There were lots and lots of tandem bicycles, too, which really surprised me. My folks had one when I was a kid and that’s the last time I remember seeing one until this – they were everywhere. But even more, unusual were tandem bikes like these:
Here’s one for three – the whole family can ride.
Or what if one member of the duo likes a recumbent and the other wants a standard bike? No problem! I'm not sure who is doing the steering, however.
Then there’s this bike, which Brian captured on the trailer (sorry they didn’t see it being ridden). It holds 4 pedalers . So that’s lots of power…and a party on board, too.
Then there was this bike…Mother and son can ride along and when he’s big enough for a bike of his own she’s got a regular bike. Very clever. And what an accomplishment for this young boy – riding nearly 500 miles. My guess is he’s between 6 and 8 years old. WOW!
And there were many varieties of the recumbent bike. I was surprised to see the three-wheel varieties, which were much lower to the ground that regular bikes. I was impressed until I saw someone try to navigate a curb with one and finally have to give up and clamber out to pull it over the bumps.
This one has a windshield and windscreen to improve aerodynamics.
And you’ll remember this one from the costume section. This is nothing more aerodynamic than a banana, after all.
This biker has a comfortable, shaded ride. Note all the gear packs and bedroll. He’s a self-contained traveling unit. The flags give him visibility with cars. It would be very easy to be completely hidden if you were behind a vehicle - and in fact could be downright dangerous.
Another one of the tricycles – this was probably the most common type we saw. They even had to come up with a special bike rack to hold them on the backs of cars. You’ve got to think of everything when you break the mold!
And then there was this bike! The attached sail intrigued the OWBNID guys. I’m not sure just how effective it was on the hills of Iowa but he sure won style points from everyone.
And then there were the things hauled behind the bikes! The one on the right looks like an ice chest, right? Nope. It’s a boom box! And the other one is a solar-powered stereo system. They’d pump out the music for everyone to enjoy as they rode. Not your taste in music? Speed up or slow down. Everyone was easy.
Other bikers hauled other things in trailers behind the bikes. The couple on the left had all their camping gear inside – tents, bedrolls, bags. And the other one has a small child riding inside. That’s the original purpose of this type of trailer, but the very thought of the distances covered every day with a kid in a trailer behind you is hard to get your mind around. Who got tired first every day?
While Lance Armstrong was in France winning 3rd in the Tour de France, one of his racing bikes was on display one day of the ride. Everyone was excited to see one of these super high-tech bikes up close, especially since it was ridden by everyone’s hero. Although it looks heavy, I promise it’s made of a very lightweight material and can probably be lifted with two or three fingers. According to Tahressa, the wider tires help with the aerodynamics for the ride. Personally, I still look at that little-bitty seat and wonder how he – or anyone for that matter – rides for hours upon hours on it.
For a couple of days, I heard about this bike from the riders. I don’t know how much it was actually on the road or whether it was just demonstrated in the towns (when I finally saw it, the bike was displayed on a rack and it was made of new material –not an antique). But they got this photo for me to share. I kept thinking I’d fall over on a recumbent bike…I KNOW I’d be on the ground on this one!
Here’s our unicyclist on the road. Yes, he did make the whole ride. You can see in comparison with the other bikes that he’s on a larger wheel than most unicycles (I know that Robert’s was a much smaller wheel), so I’m guessing that it would be easier to cover distances on this one. But I can’t imagine getting started. He probably just hops up there with ease.
And then there’s the group of bikes that Cathy and I thought that if we were riding, it would be on one of these. The first one we saw in Chariton, and I’m not sure whether it was on the road or just used around towns for fun, but the idea of an ice chest, and a place to sit on the back sounds good to me. Imagine…a glass of wine and someone else doing the work. Now that’s my idea of a good time!
The final bike is designed for 4 riders. I love that it's built from two tandems and a complete traveling party. A modern day surrey with the fringe (or camping gear) on the top! Love the beer steins, dangling from the canopy, too!
No comments:
Post a Comment