[ contents ] JUNE 2005

Velo Vision is published quarterly by Velo Vision Ltd. Daily news and updates can be found on www.velovision.co.uk

ISSN 1475-4312

Velo Vision, The Environmental Community Centre, St Nicholas Fields, York, YO10 3EN, UK Tel/Fax +44 1904 438 224 (from UK, 01904 438 224) Email peter@velovision.co.uk Website www.velovision.co.uk

EDITOR AND PUBLISHER: Peter Eland ARTDIRECTOR: Brian Holt WEB PROGRAMMER: Simon Ward PRINTER: Stephens & George Magazines Ltd, Merthyr Tidfil, Wales, UK. Tel 01685 388 888

PUBLISHING SCHEDULE: Issue 19: early September 2005 Issue 20: early December 2005 Issue 21: early March 2006 Issue 22: early June 2006

Velo Vision is a member of INK, trade association of the alternative press in the UK. www.ink.uk.com

VELO VISION AND VELO-VISION We weren’t first with the name. Velo-Vision (note the hyphen) is a progressive HPV-friendly bike shop in Köörten, near Bergisch-Gladbach, Germany, who also make their own recumbents. Velo Vision magazine is working in friendly harmony with Velo-Vision in Germany.

Velo Vision is printed on paper produced from sustainable forests to Nordic Swan standards.

COVER PHOTOGRAPH: Town bikeson test: see page 16. Photo by Richard Loke.

OPPOSITE:Sunset casts a long shadow from the Hurricane SL. Photo by Peter Eland.

4 News Underwater cycling, dealer news, events and more

8 Binners’ bikes

Subsistence cycling for Canada’s unsung recyclers

12The backyard velodrome An HPV pioneer’s DIY project plus a belated book review

15A trailer from sticks Build a utility trailer from basic materials to a Carryfreedom

design

16City bikes in bike city

Megatest of five town bikes under Cambridge conditions

22A bike in a hurry Testing the super-lightweight Challenge Hurricane SL, plus a

ride report from Mount Ventoux

26Riding the Rhino

A reader report on the updated recumbent trike from the

Netherlands

28The Cello case Converts a BOB to a flight box – we test it

30Short reviews Including a surprisingly versatile seatbag from Arkel, a saddle

cover, some great grips for straight bars, and The Dancing

Chainupdated

33A better Brompton

V-brakes, Rohloff and more fitted by reader Andrew Hague to

create a top tourer

34SPEZI 2005 Full ten-page report from the German special bikes show:

latest products, amazing inventions, spotting trends

44Letters

Your views and feedback, questions and answers

48Buyer’s Guide: folding bikes

New and updated – we return to the subject of folding and

portable cycling, including news of the Mezzo and the updated

Bromptons

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GOING TO TOWN

For a magazine which is all about

transport cycling, a comprehensive

look at town bikes was well overdue.

So I’m particularly grateful to reader

and now reviewer Paul Robison from

Cambridge for the considerable

efforts he (and others) put into

compiling this issue’s mega-test.

Utility cycling on a very different

level is described in Lou Parson’s

piece about binners and their bikes.

A nice reminder, perhaps, that while

some of us can afford to agonize

over which of five quality machines

might best suit our needs, many

cyclists just make use of whatever

bike they can lay their hands on.

And why not? So long as the tyres

have some air, and it goes when you

pedal, almost any bike has a magic

carpet effect: it vastly extends range

of movement and load-carrying

capacity compared to walking.

Ongoing cost is minimal, and

mobility opens up all sorts of

opportunities.

There’s a reason Norman Tebbit’s

famous exhortation to the

unemployed “Get on your bike and

look for work” has resonated down

the years. If you’re looking for a tool

for self-reliance and a chance to take

yourself places – get on your bike.

Peter Eland

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