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The Mathematics of Bikes in Motion

Quick Note to Any Readers in Sydney, Australia:

A riding buddy of mine is traveling from Atlanta to Sydney for work and would appreciate any riding guidance or partner(s) for this weekend. If you’re feeling hospitable, use the Contact Us form to email me, and I’ll pass it along. Thanks! —John


A friend recently emailed me a really interesting article about academic research (I know, you’re probably already bored from reading that phrase, but stick with it) into the mathematics of what makes a bicycle work in terms of steering, control, handling, etc.

It’s an area that has received an almost amazing lack of scrutiny in the more than 125-year era of the modern bicycle. In that time, the basic shape and design of a bike has fundamentally remained the same, with each successive iteration simply taking cues from the previous design. The rider of a “Safety Bike” in 1890 would have no problem recognizing a 2016 model bicycle.

In short, the designers of the bikes for well over a century have simply followed principles that they know work – but that they don’t really understand how or why they work.

That’s what makes this article so interesting. If you have a few minutes, take a look. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-bicycle-problem-that-nearly-broke-mathematics/

—John Marsh

 

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