The FreeRider Pannier for Urban Bike Commuting are designed to allow for stress free rides to work. The idea is to take the heavy bag off the back and allow for a more comfortable – and potentially less stressful – commute. The pack, which is being brought to market via a Kickstarter campaign, can hold a backpack, messenger bag or even as the designers suggest a 12-pack of beer.
The FreeRider will be manufactured at Green Guru’s production facility in Boulder, Colorado. Video after the jump
Walking on water isn’t that hard – provided it is frozen. Walking on water when it is actually in liquid form requires some divine power or the right technology. Uriel Arad of Los Angeles has launched a Kickstarter campaign to find backers for his Aqua Elliptica, a device that makes walking on water not only possible but also makes it part of a workout routine. The primary construction of his design is a catamaran arrangement with two feet supporting a platform on the surface of the water.
If the campaign is successful Arad hopes to go into production this summer, with the final version utilizing carbon fiber and Kevlar. So it would be water ready and rugged. Video after the jump
We never really expected the mountain to come to Mohammed; hence Mohammed had to go to the mountain. After all mountains go to no man – or can they? A German company is looking to build artificial climbing structures that are much more than just a climbing wall.
Those walls in the gyms looking nothing like the terrain found in nature so Climb Up!-Kletterwelt is now creating a man-made mountain that eliminates the needs for colored holds. Instead it offers crevices, ledges and protrusions that climbers can expect to find in the real world. Unlike the real world however the Climb Up mountains will feature integrated safety cables bolted to the climbing surfaces that can be used with a ferrata clip harness so there is no need for a belayer.
CLIMB UP! – Kletterwelt is looking to build the mountains as part of a park near Berlin, and recently it launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise funds to raise the mountain. Continue reading Mountains to Climb
There are plenty of cardio-focused fitness trackers on the market, but a heart rate monitor and calorie counter only goes so far at the gym. This is where the GYMWATCH comes in. It is a new fitness tracker, which is being developed through an Indiegogo campaign to measure strength and motion. It is thus aimed at those who hit the gym to gain weight and mass instead of losing it. The GYMWATCH is worn on an armband and features a built-in accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer to record movement and strength during a workout.
It is paired with a smartphone so users can monitor the process – but of course not phone it in! Video after the jump
Rokform has launched a Kickstarter campaign that has a goal of bringing out a universal mounting system for the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 – which will provide hands free solutions for those with active lifestyles. This can include taking the mobile handset on a bike or on other adventures – and ensure it is “Rok steady” as well. Video after the jump
The Utah-based company is a new “one for one” startup where proceeds from purchases are used to help those in need. For example, the purchase of a water bottle from Cotopaxi will help provide a child in India with access to water for six months. The video above allows the Smiths to tell their story in their own words.
Electric bikes offer some benefits beyond pedal assistance. The VANMOOF Electrified is an e-bike that also offers an integrated GPS anti-theft tracking system.
“”One of the features that had first turned me on to the VANMOOF Electrified was its GPS tracking ability,” said Adam Richmond, an Electrified early adopter, had three electric bicycles stolen from his home last month. “I used the app to track my bike, providing me with its exact location. Using this information, the West Palm Beach Police Department recovered my bike and returned it to me, unharmed, within hours of the theft.”
It is almost – just almost – enough to make you forgo the lock.
From Runner’s World:Three Tips for Running Downhill
Train on descents – without getting hurt – to build strength, boost coordination, and even have some fun. Continue reading Weekend Reading List (04.26.2014): Going Downhill, Bionic Olympics, Entrepreneurial Approach
Researchers at the University of Oxford found that the human brain can notice symbols faster than it notices generic lights, and with this in mind a group from the school developed Brainy Bike Lights, which feature an LED “cyclists” symbol instead of just a row of bulbs.
In tests the team found that people were able to quickly identify that it was a bicycle and more importantly reacted more quickly to it. Those in the study reacted about 100 milliseconds faster, which for a car traveling at 30 mph could mean the distance of 1.34 meters. That could make a difference for those on the bike!
The lights are reportedly visible from a distance of 20 meters and provide a field of view of almost 180 degrees. The headlight version can run for about 50 hours while flashing, and the tail light can run for 200 hours. That should be plenty of time to get noticed.
There are plenty of ways to be seen while riding or running at night, but Edward Ward of London has created the Commuter X4, a wearable, fiber optic rear bike light that helps drivers judge distance, width and even speed of the cyclist. Ward’s design was even selected as one of the final 20 of the British Inventors’ Project at the Gadget Show Live 2014. His design features four fiber optic light guides and this system can be worn over the back and can also be attached to bags and backpacks. What makes this system also stand out said Ward is that the human eye typically judges distances by focusing on two more focal points and the Commuter X4 provides much more than a single light.
This system is also designed to sit at the optimum height for all road users – again ensuring it can’t be missed. Ward has now launched a Kickstarter campaign to help the X4 get noticed by investors. Video after the jump
At this year’s Sea Otter Classic Razik Bicycles introduced its new brand and redesigned IsoTruss road frameset. Originally released under the brand name Delta 7, the company lost the licensing rights to the technology, but this year formed a new company and acquired the rights to the develop and entirely new chassis and product lineup.
The company’s new offering is the Vortex, a frame that is 100 percent made in the USA. It has been completely redesigned inside and out, and is arguably the most distinctive-looking bike on the market. It features a frame with an open lattice structure that is made up of three-dimensional pyramid-shaped trusses consisting of carbon fiber and Kevlar strands–all meticulously wrapped by hand, instead of molded sheets of carbon fiber. The design delivers vibration damping and incredible handling in a bike that is sub-13 pounds, depending on component selection.
“The unique capabilities of the IsoTruss design allows us to tailor the properties of each characteristic of the ride,” explains Ryun Noble, president and director of engineering at Razik. “What’s truly astounding is its ability to absorb energy-robbing vibration while maintaining strength and rigidity to transfer power and deliver precise, razor-sharp handling all in an incredibly light frame.”
3D printing is poised to change the world. We’ve seen that it is being used to print custom running shoes and even parts for bicycles. Now Jim Smith of Grass Roots Engineering is showing that 3D printing can be used to float away. He used a large-scaled 3D printer to produce 28 colorful ABS plastic sections that were then bolted together to create a 16.7 foot long kayak. Each section has brass threaded thermoplastic inserts, which allows the 2D and 3D sections to be screwed together. Silicon caulk was used to ensure that the kayak was watertight and ready to head out.
It took more than a thousand hours – or just over 42 days to produce this kayak, so it isn’t exactly a quick print and go – but it is still a sign of the times to come. Video after the jump
A ballista was a medieval weapon that fired massive arrows and now the FBM Bike Co.’s new Ballista is ready to hit like a massive bolt! It is actually designed specifically for hardcourt bike polo players.
This tig-welded chromoly frame is based on the original FBM Sword frame geometry, but features modifications based on input from Evan George and Koyo Maeda of Seattle’s The Assassins bike polo team. The Ballista features a frame that has a taller headtube for a more upright riding position, a lower seattube for more standover clearance and a bulged seattube for more strength at the top tube/seatstay junction. The frame has optional front and rear canti mount brakes and optional front disc brake mounts.