Dan Nielsen kicked across America eight years ago

Beaver Creek, Colorado resident Dan Nielsen left San Diego, California Thursday, November 1st, 2001 in an effort to become the fastest person to cross the US on a Kickbike. He covered 2,378 miles, arriving on the east coast at Jekyll Island Historic District, Georgia on November 22nd, 2001 in 21 Days, 9 Hours, 57 Minutes.

Here’s a contemporary newspaper account, from the Vail Daily newspaper.

Footbikes are not bicycles

Moses at FootbikeUSA goes over the reasons we’re unlikely to see many footbikes in bicycle shops. But, he says, all is not lost:

Unfortunately for those that want to go check one out at your local Bike Shop, that is not going to happen until the Bike Shops see racks of Footbikes stuffed into the local bus stop. Then and only then will they want to join the party.

We have a growing legion of representatives around the country that are eager to provide you with a place to come Try and Buy your very own Footbike.

First footbike question is posted to MetaFilter

MetaFilter is a community weblog whose purpose is to share links and discuss content that users have discovered on the web. The first question about large-wheeled scooters has been posted:

I’d like an adult kick scooter with bigger wheels than a Xootr and smaller wheels than a Kickbike. Two wheels the size of the Kickbike Freeride’s backwheel would be good. Or this old model but adult size. Can you recommend such a scooter?

Here’s information on joining MetaFilter, if any readers want to respond to the poster. At any rate, it is a harbinger of sorts.

Revisiting the basics

Sure, any scooter – even a performance scooter – is a simple machine, one that even the smallest kids can hop right on and go.

That doesn’t mean there’s no technique involved, especially for fitness benefits, utility scooting or racing. (For instance, “civilians” who “get it” will ask me “how often do you switch legs,” one of the most basic moves, but one which many newbies don’t even identify. And there’re lots more.)

Gary Schmitt reviews the fundamentals over at Kick Racer.

Shoelaces shouldn’t sink scooterists

The Australian Footbike Association is pushing Lace Traps™ as another solution to the problem of shoelaces and scooters, offering a pair if you donate $20 or more to help send an Australia Footbike Team to the world championships in Italy during August 2010.

Sounds like a good deal, not to mention something Isadora Duncan could have used – had she used a footbike.

Fantasy Footbikes: Frank Patterson Tribute

This installment of the occasional series is my poor tribute to the amazing pen-and-ink illustrations of British cycling artist Frank Patterson (1871-1952). Given that my drawing style is more influenced by Mad Magazine than Gustave Doré, still I had this in me and it had to come out. (Click on the pic for a larger version.)

For more on Frank Patterson, see this site.

Catawba 780 a stealth footbike race?

Joe Jung posted news of this video to the KickbikeUSA mail list. Run on Oct. 3 in Springfield, Ohio, at 7:00 a.m. (before sunrise, from the looks of the vid), the Catawba 780 appears to be a stealth race (like British time trials, run when massed-start bicycle roadracing was illegal there – and which might be another fun way for footbikers to compete) over 7.8 miles, featuring stalwarts Bob Diamond, Doug Estep, Luther Hill, Joe Jung, James Klay, Tracy Sample and Brian Smith.

Is Springfield therefore the hotbed of American kicking that it seems to be? (In North Carolina I’ve never seen one other footbiker, not counting kids on Razors.)

These people don’t know from footbikes

Spectated the Outer Banks Marathon and took two pictures, of the first three front-runners at the 14-mile point. The supercilious cyclists (from a local club) got marathon jerseys and were a sort of officious security detail accompanying the front-runners. I guess they’re greener than pace-cars…

Two spectators asked me about my Kickbike. It was all I could do to keep from going around with my forefinger raised, preaching about how Satchel Paige said, “Avoid running at all times.”

Western world’s winner writes weblog

Gary Schmitt, footbike veteran men’s sprint world champion (the first American to attain world-champion status) (.xls results file), has a new ‘blog, succinctly called Kick Racer.

Gary’s “About” page modestly says,

I kick a scooter – an adult scooter called a Footbike. It’s been five years of steady kicking for me, plus about five years of erratic kicking before that. I kick on TeamFootbikeUSA as the captain of the team. This is a great gig and I get exercise without thinking about it. However, I am not quitting [my] day job.

Bookmark this one! Welcome to WordPress, Gary!

Closet kickbiker comes out on twitter

Moses at FootbikeUSA talks to many professional athletes about his machines, but the next time he sees them, they’re mum. Turns out (says Mose) that often they’ve latched on to a training aid they’d rather keep secret.

Now Garmin-Slipstream pro cyclist Tom Danielson (who currently holds the record for the fastest ascent of Mt. Washington, New Hampshire, in the Race to the Clouds competition, and the record time for the Mt. Evans Hill Climb in Colorado, which traverses the highest paved road in North America) has put it out on twitter:

I’m taking my offseason training to a new level. Just finished footbiking the peak to peak. www.footbikeusa.com

Fasten your helmet-straps. It may be a wild ride.