So after fixing the flat I got biking to work today (fortunately, it was a slow leak, so I could ride in before fixing it), I’m talking to Stephen about bike innovations. After talking about the bike another friend of mine designed and constructed completely, or at least 99%, out of wood, we start talking about gearing and chains and whether it makes sense to build an automatic shifter with a battery that gets recharged by pedaling. Then we start talking about alternative drive trains.
Now, I can’t remember the last time I said penny-farthing. Probably while watching the intro to a Monty Python show ages ago. Among other drive train variants, I mentioned that a penny-farthing was direct drive.
Thirty minutes later I’m biking home. I turn off Buena Vista onto Grand and coming up the left side of the road is a guy on a penny-farthing bike. Perhaps, finally making it home after Burning Man. Sometimes life is weird like that.
September 5th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Funny you should mention drive trains… I came across this post earlier today. I’m intrigued… wonder how it would work with an internally geared hub.
September 5th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
And to think I nearly also mentioned that Stephen and I further speculated about belt-driven bikes and whether any existed. Thanks for posting that link.
I’ve been thinking about turning the Bianchi Giro I crashed last year into a fixie, since the shifters are damaged beyond saving. Not sure I’d go out on a limb just yet with a belt drive, though, it would certainly get attention.
September 7th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
[...] going back to my previous post that mentioned wooden bikes, this one looks pretty heavy, and that’s just from all the [...]