U of C students make new gears to improve winter biking

A team of Calgary engineering students has developed a mechanism to keep avid cyclists going all winter and not having to replace the gear system every year.

The students from the University of Calgary, led by studentParth Thakurdesai, hope theinvention eliminates some key problems that cyclists face, primarily freezing parts and corrosion.

"Winter riding can take a toll on the bicycle, especially if you have a traditional derailleur system. It tends to wear out due to corrosion, due to gravel being stuck in the chain and that causes these gears to chip," Thakurdesai told theCalgary Eyeopener.

"One season later, almost all parts need replacement."

• Winter cyclists insist biking in foot-deep snow is nothing to marvel at

Instead, the students' invention has a series of hub gears, offering multiple speed ratios to the rider, that are connected by a chain in a triangle formation link from the pedals, to the gear hub to the back wheel. That's allcovered by a strong casing.

To test their idea, they packed the gears with snow until it turned to ice. Then they rode the bike around.

The students found they were able to change gears easily, a feat impossible under the same conditions for a traditional derailleurgears.

Their bike also drove better in the cold Calgary temperatures.

To come up with the project, the students looked at all the reasons why biking in the winter is difficult and can ruin a bicycle. But slipping can be solved with studded tires, and braking can be improved using disc brakes.

"The only problem that we really thoughtthat didn't have a good enough market solution had to do with the speed gearing systems of a bicycle," Thakurdesaisaid.

The invention is still in the early days, and the team hopes to work with Innovates Calgary, a venture capital fund meant to assist entrepreneurs locally. They want to test the bike over several winter seasons to see how it holds up to regular riding.

"There's still quite a lot of testing to do," he said.

• MORE CALGARY NEWS |Climate change risk reporting becomes hot topic among investors
• MORE CALGARY NEWS |Teen launches petition for less gun control
• MORE CALGARY NEWS |Brewing U.S.-China trade dispute may spell opportunity for Alberta companies

With files from Josie Lukey and theCalgary Eyeopener.