The casual bicycle rider is not Lance Armstrong. The casual rider is not interested in riding up mountains or pedaling until his or her calf muscles explode. Rather, the casual rider is looking to recreate the childhood experience of riding a bike – where coasting along was an easy, relaxing activity. Now, new technology has resulted in the production of a bike for the casual rider.
The Trek Lime Bike is equipped with innovative automatic shifting technology to make riding a bicycle a little less taxing. The bike’s rear hub houses an electronic 3-speed internal shifter that’s powered by a generator on the front hub – which, basically, functions like a car’s transmission, eliminating the need for a person to switch gears manually. Using an advanced Shimano Coasting drive system, the Lime adjusts to how fast or slow a person is pedaling to make sure he or she is always in the right gear. While developing the system, Shimano and innovation firm IDEO conducted research to find out what could inspire non-cyclists to ride more. They found that casual riders wanted to coast rather than climb – leading the company to develop the advanced technology that was first incorporated in bikes by major companies (like Trek) in 2007.
In addition to the automatic gear-switching technology, the Trek Lime also includes a number of other enticing features for the casual rider. Most notably, this bike incorporates a makeshift trunk for storing items like cell phones or wallets. The seat lifts up and inside is some handy storage space that, if nothing else, may keep bikers from wearing fanny packs. The bike also has a distinct appearance with touches of lime green on the chain cover, front wheel hub and one the tips of the handlebars. While this works with the “Lime” name, people who aren’t fans of the color may be turned off. For those individuals, Trek offers Peelz™ stickers - which allow people to replace all traces of lime with blue, black, pink, orange or baby blue. Additionally, users can deck out their Limes with available accessories like a bell, chrome fenders and a ride computer. The Lime comes in two different models (Lime and Lime Lite) and two frame styles (traditional and women’s step-through).
Of course, all these features are meant to help the Lime appeal to casual riders, and lure new riders onto bikes. And, really, there’s never been a better time to start riding a bike than right now. With all the current talk of reducing reliance on gasoline, people forget that the old-fashioned bicycle can be a great way to get around (and it’s cheaper and more visually appealing than alternative-energy vehicles like Myers Motors NmG). By making the ride smoother and eliminating all the extra gear-shifting, the Trek Lime Bike could make it easier for individuals to bike to school or work without ending up a sweaty mess. It also may remind people of the freedom of cruising down the road with the wind in their hair - without having to pay $4 a gallon.
Trek Lime Bikes have a retail price of $539.99, and they can be purchased at select bicycle retailers. Interested individuals can search for local dealers on the Trek Web site .
