Just bought a Mango Velomobile (# 270) - Any other Velonauts here?

[chrischapman1951]

Hi,
Summer hols this year involved Eurostar over to Lille then on to Bruge where I bought a metalic blue Mango!  I transferred my cycle camping kit into it (it all fitted OK) and spent a week pootling through Holland in a loop back to Hoek Van Holland and rode it home to Rutland.
I now have the riding position sorted and have dropped the gear range down from (32" -> 147") to (22" to 99") which is much better for the hills we have over here compared to Holland.
I believe there are Velomobile owners in Melbourne Derbyshire as well as Wales and Edinburgh - anyone else want to pop their head over the parapet?
Anyone know of any specific events other than the Xmas ride in Holland?
Chris Chapman

[yanto]

Hello Mangonaut!

Welcome to the darker regions of the Dark Side.

You are correct about the owner of an Evo K in Melbourne, there is a Milan SL and rebuilt Carbon Quest XS residing in the same stable in Grimbsy, another Quest XS in the flatlands out east, another in Ware, again crashed! and another in Basingstoke.  A Quest out Wolverhampton way, and a couple in Scotland, plus another Milan out Glasgow way.

There is a Sunrider in Yeovil, and probably closest to you in north Northamptonshire another Mango.

I've saved the best till last, me!  The owner of the first Carbon XS Quest in the UK, just north of Melton Mowbray

[Auntie Helen]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

My blog www.auntiehelen.co.uk has a couple of recent posts on velomobiles.

[Kim]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

That must be a solvable problem, at the expense of extra weight/complexity.

I'd love to try riding one that I don't need a periscope to see out of...

[clarion]

aralsopp had a velomobile, which got a bit unexpectedly deconstructed.  Signs are that he might be getting a new one.  He's in Sarf Lahndan.

A velomobile's on the list for when I've made my first million.

[delthebike]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

You could fit a roll bar and do a pull up to exit. 

[Arellcat]

I believe there are Velomobile owners in Melbourne Derbyshire as well as Wales and Edinburgh - anyone else want to pop their head over the parapet? Anyone know of any specific events other than the Xmas ride in Holland?

I'm the velonaut in Edinburgh, and I pilot a red Carbon Quest.  I too have modified the gearing to cope with the hills here, now running 22.7" to 122" with a two-inch Kojak on the back.

After the cancellation and scaled-down resurrection of Euro Tour 2013, there is to be the Great Baltic Sea Ride 2014.  It's preferentially open to ROAM/ET2013 and other seasoned riders, with a maximum of 36 taking part.  Check it out at: http://gbsr2014.eu/

I would like to come along to Olliebollentocht this year, but have only about 900 velomobile miles in my legs so far!

[yanto]

Doh I forgot about Andy's RAW, there is also an Evo Go-one in Southampton.

[yanto]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

My blog www.auntiehelen.co.uk has a couple of recent posts on velomobiles.

My friend who has the sunrider is slightly disabled (horrible term), it also has electric assist as he has had both hips replaced.  Plus I believe he is thinking about selling it.

[yanto]

I would like to come along to Olliebollentocht this year, but have only about 900 velomobile miles in my legs so far!

 Only 900! what have you been doing?  Whatever it is stop it and ride! 

I too fancy the Baltic tour but it clashes with another big ride I've put my name down for, a stupidly hard ride for a velomobile. http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/14-393/#more which makes LEL look like a stroll in the park!

[Jedrik]

I'd love to try riding one that I don't need a periscope to see out of...

Try a QuestXS. I'm 5'4'' (a friend is 5'3''), x-seam 3'2'', seated height 2'9'', and it fits just fine.

Unfortunately I'm in germany, which is a bit far for a test ride.

[Auntie Helen]

Kim is about my height though, I think, so she must just be differently-proportioned. She would probably bash her knees against her face in a Quest XS...

[Auntie Helen]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

That must be a solvable problem, at the expense of extra weight/complexity.

I'd love to try riding one that I don't need a periscope to see out of...

Jedrik and the other Velonauts after LEL mentioned some possibly-suitable velomobiles for me. I was planning to have a sit in Bas's full-sized Quest but watching him get in and out, and asking him if he could get out one-handed and he replied 'no', meant I didn't risk it. Didn't want to need three or four random foreigners hauling me out of a torpedo in a pub car park.

I was talking to Neil at ICE and he told me about the Challenger which would work and fit over my Sprint but it seems as expensive just for the shell as a whole Quest is, which seems bad value.

Next year when I'm in Niederrhein and not too far from the Netherlands I might do a bit more research.

