Bike Hugger 

Dave over at Surly Bikes can’t ride a bike right now because of a recent ankle injury. His doctor doesn’t want him putting a foot down and risking a re-injury.

So Dave did what any self-respecting hacker would do: He welded up a sidecar rig to his Xtracycle and Stokemonkey-equipped Instigator:

Right turns took a little practice, as did getting used to a 4-foot wide profile in traffic, but he’s taking to it, and the StokeMonkey means he can usually ease up on the injured leg.

Plus, the Xtracycle is great for carrying crutches.

He’s posted over on the surlyblog, which doesn’t have permalinks, so scroll down to “Wednesday, September 06.”

Says Dave:

My rig has some inherent handling flaws. It will never be perfect. But it still beats the hell out of taking the bus or riding in a car. I’ve regained some of my freedom, and that is priceless.

Bike Hugging in Tallinn, by mobil’homme.

Bike Hugger Jason Swihart waves the Bike Hugger flag from Tallinn, Estonia, where he posed in front of a pedicab in his Hugga T.

Thanks, Jason!

Treehugger | Great style and fewer emissions than your Vespa

Treehugger this morning has a review of the eGo Cycle 2, an electric scooter that borrows wheels, suspension, rack, and controls from the bicycle world. Payload is 250 lbs, top speed 23 miles per hour, and range of less than 25 miles.

Its foot deck hides about 50 pounds of batteries, which provide all the power – there’s no pedaling at all.

It’s sort of like an electrified Honda Cub.

Bettie is a Bike Hugger project to build a sport-utility bike with a Karate Monkey 29-incher frame, Stokemonkey, and an Xtracycle. Bettie has an enormous carrying capacity, it’s heavy duty – 2 adults or an adult and 2 kids at a time – and is fun (really, really fun). The total Bettie download follows.

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p>Bicycle Design | Shimano Alfine

Shimano is introducing a 2007 component group aimed straight at Bike Hugger’s heart. Alfine is a new internal-hub group, with 8 speeds, that includes a 3-watt dynamo in the front wheel, disk brakes, and very clean and pretty cranks.

It’s based on Shimano’s existing Nexus line, upgraded to promote very quick shifts. Instead of a twist group, it includes trigger shifting.

The group took one of Shimano’s two design awards at last week’s Eurobike trade show (the other went for the 3rd-generation XTR mountain bike group). This should be a terrific and reliable group for bikes intended for everyday transportation.

(Via Bicycle Design.)