We have been busy & helmets

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Kenneth

It has been some time since I posted anything, not because there has been nothing to write about, rather I have been too busy with other things working on the website back-end. The observant may have noted a few small changes which reflect this, and there is more to come, but more of that later. There are also a couple of posts I am working on that should be up shortly.

Mean while I thought I would link to this report via BikeBiz on the recent debate on “cycle safety” in the British parliament. It is depressing! It is particularly depressing that so much parliamentary time was wasted going round in circles, seemingly blind to the point, that it is high-speed heavy vehicles that are the danger, not cycling itself, and polystyrene helmets offer NO PROTECTION against such a danger. That blindness, a blindness which kills in an altogether more subtile way, is what makes cyclists/blogosphere/twitersphere so mad.

The unscientific, irrational, and too often bullying, level of debate is seriously distracting from real solutions to improve on road safety. Technology has become the god of our age. While I am most certainly not anti-technology, I find it very troubling that there is such blind faith in technology, and that the general public are too willing receive the claims that ~~liars~~ marketers make concerning their wares, especially when the wares “might” save the life, say of a child. This faith is dangerously miss-placed. Safety costs! and unfortunately helmets are viewed by too many as a simple and cheap solution. The parody video below and the cartoon at the start highlight, that there are many areas where real safety improvements could be made and, if the arguments of cycle helmet proponents were followed, would require mandatory wearing of PPE.

In an age driven by imagery, icons and what can be seen externally, the idea of a helmet as a guaranteed provider of protection, if not invincibility, is ingrained in the general public. Images of soldiers in bullet proof helmets, construction workers in hard hats, motorcyclists in crash helmets, all of which have saved lives, seem to prove that cycle helmets and compulsion to wear them MUST be a good thing. The following might just change your mind:

A couple of key points from this video:

Average speed of collision 40 km/h ( mph)
Maximum speed at which a cycle helmet offers any protection 20 km/h ( mph).

While proponents point to motorcycle helmets and seatbelts, there is a failure to understand the dynamic differences between, the way such safety devices work, and how a cycle helmet is supposed to work. Last night I did a simple experiment and broke a cycle helmet with my bare hands something I could not do to a human skull or a motorcycle helmet. I have made reference before to a cycle accident I was involved in, in 1988, in which a cycle helmet (which I was not wearing) did not save my life! – When I get time and energy I plan on writing up a more detailed account including some technical analysis – In that event my skull exceeded the performance requirements of a cycle helmet!

The “protection” provided by a cycle helmet – vertical impact between 12 & 15 mph – is artificial and highly contrived, you may note from the video above what part of the dummy’s head usually strikes the car, and I am sure many others could confirm the same from their own experience. As my experiment demonstrated a cycle helmet offers next to no protection in the case of side impact. My accident mentioned above was an exception as I hit a vehicle with what was essentially a vertical impact (my face was looking down) at about 20 mph. I have come off my bike a handful of times since, and on no occasion has my head recieved any injury. It should also be noted that the theoretical efficacy of helmets is very much dependent on the proper fitting and attachment of the helmet to the head of the rider. I think it would be safe to say that in most cases, outside of professional cycle sport, helmets are worn incorrectly.

The argument “if it saves a life” is disingenuous. The assumption is that they will do no harm even if they do no good. Evidence is mounting that statistically this is not the case. Thankfully the parliamentary debate attempted to recognize this, as cycling’s health and life benefits far exceed any risks; but also analytically, this assumption is not true. Helmets, like drugs and medicines, have side-effects:

They make your head bigger – thus increasing the chances of striking or being struck by another object
They alter the shape of your head – thus altering the natural way your body interacts with its environment – this can affect perception, balance and response in an accident
They, in most cases, cover your head in an array of convenient grab handles – thus increasing the chances of snagging, leading to the very kind of rotational head and brain injury which results in death or serious life impairment
They attach a hangman’s noose to your head – a fact tragically illustrated by the 14 documented case where little children died by strangulation while playing wearing a cycle helmet

If it saves 1 life but kills 20 it is not worth it! I recommend reviewing the scientific data available via cyclehelmets.org.