[StuAff]

There's a Rotovelo near Chichester, posted about it on BROL- haven't seen him around (yet) though he's been to Pompey with it. Saw Hedgehog (the Southampton Go-One owner) on the IOW Randonnee this year.

Might, might, be a WAW or Mango in Portsmouth in a year or two, depending what happens with my job........

[Arellcat]

I was planning to have a sit in Bas's full-sized Quest but watching him get in and out, and asking him if he could get out one-handed and he replied 'no', meant I didn't risk it. Didn't want to need three or four random foreigners hauling me out of a torpedo in a pub car park.

I know someone who has a similar problem.  They climbed into my Quest easily enough, but practically ruined their (bad) shoulder trying to get out again.  Machines like the Alleweder and Sunrider and Challenger have larger cockpit openings, but a better solution would be akin to the Leitra where the entire front half of the shell (or indeed the whole shell) pivots upwards, leaving the seat accessible without stepping over anything other than the boom.  There is another new kid on the block, the GinzVelo, which does that.  Styling is suitably angular and Italianate, although the machine is only slightly better than vapourware right now.

Only 900! what have you been doing?

• Travelling by train with Brompton in tow.
• Necessarily going shopping to places where I'd prefer not to leave the velo outside.
• Trying to ride too quickly up hills and knackering myself before Friday.
• Towing a trailer, necessarily(to date) with another bike.
• Not having the energy and time and company for long rides.

I'm doing my best this week to make up for most of these though. 

[Kim]

Kim is about my height though, I think, so she must just be differently-proportioned. She would probably bash her knees against her face in a Quest XS...

The main problem is the only velomobile I've had to opportunity to sit in was configured for one RichForrest of this parish.  The usual technique of shuffling down tall people's recumbents to reach the pedals isn't so useful when you have to see out the top.

[Jedrik]

There is another new kid on the block, the GinzVelo, which does that.  Styling is suitably angular and Italianate, although the machine is only slightly better than vapourware right now.

Found this offering, which seems quite a bit more anchored in reality: http://archiesvelomobile.wordpress.com/2013/08/27/olisitko-kiinnostunut-would-you-be-interested/

[chrischapman1951]

rebuilt Carbon Quest XS residing in the same stable in Grimbsy, another Quest XS in the flatlands out east, another in Ware, again crashed! and another in Basingstoke.

Wot's with all this crashing!!?
Are these people rolling them over with excessive enthusiasm whilst cornering?
Car drivers running into them?
I did see a video somewhere when a car driver reversed back into one after he got bawlked at a junction (then did a runner)
What have I let myself in for? lol

Chris

[chrischapman1951]

I've saved the best till last, me!  The owner of the first Carbon XS Quest in the UK, just north of Melton Mowbray

Oohhh really close by.
Maybe I could ride the Mango over sometime and admire it.
PM me if that might be acceptable

Chris

[chrischapman1951]

The Baltic Ride sounds fantastic.  I could get the 3 weeks plus off work OK - I usually keep all my holiday for the year and take 3-4 weeks off in August (I only work a 4 day week so don't squander holiday on waiting in for a delivery person not to turn up) but I doubt if I have the previous form to be allowed to enter.  I did manage 175km from Harwich to Stamford on the way home but not 200+km (280km one day I notice) day after day!

Anyway I will need to get a decent base mileage built up in "Vera" (Vera Velomobile) and I have noticed plenty of 100-200km Audax rides in East Anglia eg "Suffolk Byways", "Silly Suffolk" and "Norfolk Nips" so these seem a good starting point.  Anyone else considering doing any of these?

Chris

[triker131]

Just came across this thread - I'm the rotovelo rider (rotoveloist?, rotovelonaut?) near Chichester, aka johnsosore on BROL.  And yes, I've even been to Pompey in it. The johnsosore was a reference to the state of my a*se after a bike ride before I crossed to the dark side 4 years ago - initially with a Trice QNT.

I would love to see some other models of velomobile at some point - although I can't see this will be easy with them spread so thin on the ground.

I've found riding with other cyclists a bit tricky as the speed profile is so different. Tried a couple of CTC rides when I first got the trike and found I was riding on my brakes half the time when going down hill and then busting a gut to keep up with them on the next climb (this was over the lumps of the South Downs between Chi and Hambledon).

The speed differences will be even more noticeable if riding a velo' with diamond frame bikes so good luck on those audaxes.

John.

[arallsopp]

aralsopp had a velomobile, which got a bit unexpectedly deconstructed.  Signs are that he might be getting a new one.  He's in Sarf Lahndan.

