Portal:Human-powered transport
Portal maintenance status: (October 2018)
|
Introduction
Human-powered transport is the transport of person(s) and/or goods using human muscle power. Like animal-powered transport, human-powered transport has existed since time immemorial in the form of walking, running and swimming. Modern technology has allowed machines to enhance human-power.
Although motorization has increased speed and load capacity, many forms of human-powered transport remain popular for reasons of lower cost, leisure, physical exercise and environmentalism. Human-powered transport is sometimes the only type available, especially in underdeveloped or inaccessible regions.
Selected general articles
A shopping cart (American English) or trolley (British English), also known by a variety of other names, is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the checkout counter during shopping. In many cases customers can then also use the cart to transport their purchased goods to their vehicles, but some carts are designed to prevent them from leaving the shop.
In many places in the United States and the United Kingdom, customers are allowed to leave the carts in designated areas within the parking lot, and store personnel will return the carts to the storage area. In many continental European premises, however, coin- (or token-) operated locking mechanisms are provided to encourage shoppers to return the carts to the correct location after use. Read more...
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, or disability. Wheelchairs come in a wide variety of formats to meet the specific needs of their users. They may include specialized seating adaptions, individualized controls, and may be specific to particular activities, as seen with sports wheelchairs and beach wheelchairs. The most widely recognised distinction is between powered wheelchairs ("powerchairs"), where propulsion is provided by batteries and electric motors, and manually propelled wheelchairs, where the propulsive force is provided either by the wheelchair user/occupant pushing the wheelchair by hand ("self-propelled"), or by an attendant pushing from the rear ("attendant propelled"). Read more...- A velomobile, velomobiel, velo, or bicycle car, is a human-powered vehicle (HPV) enclosed for aerodynamic advantage and protection from weather and collisions. They are similar to recumbent bicycles and tricycles, but with a full fairing (aerodynamic shell). A fairing may be added to a non-faired cycle, or the fairing may be an integral part of the structure, monocoque like that of an airplane.
Not to be confused with purpose built for racing or speed records fully fared vehicles with two wheels, generally called streamliners. Streamliners have set many speed and distance records Though fast in their own right, Velomobiles are consider much more streetable machines. Using three or more wheels can have advantages for everyday use, including the ability to stop and start unaided, better stability, cross-wind handling, etc. Though there are arguments made that the multiple track machines (3+ wheels) have aerodynamic disadvantages due to the drag of the extra wheels and the surface contact points. A good discussion on bicycle wheel aerodynamics is here In practice though Velomobiles continue to be close to their 2 wheel cousins in performance Read more...
Telemark skiing is a skiing technique that combines elements of Alpine and Nordic skiing. Telemark skiing is named after the Telemark region of Norway, where the discipline originated. Sondre Norheim is often credited for first demonstrating the turn in ski races, which included cross country, slalom and jumping, in Norway around 1868. Sondre Norheim also experimented with ski and binding design, introducing side cuts to skis and heel bindings (like a cable).
Telemark skiing was reborn in 1971 in the United States. Doug Buzzell, Craig Hall, Greg Dalbey, Jack Marcial and Rick Borcovec are credited with reintroducing the style after reading the book Come Ski With Me by Stein Eriksen. Telemark skiing gained popularity during the 1970s and 1980s. The appeal of Telemark skiing lies in access: long pieces of synthetic fabric, known as skins, can be attached to the bottom of the skis to allow travel uphill. With the invention of light-weight alpine touring (A.T.) skis, however, telemark skiing is increasing in popularity. Read more...
A pair of roller skates within the permanent collection of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis. Skates like these fit over shoes and were adjustable.
Roller skates are shoes, or bindings that fit onto shoes, that are worn to enable the wearer to roll along on wheels. The first roller skate was effectively an ice skate with wheels replacing the blade. Later the "quad" style of roller skate became more popular consisting of four wheels arranged in the same configuration as a typical car. Read more...
The term road bicycle is used to describe bicycles built for traveling at speed on paved roads. Some sources use the term to mean racing bicycle. Other sources specifically exclude racing bicycles from the definition, using the term to mean a bicycle of a similar style but built more for endurance and less the fast bursts of speed desired in a racing bicycle; as such, they usually have more gear combinations and fewer hi-tech racing features. Certain of these bicycles have been referred to as 'sportive' bicycles to distinguish them from racing bicycles.
