it; maybe there is a blossoming fetish involving girls and their fixed gear bikes?

If only I had tagged the photo as hot college coed on fixie (don't worry this is not an adult site, just what I found when I typed that into BING), then I would have gotten 20 times the traffic.