Legal compulsion sends a most unwanted message: generating a false sense of security, to both riders and drivers, leading directly to increased complacency and then injury and death when the “force-field” fails to protect in an ~~accident~~ vehicle incident. It also criminalises, and therefore harms, those who recognize the physical dangers of helmet wearing as well as the limited protection they offer. The comments of Graeme King after the BikeBiz article are very pertinent.

The Cycle Show 2012 Report

Posted on October 27, 2012 by Kenneth

Here at last is the promised report on this year’s Cycle Show.

2012 is the second year the show has been held at the NEC in Birmingham. It is also the second time I was able to attend, what aspires to be, the premier cycle trade event in the UK. However, with the current growth in cycling, the Cycle Show is beginning to face some competition from other new trade shows, that are developing in other parts of the country. The previous occasion I attended was in 2010, the last time the Cycle Show was held in London.

The move to the NEC was intended to broaden the appeal and hopefully attract a greater number of attendees than the previous venue at Earl’s Court in London. The NEC venue, with it’s central location in the British Midlands and good road and rail transport links, is well placed to provide this, and I think the figures from this year’s show, prove the decision to move, was a good thing. For myself, a London based show was preferable, as it is always possible to stay with friends, and then use their home as a base from which to visit, without having to make a long commute. None-the-less I, and a little helper, were able to make a day trip to Birmingham via the train, but it was something of an epic journey.

This being my first ever visit to the NEC, I was impressed by the shear volume of exhibition space. With it’s twenty-something halls, which can be opened up to create a multi-hall venue, the location is well able to accommodate future growth. The Cycle Show occupied three of these halls (9, 10 and 11), and according to Cycle Show figures had an 11% increase in trade stand space over 2010. While attendance in 2011 was down it was up by 30% this year and surpassed the 2010 figures.

As one would expect the show is dominated with sports cycling particularly road racing and BMX, two sports that have been much in the spotlight since the Olympics earlier this year. However there was still plenty to see relating to more practical cycle use, and again one was impressed with a large area, in hall 11, given to electric bikes and systems. The evident increase in this sector since 2010, is a reflection of the massive growth being seen, as the technology has begun to mature and become a much more practical option. From a personal point of view, there did seem to be something lacking, and I am hard-pressed to put my finger on it. There were a number of exhibitors missing, which I had seen in London, but these should have been made up by others who were new to the show. Perhaps Earl’s Court had a slightly more intimate feel, but that was probably due to the cramped condition of a show, that had reached the venue’s capacity. Maybe the balance between sports and utility cycling was different, and not to my taste, I’m not sure. It is still early days for the new venue, so comparisons may not be altogether fair, however the prospects for the future look good. Hopefully this year’s figures will encourage the absent to make the effort to attend next year.

The main entrance was through hall 11 and it was in this hall where the first item of velomobile interest could be found. Here Peter Eland was manning the Velovision/Electric Bike stand, the link with Electric Bike magazine and the surrounding exhibitors was obvious. After chatting with Peter, he directed us to the Ocean Cycle stand, which had been moved from hall 10 to the other side of the electric bike area in 11.

Ocean Cycle were exhibiting two Challenger velomobiles one of which was equipped with a Sunstar electric assist system. The two models also illustrated different hood mounting options. One designed to open sideways in the style of the Cab-Bike and the other tilting forwards in the style of the Leitra.

Ocean Cycle is the work of Marcin Szewczyk. He and a colleague Chris, were on the stand demonstrating the machines and answering questions, and while I was there, they seemed to be getting plenty of attention. Marcin can be seen, in the rather fuzzy photo, of the black Challenger. Ocean Cycle make some other recumbent specific products but the Challenger is very much their flagship.

The Challenger itself is built on the ICE Sprint trike, also made in Cornwall. The velomobile is available, both as a kit to mount on a trike you already own, or as a complete ready-to-ride velomobile. The weight for the complete machine comes in at 32 kg, which is not bad, the body alone being 16 kg.

The fairing is made from glass fibre, with a number of small detail areas reinforced with carbon fibre. Being a fairing-on-frame type, the body is quite light-weight, and might feel a little flimsy, to those used to monocoque or self supporting velomobiles, but it is capable of supporting your own weight as you get in and out.