Compared to other styles of bicycle, road bicycles share common features: Read more...
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to animal-powered transport:
Animal-powered transport – broad category of the human use of non-human working animals (also known as "beasts of burden") for the movement of people and goods. Humans may ride some of the larger of these animals directly on their backs, use them as pack animals for carrying goods, or harness them, singly or in teams, to pull (or haul) sleds or wheeled vehicles. Read more...
Tro-Bro Léon racing, 2009
Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bikers", or less commonly, as "bicyclists". Apart from two-wheeled bicycles, "cycling" also includes the riding of unicycles, tricycles, quadracycles, recumbent and similar human-powered vehicles (HPVs).
Bicycles were introduced in the 19th century and now number approximately one billion worldwide. They are the principal means of transportation in many parts of the world. Read more...
A wicker pram
Various methods of transporting children have been used in different cultures and times. These methods include baby carriages (prams in British English), infant car seats, portable bassinets (carrycots), strollers (pushchairs), slings, backpacks, baskets and bicycle carriers.
The large, heavy prams (short for perambulator), which had become popular during the Victorian era, were replaced by lighter designs during the latter half of the 1900s. Read more...
A caster board or vigorboard is a two-wheeled, human-powered land vehicle. It is somewhat like a snakeboard. Other names are waveboard "J-board" and RipStik (sometimes written "rip stick"), both of which are derived from commercial brands.
A caster board has two narrow platforms known as "decks" that are joined by a "torsion bar", which consists of a metal beam, usually coated by rubber, that houses a strong spring. One polyurethane wheel is mounted to each deck with a caster so that each wheel can steer independently, and each caster has a steering axis that is tilted about 30° back from the vertical. Read more...
The Nissan Leaf electric car is a zero emission vehicle (ZEV), and ranks as the world's best selling plug-in electric car in history, with sales of 200,000 units by December 2015.
A zero-emissions vehicle, or ZEV, is a vehicle that emits no exhaust gas from the onboard source of power. Harmful pollutants to the health and the environment include particulates (soot), hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, ozone, lead, and various oxides of nitrogen. Although not considered emission pollutants by the original California Air Resources Board (CARB) or U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) definitions, the most recent common use of the term also includes volatile organic compounds, several air toxics (most notably 1,3-Butadiene), and global pollutants such as carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Examples of zero emission vehicles include muscle-powered vehicles such as bicycles; electric bicycles; gravity racers; battery electric vehicles, which may shift emissions to the location where the electricity is generated (if the electricity comes from coal or natural gas power plants--as opposed to hydro-electric, wind power, solar power or nuclear power plants); and fuel cell vehicles powered by hydrogen. Emissions from the manufacturing process are thus not included in this definition, and it has been argued that the emissions that are created during manufacture are currently of an order of magnitude that is comparable to the one of the emissions that are created during a vehicle's operating lifetime. However, these vehicles are in the early stages of their development; the manufacturing emissions may decrease by the development of technology, industry, shifting toward mass production and the ever increasing use of renewable energy throughout the supply-chains. Read more...
A touring bicycle is a bicycle designed or modified to handle bicycle touring. To make the bikes sufficiently robust, comfortable and capable of carrying heavy loads, special features may include a long wheelbase (for ride comfort and to avoid pedal-to-luggage conflicts), frame materials that favor flexibility over rigidity (for ride comfort—though frame flexing can eventually lead to metal fatigue and frame failure, so newer frames are rigid), heavy duty wheels (for load capacity), and multiple mounting points (for luggage racks, fenders, and bottle cages). Read more...- This is a list of human-powered aircraft by date. Read more...
- A handcycle is a type of human-powered land vehicle powered by the arms rather than the legs, as on a bicycle. Most handcycles are tricycle in form, with two coasting rear wheels and one steerable powered front wheel. Despite usually having three wheels, they are also known as handbikes. Read more...
The kicksled or spark is a small sled consisting of a chair mounted on a pair of flexible metal runners which extend backward to about twice the chair's length. The sled is propelled by kicking ("sparke" or "sparka" in the Scandinavian languages) the ground by foot. There is a handlebar attached to the top of the chair back. "Kicksled" is a direct translation of the Finnish word "potkukelkka". Some other possible translations are "kicker" and "chair-sled". Read more...
