Bicycle Design

What is a bicycle?

I may have mentioned before that I subscribe to the Cycling News and Views podcast on iTunes. The podcast comes from Carlton Reid, editor of the UK based industry trade magazine Bike Biz. I recommend checking it out if you don’t already get it.

I have been pretty backed up with work lately, so just yesterday I got around to hearing his release from September 10th titled “The UCI and ‘what is a bicycle?” I am not a fan of most of the UCI’s restrictions myself, so I was immediately drawn in by that title. This episode features a lecture by Dr. Peter Cox of the University of Chester. Dr. Cox is obviously a recumbent fan and criticizes the UCI for stalling innovation in the bicycle industry with their technology restrictions. Even if you are not a recumbent rider (all of my bikes are uprights), you will probably be interested in the points made in this lecture. Listen for yourself here and let me know what you think.

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3 responses to “What is a bicycle?”

  1. Olivier Blanchard Avatar
    Olivier Blanchard

    Recumbents aren’t all that fun to climb steep hills with, from what I hear. (Especially when you try to stand in the pedals.) 😀

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  2. James Avatar
    James

    True about climbing, but some recumbent designs are definitely fast on the flats. Fast Freddy Markham’s IHPVA hour record of 85.991 km (set at age 49) is pretty impressive when compared to Boardman’s 56.375 km on an upright track bike. Of course, the good old UCI doesn’t even recognize Boardman’s 1996 bike, so their recognized record is back under 50km.

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  3. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Some of the newset designs in CF recumbents are made by Velokraft:

    http://www.velokraft.com/

    Lots more Recumbo links here:

    http://www.bentrideronline.com/

    Reply

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