When this movie came out the idea of a recumbent bicycle was a very new thing. I thought that it would take over as 'the' bicycle design. Although they are being sold, the traditional design continued to dominate.
Too much, too soon, too long, too strong, too many,
to fix.
Complain to the IOC about it then. The only reason recumbent bike development doesn't get any money is because the biggest bicycle research money goes into sport bikes and the Olympics won't allow recliners in because they're "unfair" or something.
shareNot unfair, just boring. Recumbents are for long slow distance riding. They have no sprint or corning ability, making them lousy for competition.
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The IOC are a bunch of crabby pants...... Plus who knows they prolly got bribed to ban it.
shareRecumbents are heavy, unwieldy, and generally impractical. They do not accelerate quickly, and are no good for climbing, fast descending, or sharp cornering. They are unstable, awkward, and uncomfortable compared to traditional road bikes. They can still be bought, but seem to appeal mostly to the "look at me, I'm an oddball" crowd. There would be no advantage to using one in a bicycle race with normal bicycles because the recumbent would not be competitive and would quickly be left far behind.
shareCan you still buy a bike like that?
shareOne of my mechanical engineering professors developed the BikeE (on the backs of student labor).
Unfortunately, the company basically folded, and there were a couple of recalls that were safety-related. A mechanical engineering professor, letting such problems slip through... disgraceful.
Anyhoo, there are a few manufacturers out there, but the fad has kinda sorta disappeared.
Clamo, clamatis, omnes clamamus pro glace lactis!
The Avatar 2000 in the movie, from what I understand, was never a high production bike. They don't make them anymore as far as I know. There is however one that is very much like it. The Slipstream from Longbikes.
http://www.longbikes.com/SiteII/Bikes/Slipstream/SlipstreamMoreInfo.html
The idea is not really that new. Recumbents have been outlawed for competition since the 1930s. That's one reason why they are not popular. Another reason is that they are not as easy to learn to ride. They are more expensive and you get snide comments from "wedgie" riders.
shareWedgie riders are crabby.... well, because of the wedgie
shareYeap, they were just making a comeback after being hurt by the international racing ban of the 1930s. That model in Brainstorm was the love of my life and I so wanted one. She was the Avatar 2000.
Great clips of her in the movie along with a bit of information on the actual back story on how MGM got the bike.
http://ryanownersclub.com/scrapbook/avatar/brainstorm/
DeeDee
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Can you still buy a bike like that?Of course you can! Squidward Tentacles owns one, and he got his around 2001, when the Spongebob Squarepants Movie came out!