A Brompton folding bicycle
A folding bicycle is a bicycle designed to fold into a compact form, facilitating transport and storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings, on public transportation (facilitating mixed-mode commuting and bicycle commuting), and more easily stored in compact living quarters or aboard a car, boat or plane.
Folding mechanisms vary, with each offering a distinct combination of folding speed, folding ease, compactness, ride, weight, durability, and price. Distinguished by the complexities of their folding mechanism, more demanding structural requirements, greater number of parts, and more specialized market appeal, folding bikes may be more expensive than comparable non-folding models. The choice of model, apart from cost considerations, is a matter of resolving the various practical requirements: a quick easy fold, a compact folded size, or a faster but less compact model. Read more...
The scoop stretcher (or clamshell, Roberson orthopedic stretcher, or just scoop) is a device used specifically for moving injured people. It is most frequently used to lift people who may have a spinal cord injury from the ground, either due to unconsciousness or in order to maintain stability in the case of trauma.
A scoop stretcher has a structure that can be split vertically into two parts, with shaped 'blades' towards the centre which can be brought together underneath a patient. The two halves are placed separately either side of the patient, and then brought together until securing clips at the top and bottom both engage. Read more...
Schwinn AeroCycle in Longmont Museum & Cultural Center
A cruiser bicycle, also known as a beach cruiser or (formerly) motobike, is a bicycle that usually combines balloon tires, an upright seating posture, a single-speed drivetrain, and straightforward steel construction with expressive styling. Cruisers are popular among casual bicyclists and vacationers because they are very stable and easy to ride, but their heavy weight and balloon tires tend to make them rather slow. They are designed for use primarily on paved roads, moderate speeds/distances, and are included in the non-racing/non-touring class and heavyweight or middleweight styles of the road bicycle type.
The bikes, noted for their durability and heavy weight, were the most popular bicycle in the United States from the early 1930s through the 1950s, and have enjoyed renewed popularity since the late 1990s. Read more...
Batavus contemporary utility bicycles
A utility bicycle is a bicycle designed for practical transportation, as opposed to those primarily for recreation and competition, such as touring bicycles, racing bicycles, and mountain bicycles. Utility bicycles are the most common form globally, and comprise the vast majority found in the developing world. Read more...
Human power is work or energy that is produced from the human body. It can also refer to the power (rate of work per time) of a human. Power comes primarily from muscles, but body heat is also used to do work like warming shelters, food, or other humans.
World records of power performance by humans are of interest to work planners and work-process engineers. The average level of human power that can be maintained over a certain duration of time, say over the extent of one minute or one hour is interesting to engineers designing work operations in industry. Human power is occasionally used to generate and sometimes store electrical energy in batteries for use in the wilderness. Read more...
A freeboard is a specialist skateboard designed to closely simulate the behaviour of a snowboard. Freeboards were developed to allow snowboarders to transition to skateboarding (as non-winter transport) without the need to adapt to a smaller deck and narrower wheel-base. Read more...
A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles at the rear, or by a sail to push the ancient wheelbarrow by wind. The term "wheelbarrow" is made of two words: "wheel" and "barrow." "Barrow" is a derivation of the Old English "bearwe" which was a device used for carrying loads.
The wheelbarrow is designed to distribute the weight of its load between the wheel and the operator, so enabling the convenient carriage of heavier and bulkier loads than would be possible were the weight carried entirely by the operator. As such it is a second-class lever. Traditional Chinese wheelbarrows, however, had a central wheel supporting the whole load. Use of wheelbarrows is common in the construction industry and in gardening. Typical capacity is approximately 100 liters (4 cubic feet) of material. Read more...
View from "Top of the World" trail in Whistler B.C., the start of a stage of the Whistler Crankworx Enduro Race.
Enduro in its most basic definition is a type of mountain bike racing where the downhills are timed, and the uphills are not. Riders are timed in stages that are primarily downhill, with neutral "transfer" stages in between. The transfer stages usually must be completed within a time-limit, but are not part of the accumulated time. Read more...
Street luge is an extreme gravity-powered activity that involves riding a street luge board (sometimes referred to as a sled) down a paved road or course. Street luge is also known as land luge or road luge. Like skateboarding, street luge is often done for sport and for recreation.
Other than the supine riding position and very high speeds (70–102 mph / 112–164 km/h), street luge has little relation to its winter namesake (luge). Read more...
The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport; it is also known by a variety of other names such as bike taxi, velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, beca, becak, trisikad, tricycle taxi, or trishaw.
