How Efficient is a Flywheel Braking System?

 I really enjoyed this video about how to use a Flywheel Braking System to store energy, and then use that energy when you are ready to resume cycling. The storage of the energy only amounts to 15 to 20% return on the energy stored, but also comes with the added weight being carried around, and the noise caused by the gears/flywheel.

So the amount of energy being stored and used doesn't really seem worth it when you consider the problem that the cyclist is carrying around all this extra weight, but only using that weight to their benefit when braking and restarting.

So yes, an interesting experiment, but ultimately it makes you realize that it isn't an efficient way to do it. Plus the noise... Just not worth it.

Safety Tips for Cycling with Hearing Aids

Back in August I did a post about why cyclists should get their hearing checked for safety reasons. (Namely because one in five adults have suffered hearing damage.)

Hearing Aids for Cyclist Safety

Since then however it occurred to me I should probably do a 2nd post about hearing aids that includes some practical safety tips.

#1. Avoid Stupid Risks by Staying Safe on the Road

It doesn’t matter if you have hearing loss or not, staying safe while cycling in traffic should be your top priority. Accidents can happen to anyone, no matter how much experience they have or the quality of their equipment. However, there are ways to improve road safety.

The basics go for all cyclists:

1. Make sure your brakes work properly by having your bike tuned regularly
2. Wear a helmet
3. Always tell someone where you’re going
4. Try not to follow the same path every day
5. Bring a phone
6. Stay hydrated over the course of your trip
7. Avoid heat exhaustion and dehydration
8. Possibly invest in a handlebar mirror

People with hearing aids have to take extra precautions to stay safe on the road.

1. Wear your hearing aids, actually wear them. Don't bring them and forget to use them.
2. Adjust them to block out the wind. It’s hard even for people with excellent hearing to make out the sound of traffic over the wind, so make sure that your audiologist helps you set up a noise-cancellation mode.
3. You can also wear a cap or headband over your hearing aids to help block out the wind. Many regular cyclists will do this to help block out noise as they speed down the road, and it works the same for those with hearing aids. Myself I wear a toque as I like to keep my ears and head warm when I am cycling.
4. While you cycle alone, be extra aware of your surroundings. Your hearing aid settings are even more important if you plan on taking solo trips, because nobody else will be around to alert you via visual cues.
5. Avoid cycling alone. Cycling with friends is always safer, regardless of how well you hear.

#2. Try Group Cycling

There is a variety of safety and social benefits to cycling with a group or club, but especially for people with hearing aids.

Even people without hearing aids choose to cycle in groups when they can. Along with the benefit of companionship, it also improves the safety of your journey. The more of you there are, the safer you’ll be.

When cycling in groups, you can establish cues to warn each other about traffic and other dangers. With multiple people keeping an eye out for cars and motorcycles, at least one person is going to notice oncoming vehicles or danger. Cyclists are also more likely to take breaks when others are around, which makes the activity less strenuous.

Drivers are much more likely to notice a pack of cyclists than a single cyclist. Cycling in groups boosts the awareness of drivers around you. While a driver might overlook a lone cyclist, they have to make more accommodations for a group. They’ll give your group more berth, lowering the chances of an accident.

If you don’t have friends or family members to cycle with, try joining a cycling group in your area. Even if you’re shy or inexperienced, most groups are happy to accept new members. They can give you pointers, and help you learn how to cycle safely and efficiently. It doesn’t matter who you are, it’s always good to have someone watching your back.

#3. Adjusting Your Hearing Aids

Your bike, helmet, and hearing aids are the biggest tool at your disposal. Staying vigilant is easier when you can hear the world around you, so it’s important that you get your hearing aids adjusted properly. The best way to do this is to visit your audiologist. Explain the situation and ask them to create a special “cycling” setting. Or possibly even two different settings for louder and quieter areas. If you don't have an audiologist yet, try visiting Omni Hearing in Vaughan, which provides free hearing tests and also has a free online hearing test if you are unsure if you have hearing damage.

Your cycling setting should include the use of an omni-directional microphone setting. This is a special setting that allows you to pick up sounds from all directions, including behind you. While this might not be the best setting for conversations or parties, it can save your life while on the road. You’ll need to hear cars approaching from the sides and rear, and an omni-directional microphone setting can pick up the sound of their approach.

Next, you’ll need hearing aids with a wind-cancellation feature. This noise-filter should be turned all the way up. You should reduce the strain of hearing over wind as much as possible. Even people with fully-intact hearing have trouble hearing traffic or voices in windy situations, and it can be even harder for hearing aid wearers.

#4. Choosing a Helmet

Once your hearing aids are adjusted, it’s time to find a helmet that can accommodate them. Never buy a helmet without trying it on first, and always wear your hearing aids when shopping for a helmet. There’s no guarantee that the helmet you buy will fit comfortably with your hearing aids, so you need to make sure of that before taking it to the register.

You want the helmet to fit snugly, without smashing your ears or hearing aids. If you plan on wearing something on your head underneath the helmet like a cap or headband or toque, make sure to wear that too.

