Cannondale Dutchess

dutchess_1, originally uploaded by carltonreid.

BikeBiz points us to the Dutchess, a new concept bike designed by Wytze van Mansum, a design student at the Delft University of Technology. According to a company statement, the bike was “designed for women keen to express their style amongst the fast paced and ever changing urban vibe.”

The Dutchess is only a rideable prototype at this point. As has been the case with previous concept bikes though, elements of the design may make their way into future Cannondale urban bicycles.

See more pictures of the bike in Carlton Reid’s Dutchess gallery on Flickr.

Update 11/17: Watch this video, made by Eelke Dekker, which shows the Dutchess concept bike in action. I have more information, straight from Wytze, about this bike’s features and the ideas behind the design, so look for that in a separate post soon.

Posted

November 16, 2009

Commuter, Student Design

James

Tags:

Cannondale, concept bike, Student Design, women’s bike

Comments

11 responses to “Cannondale Dutchess”

Champs

November 16, 2009

It's a spiffy looking bike. I'd absolutely put Mrs. Champs on one of these, preferably the model that comes with brakes. That rear fender could be more practical, too, without ruining the lines.

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Erik Orgell

November 17, 2009

It is an elegant looking bike, I'll definitely give it that.

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Yokota Fritz

November 17, 2009

I like the swoopy curves on this one a lot, and it looks like it could even work.

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GeekGuyAndy

November 17, 2009

Wow! A concept bike that could actually be ridden! 😀

The rear fender would be more useful if it came down farther though. If it doesn't get behind the wheel, then muck/gunk/water/whatever will still fly forward at a high angle.

It's neat to see new pedal systems, but it's limiting if there are no cheaply available spare parts. Can't tell what kind of drive this has either.

Integrated lights are helpful, but I don't see where or how these are powered. Maybe these are special hubs?

As for those wheels, I don't see a quick release. Good luck if you want to take a wheel off I guess? Again, specialty parts will only increase cost to buy and repair.

Looks neat, rideable, but an expensive way to buy and maintain a bike like this.

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Lex

November 18, 2009

@GeekGuyAndy – the vast majority of the Dutch style bikes used day-in-day-out for urban commuting don't have quick releases on the wheels either. With a sturdy set of urban tyres there's no need to worry unduly about punctures and I don't think this concept is aimed at the 'fix-it-at-home' crowd 😉

Are those hubs standard stock parts from someone? Maybe I should pay more attention to the Shimano catalogue…

I'm really interested in the drivetrain. It's obviously not a standard chain setup, I'm not even sure a carbon belt would work in that situation. Perhaps a shaft drive?

Regardless, it's a concept bike that I can actually see working in the real world with some really neat features (handlebars as lock? Genius!) that hopefully will make it to production even if this bike doesn't. I am however somewhat jealous that they're not doing a 'male' version.

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Anonymous

November 18, 2009

It is pretty, but I agree about the non-standard issue: that would of course usefully build in obsolescence – useful to manufacturers.

Perversely, people in places with old cobblestone marketplaces use bicycles as transport rather than fashion accessories, and find the thought of replacing an expensive bike in under a couple of decades completely ridiculous, since the whole point of an expensive bike is precisely that it's robust and future-proofed.

You spend money once on an expensive bicycle, and for decades afterwards, spend hardly any money on wheels; just use them to go eat out more whatever. Bling bikes, unlike bling cars, do not proclaim wealth, they just say "gullible and vain".

Buyer-type thoughts:
Drive: must be a fabulous innovation twice as efficient as any current form of drive. It had better be, if I have to buy non-standard parts three years up the line, or have some specialist fix it. Looks like not enough room for a shaft drive or the right shape for a belt/chain. (Is it actually working, or is she just freewheeling with her feet going round?) How do you get to it for maintenance? How many years will it last, then? I'm not chucking out a whole bike in five years time!

The locking handlebars – how easy is it to get a car-jack in and break them apart? Or are they non-standard? & non-adjustable? If The lock breaks/seizes up/key lost / gets vandalized, do I have to get whole new bike?

Why is the back rack so robust-looking…yet so useless she can't put her stuff on it? No grippy thing? Doesn't look like room to drape a double-pannier, and anyway, a soft pannier will catch in the spokes.

Pretty. Don't want to look like a plonker riding a vanity-bike.

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Anonymous

November 20, 2009

Its perfect; most concepts are before people start looking for more practicality and maintainance solutions. It should be tough to fix so you feel you have to take care of it. If this goes to production it surely wont be so unique and specialty partsy. Compromises arent ussualy progress.

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Anonymous

November 30, 2009

It's hard not to like the design; it does, after all, incorporate many of the ideas from last year's 'Win a Cannondale' competition. I especially like the hidden cabling, the integral lighting, the folding bars, the curvy look etc etc. Can't wait to see "The Duke"….

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Mistie

December 3, 2009

If you are looking for an affordable, quality made “dutch style” bike you should check out http://www.bowerylanebicycles.com

They are made by hand in american, out of american steele using solar power and they only cost $595.

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