As opposed to rickshaws pulled by a person on foot, cycle rickshaws are human-powered by pedaling. Another type of rickshaw is the auto rickshaw. Read more...
A hand truck, also known as a two wheeler, stack truck, trundler, box cart, sack barrow, cart, dolly, sack truck, or bag barrow, is an L-shaped box-moving handcart with handles at one end, wheels at the base, with a small ledge to set objects on, flat against the floor when the hand-truck is upright. The objects to be moved are tilted forward, the ledge is inserted underneath them, and the objects allowed to tilt back and rest on the ledge. The truck and object are then tilted backward until the weight is balanced over the large wheels, making otherwise bulky and heavy objects easier to move. It is a first-class lever. Read more...
AeroVelo's Atlas human-powered helicopter shortly after its first flight
A human-powered helicopter (HPH) is a helicopter powered solely by one or more humans carried on board. As in other human-powered aircraft, the power is usually generated by pedalling. It remains a considerable engineering challenge to obtain both the power-to-weight ratio and rotor efficiency required to sustain a helicopter in flight.
On 13 June 2013, the AeroVelo Atlas was the first to complete a flight that lasted 64 seconds and reached an altitude of 3.3 metres, thus winning the American Helicopter Society (AHS) International's Igor I. Sikorsky Human Powered Helicopter Competition. Read more...
Velocipedes from an 1887 German encyclopedia. Among the examples shown are a penny farthing and a boneshaker.
A velocipede (/vəˈlɒsəpiːd/) is a human-powered land vehicle with one or more wheels. The most common type of velocipede today is the bicycle.
The term was probably first coined by Karl von Drais in French as vélocipède for the French translation of his advertising leaflet for his version of the Laufmaschine, also now called a 'dandy horse', which he had developed in 1817. It is ultimately derived from the Latin velox, veloc- 'swift' + pes, ped- 'foot'. The term 'velocipede' is today mainly used as a collective term for the different forerunners of the monowheel, the unicycle, the bicycle, the dicycle, the tricycle and the quadracycle developed between 1817 and 1880. It refers especially to the forerunner of the modern bicycle that was propelled, like a modern tricycle, by cranks, i.e. pedals, attached to the front axle before the invention of geared chains and belt and shaft drives powering the rear. Read more...
A Haitian hand cart.
A cart is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people. It is different from a dray or wagon, which is a heavy transport vehicle with four wheels and typically two or more horses, or a carriage, which is used exclusively for transporting humans.
Over time, the term "cart" has come to mean nearly any small conveyance, from shopping carts to golf carts or UTVs, without regard to number of wheels, load carried, or means of propulsion. Read more...
A singletrack trail near Woodstock, Georgia (U.S.).
Singletrack (or single track) describes a type of mountain biking trail that is approximately the width of the bike. It contrasts with double-track or fire road which is wide enough for four-wheeled off-road vehicles. It is often smooth and flowing, but may also feature technical rocky sections, go over tree roots, and include berms, banked turns, switch-backs, hills, drops, jumps, and so forth. Singletrack which descends significantly, and in the most downward direction, is said to be following the fall line.
Many mountain bike riders prefer singletrack over other types of trails, as singletrack is usually designed specifically for the sport, and therefore can have elements which highlight features of the sport (whereas other trail types will usually be more straight, and not exhibit as many hills and other special features). Some singletrack includes TTF's (technical trail features) designed to challenge riders, such as log piles, log rides, skinnies, rock gardens, gap jumps, and wall-rides. Read more...
Mountain biker riding in the Arizona desert
Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain. Mountain biking can generally be broken down into multiple categories: cross country, trail riding, all mountain (also referred to as "Enduro"), downhill, freeride and dirt jumping. However, the majority of mountain biking falls into the categories of Trail and Cross Country riding styles.
This non-sport requires endurance, core strength and balance, bike handling skills, and self-reliance. Advanced riders pursue both steep technical descents and high incline climbs. In the case of freeride, downhill, and dirt jumping, aerial maneuvers are performed off both natural features and specially constructed jumps and ramps. Read more...
Inline skates are a type of roller skate used for inline skating. Unlike quad skates, which have two front and two rear wheels, inline skates typically have two to five wheels arranged in a single line. Some, especially those for recreation, have a rubber "stop" or "brake" block attached to the rear of one or occasionally both of the skates so that the skater can slow down or stop by leaning back on the foot with the brake skate.