After buying your helmet, consider buying accessories to help block out the wind. You can find special straps and wind blockers online and in sports catalogs.

#5. Caring For Your Hearing Aids

Whether you’re cycling in the heat or the bitter cold, moisture is a serious concern. While getting waterproof hearing aids is a good idea, what if your current hearing aids are not waterproof?

In the heat, you’re going to sweat. To avoid moisture damage, you might need to stop and wipe down your ears and hearing aids. Sweatbands can reduce the amount of sweat reaching your ears, but you should still stop and wick away moisture with a towel. Water-stops are a great opportunity to do this. Drink some water and wipe down your hearing aids before hitting the road again.

When it’s cold, condensation is the concern. While you’re still going to sweat, your hearing aids are going to collect moisture from the air around you. Your batteries will also drain faster because of the cold, so make sure to bring a change of batteries if you plan on going for a long trip.

#6. Protecting Your Hearing

This section applies to everyone, regardless of their level of hearing. Recent studies have shown that cyclists’ hearing tends to degrade over time. Many professional and hobbyist cyclists suffer from high rates of noise-induced hearing loss as they grow older, as cyclists are more exposed to loud noises on street level than pedestrians or car drivers.

This is due to loud sounds, particularly wind-noise. Wind can become extraordinarily loud, and prolonged exposure can wear on your hearing. This results in sensorineural hearing loss, a degradation of the nerves in your cochlea. While sensorineural hearing loss is incurable, you can take measures to avoid it.

It has also been theorized that the air pressure of the wind going past your ears can also cause hearing damage, although this has yet to be scientifically proven. (Ear barotrauma is a type of ear damage caused by air pressure differences between the middle ear and the outer ear. Scuba diving and air travel are common causes of ear barotrauma. Symptoms can include ear pain, ringing in the ears, dizziness, ear bleeding, and temporary or permanent hearing loss.)

As mentioned above, headbands and other head coverings can be used to filter out wind noise. It’s also important that you take it easy after windy bike rides. Avoid loud music and concerts, and give your ears a chance to recover before taking another long ride or going anywhere noisy.

While you can’t always avoid cycling through the wind, you can do your best to protect your ears in the process. Fully protecting your ears is difficult, since earplugs and muffs can reduce your spatial awareness. Do what you can, and get frequent hearing tests. If your hearing does start to deteriorate, you’ll want to catch it early. Letting hearing loss fester can cause a myriad of other issues, including depression and mental fatigue because your brain has to strain harder to understand the messages it is getting from your ears.

Those who use hearing aids aren’t the only ones who can benefit from information on aural health. Many people don’t realize how delicate their hearing is, and what they can do to protect it. Indeed many people are walking around (or cycling around) without even knowing that they are suffering from permanent hearing loss.

Hearing Aids for Cyclist Safety

Hey Toronto Cyclists!

Just a thought, but if you have ever been cycling and didn't hear a car near you, or it was closer than you were expecting, it might be time to get your hearing tested.

You are cycling along, minding your own business, keeping your eyes on the road, the other traffic, and pedestrians, and still a car managed to get too close to you and clip you. Was it your fault you didn't hear them? They are probably a jerk driver, but you probably should be proactive about being able to hear any cars around you for safety reasons.

Here is why:

One in five adults have suffered permanent hearing damage.

It is remarkably common even amongst young adults, and often is the result of listening to loud music or loud workplace conditions. It isn't just a matter of age. Myself I have hearing damage from my youth and I am only 40. I have been living with my hearing damage for roughly 28 years.

This implies in turn that roughly one in five adult cyclists also has hearing damage.

Does this mean one in five should also be wearing hearing aids? No, it really depends on how severe the damage is. Which is why it is so important to have your hearing tested.

The good news is that Omni Hearing has a free online hearing test you can do right now on your computer. Or if you prefer an in-person meeting with an audiologist you can get a free hearing test at any of their 2 locations:

Woodbridge/Vaughan
Call or Text 905-605-4593

Oakville/Mississauga
Call or Text 905-287-2037

Now just because you are ready for a hearing test doesn't mean you need hearing aids. It might simply be a case that you need to start protecting your ears from further damage (by wearing ear plugs when near loud noises).

And if it does turn out that you really should have hearing aids there is more good news. If you live in Ontario then OHIP covers most of the cost. They are practically free.

Want more good news? Hearing aids have been getting smarter over the past 30 years. They can now auto-adjust based on the existing sound levels on quiet streets vs loud streets, so that regardless of the situation you will still hear that ultra quiet electric car backing out of its driveway from behind a hedge...

There are a wide variety of smart hearing aids now available out there, including waterproof hearing aids which are ideal if you enjoy cycling in the rain or snow.

Bicycles for Parents of Babies

To clarify, these are bicycles designed to help parents get their baby (or babies) from Point A to Point B, without using the conventional Baby Stroller or Baby Carriage, etc.

The wife and I recently purchased a stroller, which sparked my curiousity as to what else was available on the market and might be more convenient.

Baby Stroller Bicycle

Bicycle Baby Trailer

Bicycle Baby Sidecars

Recumbent Bicycle Trailer

Bicycle Baby Carrier

Personally I think I like the sidecar option best.

