{"id":170647,"date":"2018-09-13T10:47:27","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T10:47:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=170647"},"modified":"2018-09-14T09:08:36","modified_gmt":"2018-09-14T09:08:36","slug":"the-weird-and-wonderful-world-of-velomobiles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2018\/09\/13\/the-weird-and-wonderful-world-of-velomobiles\/","title":{"rendered":"The Weird and Wonderful World of Velomobiles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Before we get started take a quick <\/span>peek<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> at our article on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2018\/09\/03\/get-bent-with-reclining-cycling\/\">recumbent cycling<\/a> if you haven\u2019t already. Everything that\u2019s unusual, practical and, ultimately, geeky about recumbents is pushed even further with <\/span>velomobiles<span style=\"color: #000000;\">. Velomobiles are basically recumbents on steroids.<\/span><\/strong><!--more--><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Shelter<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The earliest <\/span>velomobiles<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> such as the 1940s Swedish Fantom were never sold as a finished product, but rather as a set of instructions so you could build your own. Originally built with wooden frames they were intended as a way to keep the worst of the weather off the cyclist.<\/span><\/p>\n<lite-youtube videoid=x2l_7mKCvx4 params=\"enablejsapi=1\" style=\"background-image: url('https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi_webp\/x2l_7mKCvx4\/maxresdefault.webp');\"><\/lite-youtube>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In the above <\/span>video<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> you see a traditionally crazy Swedish man who\u2019s built his own Fantom, with a few modifications, including an electric motor to assist with power output. Looks like fun, right?\u00a0 Velomobile shells also keep rain, sun, and wind off you, meaning you can turn up to work as neat as when you left the house.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Be seen, be safe<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">One of the less appealing traits of recumbent cycling is lack of visibility &#8211; you\u2019re closer to the ground and often relying on a flimsy triangular flag to alert motorists to your presence. The body of a <\/span>velomobile<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> solves that by <a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=l7g_BxOdu2c\">tricking motorists<\/a> into thinking you\u2019re some kind of eccentric motor-vehicle.<\/span><\/p>\n<lite-youtube videoid=cAcy7EVRpXc params=\"enablejsapi=1\" style=\"background-image: url('https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi_webp\/cAcy7EVRpXc\/maxresdefault.webp');\"><\/lite-youtube>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Having a slightly larger road presence, and an eye-catching <\/span>paint-job,<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> means that other road users give you more space on the road. You can see the appeal for commuters \u2013 especially given that you can ditch the <\/span>day-glo<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> lycra. That said, your unusual vehicle might draw some unwanted attention.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The police<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Velomobiles are still very much a hobby-passion and, consequently, you don\u2019t see many of them about. Understandably, some people are confused by the bizarre appearance, including a police officer who pulls over a <\/span>velomaniac<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> to learn more about his vehicle.<\/span><\/p>\n<lite-youtube videoid=zCS8wvmvS4Y params=\"enablejsapi=1\" style=\"background-image: url('https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi_webp\/zCS8wvmvS4Y\/maxresdefault.webp');\"><\/lite-youtube>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Although this cyclist makes a point in the video that the cops should educate themselves, he\u2019s since written that he\u2019ll take the initiative and speak with the local training officer instead \u2013 and educate the local police about these unusual vehicles.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Faster<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The aerodynamic advantages of a reclining bike are augmented by the aerodynamic shell surrounding the cyclist and frame. It\u2019s no wonder the police take an interest in <\/span>velomobiles<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> \u2013 they\u2019re low to the ground, fast, and fun. On flat ground, they really shift.<\/span><\/p>\n<lite-youtube videoid=l7g_BxOdu2c params=\"enablejsapi=1\" style=\"background-image: url('https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi_webp\/l7g_BxOdu2c\/maxresdefault.webp');\"><\/lite-youtube>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Take a <\/span>velomobile<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> out on the velodrome and you\u2019re really going to enjoy yourself, given that much less of your energy is going into pushing air out the way. Start riding in another <\/span>velomobile\u2019s<span style=\"color: #000000;\"> slipstream and you\u2019ve got a compelling competition.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before we get started take a quick peek at our article on recumbent cycling if you haven\u2019t already. Everything that\u2019s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":170653,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[329,335],"tags":[2288,2287,2289],"global-categories":[],"class_list":["post-170647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-road-cycling","category-safety","tag-swedish-fantom","tag-velomobile","tag-velomobiles-and-police"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.3 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Weird and Wonderful World of Velomobiles - \u0160koda We Love Cycling<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Before we get started take a quick peek at our article on recumbent cycling if you haven\u2019t already. 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