The Sprint is ICE’s “in-between” model not as low, and therefore fast, as the Vortex, but lower than the “go far” Adventure. As such the seat in the Challenger is quite low. However any disadvantage this might pose is offset, by both the ease of entry, and the lower centre of gravity – a definite advantage for handling at speed.

The Challenger’s external styling is certainly attractive, but such styling can sometimes result in some loss of function internally. Looking at the Challenger one is immediately concerned that the rider’s road view will be overly restricted. Sitting inside however, I found the view to be reasonable and the cabin had plenty of space, but, as with the machines I sampled at SPEZI, a static assessment is not enough, and a real world test ride is needed to make a final judgement.

I did attempt to take a panoramic shot of the view from inside but, not surprisingly at such close range, it was unsuccessful. One nice feature, which again needs real world assessment, is the windscreen wiper fitted to the hood. This is operated by a convenient handle from the inside, and should go a long way to solving the wet weather visibility problems experienced by most head-in velomobiles. A visit to Ocean Cycle, and a test ride, are things I plan to do in the coming months, time and finance permitting. Meanwhile if there are any readers with first hand experience of the Challenger in the “wild” then please add your comments below.

Marcin and Chris have been very helpful, and naturally want to get the word out, contact details are on the Ocean Cycle website, and I do recommend taking the opportunity to visit and take a test ride, as I hope to shortly. It will be good to see more of these machines on the road soon.

The next stand I visited was Sunstar. Sunstar is a multinational corporation with Japanese roots and quite a diverse range of interests, ranging from toiletries to motorcycle parts! Their eAssist system falls under their Environment & Amenity division.

On their stand, they had a number of cycles fitted with examples their system. One of these was an ICE Sprint as used in the Challenger which gave a good opportunity to view the installation from all angles. The Sunstar system is designed to be fitted to most cycles as an after-market upgrade, and looked quite tidy and impressive, in a quiet sort of way. More information is available via their website.

An after-show email from SparticleBikes, who seem to be representing the Sunstar system in the UK, highlighted the proven reliability of the system – Tried, tested and evolved for 10 years in Japan, and pointed to a demonstration video showing the ease of fitment. They also added the following photo of a recently retrofitted Challenger.

The other recumbents to be seen at the show, were designs tailored to special needs rider requirements, and while interesting in their own right, have little to offer the velomobile enthusiast that is not better catered for elsewhere.

The rest of the day was spent visiting other stands and going over the the mainstream cycle offerings. Perhaps the most interesting of these were the cycle tracking systems from Spybike and Eagle Hound, and the arm mounted signal indicator from Indic8or.

While theft of a velomobile is very rare, they naturally stand out and draw attention, not something a thief wants, it does occasionally occur. As velomobiles become more ubiquitous and socially accepted, their high value will make them more of a target of theft, and therefore a tracking system, which enables the safe recovery, and hopefully the capture and charging of the thief, will be a welcome option. Most trackers are designed to be hidden somewhere inside the tubular frames of regular bikes, which restricts their application for both recumbents and velomobiles. Though I’m sure someone could devise a creative way to embed these somewhere in a velomobile.

The system from Spybike was particularly interesting, as they also offer a none-tubular variant, designed to be mounted on a motorcycle. The only catch being that it presently depends on a 12 volt supply, as normally provided by a motor vehicle battery.

All-in-all it was an interesting show and I believe there is reason to look forward to next year.

Dryve – A New Velomobile in Development

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Kenneth

Following on from the Softshell Velomobile Recumbent Gallery also mentioned that AZUB were developing a velomobile. They then referred the reader to AZUB’s 2012 catalogue which is available online through ISSUU.

The catalogue dedicates two pages, 52 and 53, to the Dryve velomobile. The work has been done in conjunction with a German industrial designer, Johannes Rave. For those who take issue with ISSUU, and I find it painfully slow on older PCs, the english text is quoted below:

Dryve – AZUB project of fabric fairing for recumbent trikes
AZUB Dryve is a project of mixed alu/fabric fairing designed for all three models of AZUB trikes. There are a few goals we wanted to reach:

Quite light construction of a fully faired trike which can be used in different types of weather with the rider still comfortable inside.

Using a fabric which can be stretched a bit in the way to use its properties (covered wheels, unusual entrance etc.)

Affordable price which cannot be obviously reached by construction from Composite.