The modern style of inline skates was developed as a substitute for ice skates, for use by a Russian athlete[who?] training on solid ground for Olympic long track speed skating events[citation needed]. Life magazine published a photo of American skater Eric Heiden, training for the 1980 Olympics, using such skates on a Wisconsin road. Read more...
A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partially secured heel. For climbing slopes, ski skins (originally made of seal fur, but now made of synthetic materials) can be attached at the base of the ski.
Originally intended as an aid to travel over snow, they are now mainly used recreationally in the sport of skiing. Read more...
A B.N. Morris Canoe Company wood-and-canvas canoe built approximately 1912
A canoe is a lightweight narrow vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel using a single-bladed paddle.
In British English, the term "canoe" can also refer to a kayak, while canoes are then called Canadian canoes to distinguish them from kayaks. Read more...
Two-wheel truss-frame trailer
A bicycle trailer is a motorless wheeled frame with a hitch system for transporting cargo by bicycle. It can greatly increase a bike's cargo capacity, allowing point-to-point haulage of objects up to 4 cubic yards (3 cubic metres) in volume that weigh as much as half a ton. Read more...- Boneshaker (or bone-shaker) is a name used from about 1869 up to the present time to refer to the first type of true bicycle with pedals, which was called velocipede by its manufacturers. "Boneshaker" refers to the extremely uncomfortable ride, which was caused by the stiff wrought-iron frame and wooden wheels surrounded by tires made of iron. Read more...
A quadracycle is a four-wheeled human-powered land vehicle. It is also referred to as a quadricycle, quadcycle, pedal car or four-wheeled bicycle amongst other terms.
Human-powered quadracyles have been in use since 1853 and have grown into several families of vehicles for a variety of purposes, including tourist rentals, pedal taxis, private touring, mountain and industrial use. Read more...
The dandy horse is a human-powered vehicle that, being the first means of transport to make use of the two-wheeler principle, is regarded as the forerunner of the bicycle. Powered by the rider's feet on the ground in lieu of the pedals of later bicycles, the dandy horse was invented by Karl Drais—who called it a Laufmaschine (German: [ˈlaʊfmaˌʃiːnə], "running machine")—in Mannheim, Germany, and patented in France in February 1818. It is also known as a draisine (German: [dʁaɪˈziːnə] (
listen), a term now used primarily for light auxiliary railcars regardless of their form of propulsion), the French form draisienne (French: [drɛzjɛn], or by the broader designation velocipede. Read more...- A snowshoe is footwear for walking over snow. Snowshoes work by distributing the weight of the person over a larger area so that the person's foot does not sink completely into the snow, a quality called "flotation". Snowshoeing is a form of hiking.
Traditional snowshoes have a hardwood frame with rawhide lacings. Some modern snowshoes are similar, but most are made of materials such as lightweight metal, plastic, and synthetic fabric. In addition to distributing the weight, snowshoes are generally raised at the toe for maneuverability. They must not accumulate snow, hence the latticework, and require bindings to attach them to the feet. Read more...
A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word qajaq (IPA: [qajaq]).
The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler. The cockpit is sometimes covered by a spray deck that prevents the entry of water from waves or spray, differentiating the craft from a canoe. The spray deck makes it possible for suitably skilled kayakers to roll the kayak: that is, to capsize and right it without it filling with water or ejecting the paddler. Read more...- A unicycle is a vehicle that touches the ground with only one wheel. The most common variation has a frame with a saddle, and has a pedal-driven direct drive. A two speed hub is commercially available for faster unicycling. Unicycling is practiced professionally in circuses, by street performers, in festivals, and as a hobby. Unicycles have also been used to create new sports such as unicycle hockey. In recent years, unicycles have also been used in mountain unicycling, an activity similar to mountain biking or trials. Read more...A Torker unicycle
Giant cyclo-cross bicycle
A cyclo-cross bicycle is a bicycle specifically designed for the rigors of a cyclo-cross race. Cyclo-cross bicycles roughly resemble the racing bicycles used in road racing. The major differences between the two are the frame geometry, and the wider clearances that cyclo-cross bikes have for their larger tires and mud and other debris that they accumulate. Read more...