And then there is the problem of WHERE TO BUY?

Well one place to buy is to go to:

Manuel Cappel of Toronto Island

Manuel builds beautiful cargo bikes and trailers in his Toronto Island workshop. Manuel uses used bikes but new components to create strong bikes that can carry heavy loads. The bikes are cheaper than newer bikes with a price of about $2000 for a built bike (powdercoating extra). Give Manuel a call at 416.203.7717 to arrange a visit to his shop to discuss requirements. It takes him about a month and a half to build.

 So yeah, that probably is not in the average person's price range to get a custom built bicycle like that. Plus while he does make plenty of cargo bikes, I am really looking for a sidecar I can install myself.

I shall keep looking.

Cycling Gloves and other Cycling Gear

I find it very difficult to find gloves I can use while cycling that look "manly". No offense to those people who prefer spandex gloves (and spandex outfits) for cycling, but it just isn't me.



To me how I look on a bicycle is equally important as the bicycle itself. If I have to look like a spandex-wearing superhero (basically Spiderman with a cheesy helmet!) while cycling then, well, sorry, I will stick with my jeans and t-shirt.

But there are some bits of cycling gear I do endorse...

#1. Leg straps for protecting your clothes from being snagged on gears and ripped. I personally favour the small velcro ones, the larger "leg shields" to me are just unnecessary weight.



#2. A helmet you actually LIKE and are comfortable wearing, not just physically but also fashion wise. Again I prefer to go with a helmet that looks "manly" and not ridiculous. The pink helmet below is obviously not on my wish list and an example of what I would NOT buy.



#3. And last but not least... cycling gloves!

The gloves I am currently using (and have been for years) are my Atlas Weightlifting Gloves. They're not even meant for cycling. I got them for using at the gym because the weights were hurting my hands.

However I can't find that exact brand in stores any more, but I have found other brands which basically the exact same gloves. One company is Copper Canyon Cycling (sadly I can't find an example online) and other company is Saranac (shown below).

What I like about these gloves are they are black, totally badass fashion wise, knitted for comfort and let your skin breathe, and the leather is faux leather so it isn't going to offend any vegans or the veggie-curious.



In somewhat related commentary I think cyclists wearing too much spandex take themselves a little too seriously... and I also think it is hilarious when I cycle PAST them and show them that wearing all that spandex doesn't make you faster.

EXERCISE MAKES YOU FASTER.

:)

Russian engineers build Submarine Bicycle

TECHNOLOGY - Okay, technically its not a bicycle. Its just pedal powered.

If you ever dreamed of traveling underwater this underwater novelty is being promoted to the rich as an alternative to scuba diving. And its reasonable affordable, approx. $90,000 USD, which is pretty cheap for a submarine. (Normally submarines are very expensive because of all the engines and electrical parts.)

The Russian engineers who built "the Blue Space" are promoting it as the first ever pedal-powered submarine (technically not true, read below).

“Usually they use heavy engines and propellers and huge batteries for underwater vehicles – and that requires a lot of energy,” explained Vladimir Taradonov from the State Marine Technical University. “Ours can be driven by just two people's efforts! Nothing hard – even children can do it!”

The Blue Space can dive down to 30 meters for up to four hours, traveling at approx. six kilometers per hour, a leisurely pace and with its sky-roof cockpit provides passengers with amazing views. So tourism resorts could easily afford it and provide it as an option for visitors.

Its also being touted as a cheaper alternative for maritime archeology and inspection of underwater pipes.

Lastly, its invisible to sonar so there are some worries it could be used to spy on things (seriously, spy on what exactly? It can only go 30 meters deep) or smuggle people or items across borders (slowly).

It also comes with lots of safety equipment to prevent it from diving too deep and for peace of mind.

It is technically not the first of its kind either. There is also the Scubster.

The Scubster is also an underwater bike, a pedal powered submarine with twin propellors that push it through the water at a 8 kmph. Built in France, its inventor Stephane Rousson hopes that rich people will buy it as a toy for their expensive yachts.

The Scubster may be smaller and faster, but it can only carry 1 person. Worse, it can only go 20' underwater. The price tag hasn't been announced.

Techie Bikes

TECHNOLOGY - Designer Chen Chun Tung has designed a bike that runs on wind-solar power (the Win-Solar Energy Bike), but only part of the time. It stores up energy from the sun/wind and then uses that energy later when the rider is going up hill by running an electric motor to help speed up ascent.





If you like gadgets there is also the Mercedes folding bicycle. It costs approx. $1,770 USD.



Or for the more mechanical amongst you, the amazingly easy to disassemble "Urban Bicycle" designed by Victor M. Aleman, which can fit into a box after being completely disassembled or reassembled in record time.





And finally here is one that is just plain unusual... the wheels run on a track inside the rim, there's no chain or spokes, and its designed to be extremely lightweight... oh and its ALSO solar powered to boost uphill speed, tracks your speed, calorie loss and plays music. Oh and its being promoted by Olympic cyclist Chris Boardman (whoop dee do, celebrity endorsements!).