Yep. There may well be a VM in my future. Possibly a Milan. Not sure yet... Still a bit jumpy from the incident. There are good ways to get out of a VM (stop at favourite chippy, handbrake on, open hatch, climb out against a low sun, sport a light sheen of sweat, buy food) and there are bad ways (get rear ended by a car, tipped over, then travel for 8 metres or so pinned under the front bumper using your shoulder as a brake). When I've stopped thinking about the latter, I'll get back to doing more of the former.

They're great machines, and I miss mine a lot. Insurance rumbles slowly towards a conclusion...

[Tewdric]

I have aspirations for a velomobile but only when I can find one you can exit one-handed.

That must be a solvable problem, at the expense of extra weight/complexity.

I'd love to try riding one that I don't need a periscope to see out of...

CCTV and lie flat.  Go on, God wants you to....

[StuAff]

aralsopp had a velomobile, which got a bit unexpectedly deconstructed.  Signs are that he might be getting a new one.  He's in Sarf Lahndan.

Yep. There may well be a VM in my future. Possibly a Milan. Not sure yet... Still a bit jumpy from the incident. There are good ways to get out of a VM (stop at favourite chippy, handbrake on, open hatch, climb out against a low sun, sport a light sheen of sweat, buy food) and there are bad ways (get rear ended by a car, tipped over, then travel for 8 metres or so pinned under the front bumper using your shoulder as a brake). When I've stopped thinking about the latter, I'll get back to doing more of the former.

They're great machines, and I miss mine a lot. Insurance rumbles slowly towards a conclusion...

Jumpiness entirely understandable. What you went through was scarier than any of the accidents I've had.....Fingers remain crossed for the insurance.

UK owners (there are at least two- LeeW with an SL, Richie B has a GT) of Milans seem to love them, but it's not all good. Low ground clearance, hard suspension with not much travel, no foot hole (on the SL), and not very waterproof. A big turning circle on account of those closed wheelarches. Raederwerk aren't the easiest people to deal with for non-German speakers, their English isn't too good. You might have seen Richie B's blog on his GT http://mongrandboucle.blogspot.co.uk. From his reports, it works for him in Glasgow despite those drawbacks ('prob the best commuting bike I've used'). Also, with the canopy, very noisy (there's footage of a Swedish SL on YouTube, sound is horrendous). Waiting list for those is six to twelve months.

FWIW, the Milan comes under the category of 'if only'... If I do get a VM (ifs buts and maybes on job and location will determine that), I'm pretty sure I'd need a tighter turning circle just to get it in and out of the garage (approach thereof being easy when there's no cars out front, tight and fiddly when there are). A foot hole might be needed too on occasion. Evo-K is lovely, open arches, but no foothole, fiddly access, and £££££. The WAW and the Mango, on paper at least, tick all the boxes for me- choice of drivetrain, practicality, decent service and support, looks, choice of open/closed...The WAW (again on paper) edges in front for me. The Quest XS I don't think I'd fit, the Quest has closed arches, and the Strada, as good as it is, is derailleur drivetrain only (if my job moves 20 miles down the road, that's 10,000 miles a year on commuting alone, and I'd want all the gearing I'd ever need- thinking a Rohloff is the answer to the question).

[arallsopp]

the Strada, as good as it is, is derailleur drivetrain only (if my job moves 20 miles down the road, that's 10,000 miles a year on commuting alone, and I'd want all the gearing I'd ever need- thinking a Rohloff is the answer to the question).

Rohloff won't give you the range that a long cage derailleur with a triple will. Mind you, Rohloff with a double would. I'd recommend the SRAM dual drive for big range, especially if you put a double on the front. Cheaper too. Mind you, I killed mine after about 6k miles due to crap getting in it.

Problem with commuting on bents (imho) is keeping the non standard parts going. A Rohloff is bullet proof and a double is standard, so that's an easy win if price is no issue.

A dual drive and double is not as sturdy, but even if it locks in direct drive, it's still got a good range. Non standard shifter, clickbox, hub though, so beware...

A mountain or high speed drive from schlumpf (probably spelled that wrong) means all the cleverness happens at the crank end of the bike. Most VMs have lots of room to accommodate in the nose, and you can still run a conventional back end. Again, non standard parts, but good longevity.

lastly, if the VM has an enclosed drivetrain you can run standard 3x10 derailleurs and expect a very good life from them. They're cheap, easy to fix, off the shelf, and (in the case of my RAW) happily saw me climb swains lane, ditching beacon, etc at 34/35, whilst coming down the other side in 53/11.