Midweek links

Wow, it is already Wednesday night; I don’t know where half of the week has gone. I have been way too busy since my last post, but I do want to quickly pass along a few links that I recently found interesting.

Pictured here is another bike design by Torkel Dohmers, designer of the “ThisWay.” This track /time trial frame design immediately caught my attention as I was looking at Torkel’s website. The two designs certainly appeal to different groups, but I think both are very nice. Personally, this race-oriented bike really appeals to me, but we all know that I am firmly entrenched in the “red ocean” of current cyclists. The main reason that I wanted to point this bike out is precisely because it is so different from Torkel’s competition entry. To me, that difference illustrates the fact that one can love racing and recreational bikes while still wanting to come up with alternative solutions for the non-cycling public. I have talked to a few people before who don’t understand why I get just as excited seeing an interesting new folding commuter as I do at the sight of a high-end carbon fiber time trial machine. Well, I think the answer is because I am a designer…and I just love bikes. I suspect that many of you who read this blog feel the same way.

A reader, Juan, sent me a link to some interesting photos. These are “photos of African wooden bikes that an Argentinean couple shot in a museum in Tanzania, while touring in tandem around the world.”

Jim told me that he stumbled across an issue of Elemente magazine, which featured a two-page spread of a concept bicycle design by Alberto del Biondi. If you don’t have the Sept/Oct 2008 issue of the magazine, you can check it out on their blog.

A couple of people have asked me why I never mentioned the Gocycle. Well, the honest answer is that I meant too, but just never got around to it. I guess I was too busy with the competition at the time. For any of you who are still not familiar with it, the Gocycle is a magnesium injection-molded electric folding bicycle with 20-inch wheels. The bike features an enclosed 3-speed drivetrain and a battery is hidden inside the frame. It is a very cool design, so check out the website for more info.

This isn’t exactly bicycle related, but I saw something on Cool Hunting about the new Google Maps-based Community Rides tool on the Vespa website. As Cool Hunting points out, the new user generated content page “helps scooter commuters or tourers uncover, share, rate, download and comment on new riding routes.” This seems like a great idea on Vespa’s part to build community and brand loyalty.

Lastly, I will mention that I have a few products from different companies that I am trying out to review on the blog. They include a MyTach GPS sports watch, a very nice messenger bag from Chrome, and a few of those TOTOBOBO filter masks that I mentioned for commuting. I also still need to write a complete review of the Third Eye products that I have been using for quite a while now. All of those reviews and more will come when I can find the time, so be on the lookout.


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14 responses to “Midweek links”

  1. Champs Avatar
    Champs

    Torkel’s TT/track design is very fetching, but in practice it’s going to require more bottom bracket drop or a very UCI-illegal riding position.

  2. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Integrated fork+handle bar means that there is no room for adjustment for different sized riders (gasp! aren’t we all built to the same standard?!) I wonder why he bothered to RENDER an adjustable seat post at all.

    Sloping top tube has a greater frontal area than a horizontal top tube and thus increases drag. Take a close look at the Cervelo “P4” and “P3 track” bicycles. Those were designed in a wind tunnel.

  3. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    …continuing

    This is just a collection of old and dysfunctional ideas in a nicely RENDERED picture.

    Torkel really isn’t a very good bicycle designer. He can produce flashy pictures but they are very, very far away from being useful for actual use or production.

  4. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    the Mavic IO front wheel is in thw wrong wat round…

  5. Peter Eland Avatar
    Peter Eland

    FWIW I’ve just posted what I’m fairly sure is the first Gocycle review:

    Gocycle review on http://www.velovision.com

  6. James Avatar
    James

    “the Mavic IO front wheel is in thw wrong wat round…”

    Is that supposed to actually mean something?

    Peter, great review- thanks for the link.

  7. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    the Mavic IO front wheel is in the wrong way round…

  8. Robert H Avatar
    Robert H

    Wow. You really nailed it that time Anon.

  9. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I think Anon 9:03 is saying that the Mavic iO wheel which is shaped like an aircraft wing to reduce wind resistance is fitted in the wrong way to take advantage of this feature?

  10. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Please just address the points I have raised instead of having a dig at me.

  11. James Avatar
    James

    Anon, yes he could have copied the logos, flipped the wheel in photoshop, and then put it back together… or he could have looked for a picture of the wheel from the other side…or he could have rendered the bike from the drivetrain side to match the wheel direction. Instead, since I presume it was just a quick concept rendering, he just used the image of the wheel that he had available.

    The point about horizontal top tubes may be a valid criticism of tghe deign, but I can’t speak for Torkel, so I will let him address it directly if he wishes to. Why should he though? I don’t think you can really expect an answer when your comments come across as antagonistic and you are unwilling to even sign your name on them. Personally, I think Champs’ comment about the BB height is more likely to be addressed.

  12. TeDee Avatar
    TeDee

    Well spotted anon 5:46! I only had the IO from one side which I used for a quick test with components. In the first concept picture the front tubular didn’t even have a valve – now, that wouldn’t work at all… :^)

    Champs. Regarding BB height, UCI states height should be between 24 to 30 cm. Height in my design is less than 30cm. Geometry wise the design is comparable to one of my favourite track machines, the Look 496. In general the the BB height is slightly higher on track bikes to allow clearance on steeply banked velodromes. Have put up a couple of comparisons with the 496 and a Pinarello on my site http://www.redtop.se

    Anon 2:17, cheers for commenting on the top tube. This might be an issue. I wish I had access to a wind tunnel… One of the ideas here was to create a really compact and stiff frame, still fairly close to UCI regulations (in my dream world we wouldn’t have all those restrictive regulations, allowing the bike to evolve freely). I am working on adjustments to fully comply.

    Torkel

  13. […] briefly mentioned in a February post that I had a new messenger bag from Chrome to try out. Now that I have been using that bag, their […]

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