Recently, a full-sized folding bike called IF-Mode was launched a the 2008 Taipei Bicycle Show. The bike was created by Mark Sanders, a British bike designer, who designed the famous Strida bike. He teamed up with Ming Cycles and Pacific Cycles to deisgn this new bike. Read more →

A trailerbike is a one-wheeled bike extension that attaches to the back of your bike. They are a great way to bring your child on a longer bike ride. Your smaller companion can assist you with pedaling, while you control the steering and speed. This allows your child to become familiar with the process of riding a bike, and they can relax if they feel tired.

The original trailerbikes were introduced into the market by the Adams company in 1986. They were marketed under the name “trail-a-bike”, and this is now their trademarked term.

Most trailerbikes also include adjustable handlebars and seats that accommodate a growing child. Here’s our round-up of the trailbikes available this year:

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Folding bikes are useful for anyone interested in taking their bike on a bus, train or ferry. They can also be packed in a car, stowed on a plane, or stored indoors securely. Many owners bring their folding bikes into an apartment or store them under an office desk. Most folding bikes have 16″ or 20″ wheels, but you can also find full-sized bikes that fold. Bikes by Brompton and Dahon fold into very compact packages — they are ideal if you are traveling by train or bus and want to bring the bike on-board. If you are looking for a high-performance road bike check out the Airnimal or the Bike Friday. These bikes are used worldwide for long-distance travel. Many cyclists who have tried these bikes found them to be an ideal mixture of performance and convenience. You can find folding bikes by Citizen and Zport for under $200 — these are  probably best considered as entry-level bikes.

Here’s our round-up of the best folding bikes available:

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A chic cyclist on a “seed-bombing” excursion (see more photos). Seed bombers are 21st century Johnny Appleseeds — read the full article about them here.

Via: Copenhagen Cycle Chic

Today, electric scooters or electric mopeds are just as powerful as their gasoline-powered counterparts, with the added advantage of being virtually silent, clean machines that can plug into a standard electrical socket to recharge. Typically, a charge will give you enough juice to travel 20-60 miles, depending on the scooter and battery system. Most scooter comes with lead-acid or nickle-metal hybrid (NiMH) batteries, but can usually be upgraded to the more expensive lithium-ion batteries, which are lighter and last longer. A scooter’s top speed is usually limited or “governed” to 25-28 mph in the U.S. in order to be classified as a “moped”. In terms of price, $1500 will get you a basic model like the eGo which is fine for short neighborhood trips. At the high end, $11,000 will buy you the Vectrix (pictured above) which is really an electric motorcycle  — it has top speed of 62 mpg and range of about 60 miles.

Those in the market for a scooter may also want to consider buying an electric bicycle, which will offer a similar battery range, but with the added benefit of human pedal power!

Here’s our round-up of some of the more notable electric scooters available today: Read more →

A velomobile is a “bicycle car”, or more officially, a “human-powered vehicle, enclosed for protection from weather and collisions”. They are virtually unknown in the U.S., but a quite popular in some parts of Europe. Velomobiles are highly efficient commuting vehicles, especially when they are equipped with an electric assist motor. Velomobiles tend to attract a lot of attention — many riders devote at least 10 minutes of their day to answering questions from curious on-lookers. Some owners even finance their vehicles by putting advertisement on the sides of their bike. Read more →

At Optimal Ride, I am a strong advocate of car-free living (see my review of the books How To Live Well Without Owning A Car and Car-Free Cities). However, clean, electric vehicles can be useful in some situations. If you recharge them using a renewable energy source such as solar power, they are completely emissions-free. Here’s a round-up of the pure electric cars that can be ordered today: Read more →

Longtail bikes! They are becoming quite popular as people become more interested in carrying things on our bikes for commuting, touring or running errands. Some bike pundits are predicting that we may see a lot more longtail bikes in the future.

Longtail bikes are feature a long wheel base for more space on the rear luggage rack. They usually have a strong frame and wheels to carry more weight on and around the rear wheel.

Longtail bikes offer better handling than bike equipped with bike trailers or pannier — they do not fall over as easily because they are designed to have a low center of gravity.

Here’s a round-up of some of the longtail bikes available today:

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Bikes trailers are very useful for transforming ordinary bikes into serious load carrying vehicles. Bikes can tow a remarkable amount of weight. Loads in excess of 880 pounds (400 kilograms) have been hauled behind bikes along flat surfaces. Generally though, 300 pounds (140 kilograms) is considered the upper threshold for hauling. Full-sized refrigerators or couches that won’t fit in a car can comfortably be pulled behind a bicycle with the right kind of trailer.

Let’s take a look at the various types of bike trailers available: Read more →

I’ve been testing the E-Zip 2008 Trailz bike by Currie Technologies. This electric bike is quite inexpensive — other electric bikes range in price from $700 up to $3000 in the U.S. For half the price, this is a solid bike with good range and power. My bike arrived partly-assembled in a box. It took me about an hour to attach the seat, front wheel and pedals. The lead-acid battery took about 2 to 3 hours to come to full charge. The weight of this battery and the motor make the E-Zip a heavy bike. Read more →