Good looking – a bit car-like-style design with focus on function and practical daily use allowing to transport larger luggage and/or hauling a trailer. The aerodynamic shape is not our primary goal as the construction from fabric cannot really be very aerodynamic.

Possibility of easy assembly of electric motor.

Possibiiity of riding the trike without fairing in the hot months of the year.

Small size for transport from AZUB to customer so the shipping price is not sky high like when delivering a composite body which is huge and has to be protected a lot.

We were dreaming about such a machine for couple of years and then we were contacted by a German student of industrial design from The University in Pforzhelm, Johannes Rave who wanted to design such a fairing for his diploma work. His timing was really perfect and he had at least s.ome experience with this project from some of his seminar work so we started to work together and after some months the project took shape and the very first prototype was made.

We just started to test it (spring 2012) and we already know there are tons of problems which have to be solved from absolutely new ideas lhat have never been tested before. We are very optimistic and are looking forward to new developments. The final product should be introduced during 2013.

I must say I admire wordplay in the name and logo they have chosen. AZUB go on to briefly profile Johannes and point the reader to his website.

Johannes Rave, born 1985, is a German industrial designer who worked together with AZUB on the DRYVE as his final project in summer 2011. He is living in Pforzheim. Germany, where he works on projects for a sustainable future.

Johannes Rave,

www.johannesrave.eu

At the time of writing his website is pending a relaunch. Meanwhile his front page presents the following nice rendering.

A Velomobile Concept with a Fabric Skin

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Kenneth

On interesting detail from the description of the Zampano, mentioned yesterday, was the use of fabric in the weather-proof body. Fabrics have been used before and various “socks” can be made or obtained, to extend the covering provided by a partial fairing which you might see mounted on a recumbent. Modern materials developed for out-door clothing find a ready application here, and the functionality is no doubt much appreciated by the recumbent rider, as they make their way through the end of year weather. One negative that immediately impresses when you look at such coverings, is the lack of style, due in a large part to the rather limited aerodynamic form which has been achieved.

This criticism however, need not be. Recumbent Gallery recently profiled a velomobile concept which as appeared on a number of design blogs by a Czech designer Martin Miklica. I have been unable to locate a website for Martin or his work but he evidently has other interests beside human powered transport. His concept for a four wheel, two seat, socialble basicly involves a light-weight rigid frame covered by a Softshell “stretchy” fabric. For all the criticisms one thing this vehicle does not lack is form and style.

Like so many concepts, once you look past the slick photo-real renderings, the engineer sees numerous technical shortcomings. Recumbent Gallery (RG) rightly observe that there appears to be no space in this design for the usual envelope needed to mount and use a normal crank drive. RG suggests this could be overcome by fitting some kind of linear drive. But once you have grasped the idea of using fixed structural elements to define the edge of the fabric form what is to stop you from adding some similar constraint to further define the shape in the middle, as this design already does toward the rear?

The possibilities from this approach have a lot of potential both to help reduce weight and cost, and also thereby to help reduce the cost of delivery of the product to the end user. It seems to be an ideal way to take Carl-Georg Rassmusen’s concept in the Leitra further, by surrounding the rider(s) in a protective cadge, sealed with an even lighter covering. My only misgiving would be concern over material durability in the real world, where the fabric cover would have to face up, not only to scuffs and rubs, but to sharps and cuts from both the natural and man made environments.

The constrained fabric cover, is already available in a primitive form, with Hase’s Klimax trike, a review of which is expected in the next issue of Velovision Magazine. But there are other prospects in the offing. RG also hints on a new fabric covered velomobile in development, from Czech recumbent makers AZUB, which will be the subject of the next post.

Bent Blog to cease publishing

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Kenneth

Christian Rückert of Bent Blog has posted that he will no longer be adding new content. The Site will remain as an archive as long as the effort required to keep it is minimal.

The fact that Chris is also an editor for Ligfiets.net together with other pressures has prompted this decision. In other words, what would have been posted on Bent Blog, will appear on Ligfiets.net in future.

The only exception at this time are his pages covering the build of the Alleweder A8 which will continue to be updated.