Snowboards are boards where both feet are secured to the same board, which are wider than skis, with the ability to glide on snow. Snowboards widths are between 6 and 12 inches or 15 to 30 centimeters. Snowboards are differentiated from monoskis by the stance of the user. In monoskiing, the user stands with feet inline with direction of travel (facing tip of monoski/downhill) (parallel to long axis of board), whereas in snowboarding, users stand with feet transverse (more or less) to the longitude of the board. Users of such equipment may be referred to as snowboarders. Commercial snowboards generally require extra equipment such as bindings and special boots which help secure both feet of a snowboarder, who generally rides in an upright position. These types of boards are commonly used by people at ski hills or resorts for leisure, entertainment, and competitive purposes in the activity called snowboarding. Read more...
An Opafiets, a single speed traditional Dutch roadster with double top tube and coaster brake
A roadster bicycle is a type of utility bicycle once common worldwide, and still common in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and some parts of Europe. During the past few decades, traditionally styled roadster bicycles have regained popularity in the Western world, particularly as a lifestyle or fashion statement in an urban environment. Read more...- Downhill mountain biking (DH) is a genre of mountain biking practiced on steep, rough terrain that often features jumps, drops, rock gardens and other obstacles.
Downhill bikes are heavier and stronger than other mountain bikes and feature front and rear suspension with over 8 inches (20 cm) of travel, to glide quickly over rocks and tree roots. In competitive races, a continuous course is defined on each side by a strip of tape. Depending on the format, riders have a single or double attempt to reach the finish line as fast as possible, while remaining between the two tapes designating the course. Riders must choose their line by compromising between the shortest possible line and the line that can be traveled at the highest speed. If a rider leaves the course by crossing or breaking the tape they must return to the course at the point of exit, unless they do not gain a time advantage from crossing the tape, in which case they can continue with their run. Read more...
27.5 mountain bikes, also called tweeners, are mountain bikes which use a wheel that is approximately 27.5 inches in diameter with a large volume ISO 56-584 (27.5 x 2.25) mountain bike tire installed in a ISO 584 mm rim. The wheel size is also known as "650B",
and is used as a "marketing term" by some manufacturers for their 27.5", the 650B has traditionally been a designation for a 26 inch diameter (ISO ~ 40-584 demi-ballon tire) using the same ISO 584 mm rim used by French tandems, Porteurs and touring bicycles.
The 27.5 inch are seen as a compromise between the two existing standards of the original 26 inch (ISO 559 mm rim) and recently emerged 29 inch mountain bikes. They were pioneered by Kirk Pacenti in 2007, and as of 2013, at least 10 companies are launching models with 27.5 inch wheels, and parts manufacturers are following suit. Read more...
Paddleboarding participants are propelled by a swimming motion using their arms while lying, kneeling, or standing on a paddleboard or surfboard in the ocean. This article refers to traditional prone or kneeling paddleboarding. A derivative of paddleboarding is stand up paddle surfing and stand up paddleboarding. Paddleboarding is usually performed in the open ocean, with the participant paddling and surfing unbroken swells to cross between islands or journey from one coastal area to another. Champion paddlers can stroke for hours and a 20-mile (32 km) race is only a warm-up for well-trained paddlers. Read more...
Small wheels may be welcome indoors, where large wheels are not welcome, for example, in a grocery
Small-wheel bicycles are adult bicycles that have wheels of 20 inch nominal diameter or less, which is smaller than the 26", 27.5", 29" or 700c sizes common on most full-sized adult bikes. While many folding bicycles are small-wheel bicycles, not all small-wheel bicycles can fold. Some small-wheel bicycles neither fold nor separate, such as the Moulton, which comes in both fixed-frame and separable-frame versions. While BMX bikes also have 20" wheels, they are not normally categorised as "small-wheel bikes". Read more...
Need help?
Do you have a question about Human-powered transport that you can't find the answer to?
Consider asking it at the Wikipedia reference desk.
Selected images
Bicycles are the most efficient type of human-powered vehicle
Sherpa carrying wood to Mount Everest base camp
Subcategories
- Select [►] to view subcategories
Topics
| Land | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water |
| ||||||
| Amphibious | |||||||
| Snow and ice | |||||||
| Air | |||||||
| Related topics | |||||||
Associated Wikimedia
The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:
Wikibooks
Books
Commons
Media
Wikinews
News
Wikiquote
Quotations
Wikisource
Texts
Wikiversity
Learning resources
Wiktionary
Definitions
Wikidata
Database
- What are portals?
- List of portals
