Project Rwanda's Coffee BikeWith soaring oil prices, cargo bikes are suddenly getting a lot of interest. There have been several on the marken (none of which are readily available in the Philippines), but it's interesting to see the various designs available worldwide.
Above is the Coffee Bike, designed by Tom Ritchie, sold to coffee farmers in Rwanda for under $200. If you live in the US, supposedly you can get one for a tax deductible $1000 donation - proceeds of which go to the NGO Project Rwanda.
It is a good example of the longtail design. One of the first to popularize this type of modified bike is xtracycle with their Free Radical product - a bolt-on extension that converts a normal bicycle into a longtail hauler.
Xtracycle also provides accessories that help in hauling cargo, including racks, bags and decks. They've been around for a couple of years, and have a good following. The only negative comment that's been around is that the cost of the product and accessories, together bring up the price of going into longtails significantly, so that it might actually be better to get a purposely built longtail frame. For DIY types, there are also a lot of instrutions online on how to make your own for a lot less money. Below is a DIY example from fordfasteRR of Velocide.com.
Anyway, DIY or not, the xtracycle design generated a lot of interest in longtails, so that soon bike companies were coming up with a few models:
Surly Big Dummy:
Kona Ute:
Yuba Mundo:
Madsen kg271
8freight
So there you have it. Extend the chainstays, get long chians and brake cables, add on some racks (or a bucket), sell you car.
What I really want to see is a smaller version. With 20" wheels. Just enough for one passenger or a pair of large panniers, instead of space for 3 pairs. Get a minivelo, extend the rear triangle an extra 10 inches, add integrated rack and a couple of footpegs. Oh, and make it separable like the Hunter cargo bike or a Bike Friday. That would make for a really cool travel/commuter/hauler bike.
Above is the Coffee Bike, designed by Tom Ritchie, sold to coffee farmers in Rwanda for under $200. If you live in the US, supposedly you can get one for a tax deductible $1000 donation - proceeds of which go to the NGO Project Rwanda.
It is a good example of the longtail design. One of the first to popularize this type of modified bike is xtracycle with their Free Radical product - a bolt-on extension that converts a normal bicycle into a longtail hauler.
Xtracycle also provides accessories that help in hauling cargo, including racks, bags and decks. They've been around for a couple of years, and have a good following. The only negative comment that's been around is that the cost of the product and accessories, together bring up the price of going into longtails significantly, so that it might actually be better to get a purposely built longtail frame. For DIY types, there are also a lot of instrutions online on how to make your own for a lot less money. Below is a DIY example from fordfasteRR of Velocide.com.
Anyway, DIY or not, the xtracycle design generated a lot of interest in longtails, so that soon bike companies were coming up with a few models:Surly Big Dummy:
Kona Ute:
Yuba Mundo:
Madsen kg271
8freight
So there you have it. Extend the chainstays, get long chians and brake cables, add on some racks (or a bucket), sell you car.
What I really want to see is a smaller version. With 20" wheels. Just enough for one passenger or a pair of large panniers, instead of space for 3 pairs. Get a minivelo, extend the rear triangle an extra 10 inches, add integrated rack and a couple of footpegs. Oh, and make it separable like the Hunter cargo bike or a Bike Friday. That would make for a really cool travel/commuter/hauler bike.