OceanCycle’s Challenger velomobile at The Cycle Show

Posted on September 28, 2012 by Kenneth

The Cycle Show, the UK’s principal Cycle exhibition for both the trade and the public, started on Thursday of this week. This is the second year the show has been held at the National Exhibition Center in Birmingham, and Friday is the first day open for the general public.

Though the show is mainly geared toward upright cycles it is possible to find occasional recumbent offerings. This year Ocean Cycle from Cornwall, with their Challenger velomobile, are on the exhibitor list. I expect to be visiting the show on Friday and will make a point of visiting their booth so there should be a report posted in the next couple of days.

Meanwhile here is some video footage of a Challenger velomobile taken from an accompanying recumbent and presumably shot somewhere in Germany.

Battle Mountain – Final Day

Posted on September 15, 2012 by Kenneth

The 2012 World Human Powered Speed Challenge at Battle Mountain comes to a close today. Official results are tabulated here with breaking news from the blog of one of the offical timers. There have been no records broken as yet, but a new record has been set.

As well as the high profile withdrawal, for this year at least, of Graeme Obree, Sam Whittingham has also decided to give this year a miss. After defending and advancing his record for 12 years, he has decided that 13 would be 1 year too many. None-the-less there has been a full field with teams from all over, but have been beset with technical and weather problems, with a number of crashes and “illegal” winds.

The team from Trisled in Australia, brought two machines, a bike (Nitro Glycerine) and a trike (Completely Overzealous). Though Trisled are competing at Battle Mountain for the first time their have already honed their skills to a high level in the well developed Australian human powered racing scene. Conventional wisdom has gone the route of dropping the third wheel to save rolling resistance anf hopefully also reduce cross-section. It has no doubt come as a supprise therefore to many that Trisled’s trike powered by Gareth Hanks has bested 70 mph to set a record for three wheels of 71.79 mph. This achievement has been recognised by the IHPVA who have upgraded the rules to recognise fully faired three wheels, as a separate class. Well-done to the Trisled team for showing that there is still life in the conventional velomobile format!

The Dutch team from Delft with VeloX2 have not yet broken the record but are edging closer. Jan Bos is now the third fastest human.

More next week once the dust has settled.

With thanks to Jun Nog for the photo’s from her blog. The secret to Trisled’s succuess (beside their musceles)? – Wax!

Velomobile Seminar 2012 – Secondhand Reportage

Posted on September 13, 2012 by Kenneth

By all accounts the seminar and tour went very well.

There was a favourable report in the Dutch press and, the Mayor of Dronten, after describing industry as, “These are people who look at life differently. They do not wait, but just do it,” himself joined the tour, riding for a short way in the DuoQuest.

The official 2012 Velomobile Seminar blog, among other things, concluded that:

Both the Location in Dronten and the Venue, der Meerpaal were ideal.
Organisation and support were excellent
The tour
- had good weather
- was a well chosen route
- and was a good advert for the velomobile
The Mayor of Dronten gave an inspiring speech

Reading between the lines, and from comments on other sites, there are plans to do it again, and sooner rather than later!

Fietsdiensten.nl, a Dutch site dedicated to the promotion of cycles as a realistic alternative to motorised vehicles, have a page covering the Seminar including links to several photo galleries.

A pretty thorough report, courtesy of Google Translate, is on Theo van Goor’s blog.

The seminar itself had a mixture of presentations, something for everyone, ranging from practical reports through to social theory and in depth technical papers. It is expected that the proceedings of the seminar will be made available on the Seminar Website. A few papers and slides were already available for download via the program page and a couple of Power Point slide presentations of papers are also available from the presenter’s own websites.

First, Wim Schermer’s paper on the Velo Tilt concept velomobile, to be built on the Fast FWD Munzo tilting trike, is available as a series of images on his blog.

Second, Titus van der Brink’s presentation on the development of his Plywood Velomobile, is available as a .ppt download from his original post. He also has some brief comments on the Seminar.

Alexander Vittouris and Mark Richardson from Australia, whose paper is already available, took the sustainability idea of the velomobile to the next level with a paper presenting ideas for bamboo construction.

The seminar concluded with what sounds like a very interesting presentation by Miles Kingsbury covering many of his projects of the last 40 years. Naturally his Quattro four wheel velomobile which travelled across the US in the ROAM of 2011 was featured.

Battle Mountain – Speed Challenge Starts Today

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Kenneth

The speed challenge at Battle Mountain starts today and the first piece of news is that Graeme Obree will not be competing. As Recumbent Gallery reported late last week, there are still some outstanding issues with the fairing for Beastie so Mr Obree is now planing his speed attempt latter this year somewhere in the UK.

One interesting aspect, illustrated in an article on Humans Invent, is the transparent fairing. True to form Mr Obree has decided that he can produce something better. Rather than hurtle down the road hidden inside an opaque bullet he plans to make the “engine” visible, so you can see just what is going on inside.

After his UK attempt, maybe he will continue to refine his design and have something to take to the US next year?

B’Twin – A Corporate Velomobile Future?

Posted on September 4, 2012 by Kenneth

A couple of weeks ago I saw my first B’Twin branded bicycle. It was a fairly typical and non-descript hybrid MTB style cycle being used on a British Seafront. It likely would have gone unnoticed altogether, as just another Bike Shaped Object moving in the shadow of the ICE recumbent Trike and the elegant Pashley step through I also saw, had it not been for some news I should have reported on earlier this year.

This may be a bit stale by now, but I became aware of B’Twin through a report on Recumbent Journal (RJ): a US based blog covering all things recumbent, including velomobiles. RJ reported on a design competition posted at the opensource automotive design community The Forge. The stated object was to design a velomobile that could be built for less than $2000 for a given set of criteria, and a winner was announced at the end of May 2012.

The particular merits of the RJ report was not the comment on the various designs, from which they largely refrained, but rather the nature of the company sponsoring the competition and what the implications might be for the future of velomobiles.

A collection of 4 Velomobile Concept Designs

From top to bottom:
Torkel Dohmers’ “ThisWay”
Adam Lazenby’s “Skua”
Tim Turrini-Rochford’s “NoVelo”
Speed Studio Design’s “Trik-e”

Design competitions and velomobile concepts are not new. Various individuals with industrial design skills or academic interest have produced concept designs, several of which are included in the upcoming Velomobile Database. In 2009 the excellent Bicycle Design Blog, with an interest in tapping the huge “blue ocean” of potential utility cyclists, organized a design competition which was won by a design with many velomobile features. Last year, 2011, Bicycle Design was mooting another similar competition. The difference here is, that this is the first time a commercial organization has done so, putting up a prize of $7500. This is significant as commercial organizations exist to make money, and do so by selling products to a market that is willing to buy them. As RJ points out, the group behind the competition sponsor, B’Twin, is the french based Oxylane group. Oxylane produces a large range of, often innovative, sporting goods and is considered to be the largest sporting goods retailer in the world. The implication being, they see a market, and one sufficiently large enough form them to swim in, ready to be tapped.

The designs (see the winner and some finalists shown below) have many things that could be criticized not least the failure to achieve the desired price point. However as RJ points out the motive behind sponsoring such competitions is to help stimulate the internal design team that is working on the project in a place where there are the resources to refine the design to the desired level.

The apparent convergence of the designs on the same configuration adopted by the recently re-launched Drymer, (upright, head-covered, tilting, tadpole trike) is a fruit of the competition specification but it does offer clues on the corporate mindset which tends to be constrained by focus groups and ideas largely confined to an existing paradigm. Something not quite so far removed from a recognisable upright cycle with a bit of automotive protection and styling would probably be easier to sell from that perspective.

Having said that, one can already put together a machine with many of the desired characteristics by combining the Feetz tilting trike (Their Old Website), now supplied by the Belgian velomobile manufacturer Fietser, with one of the weather coverings by the french manufacturer Veltop. All for less than €1954 (349.00 + 1500.00 + 105.00) including VAT which works out at something like $2400 or £1600 plus delivery to your chosen destination. I had a short test-ride on a Feetz from Cyclesense in Tadcaster few years back, and left with a positive impression. It would be somewhat of a Kludge compared to the entries below but if you exclude the VAT and shipping it would certainly come close to the $2000 target of the competition. The item I find the most challenging is the requirement for eAssist as this currently adds a significant amount of both weight and cost.

Winning Entry first:

Velomobiles

Practical and Performance Personal Transport – Cycling without steroids

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