Velomobiles!

VELOMOBILES!

Leitra at SPEZI bike show in Germany. In the green jacket is David Eggleston, who produces Alleweder velomobiles in Texas. In the black hat is HPV historian Michael Gruetzner.	Leitra with Annie, the VM-loving terrier	Three Leitras and a Versatile. Standing with the baby on his shoulders is Ymte Sijbrandij, who produces the Quest and Mango.
The Leitra, seen above, differs from other velomobiles in being a trike with a fairing, rather than a self-supporting chassis. Leitras have been manufactured since about 1980 in Denmark. Leitras are the most common velomobiles in North America.
Aerorider: pedal/electric hybrid (above).	Cab-Bike velomobile from Germany (above). The rider is Dale Hammerschmidt.	Leiba velomobile from Germany (above). The rider is Frederik Van De Walle, who developed the WAW velomobile.
This Go-one was seen at SPEZI (above). The Versatile in the center is being ridden in an uphill race by Mr. Tempelman of Ligfietsshop Tempelman in Dronten, Netherlands. Click here for a film clip of the Versatile on the road.		WAW (pronounced WOW!) from Belgium.
The Dutch velomobile boom began with the development of the Alleweder (all-weather), seen below. In 1993, the Alleweder won a cycling magazine's prize for a "365-day bike." Alleweders have been built by several different manufacturers and have been available as kits. A history of the Alleweder can be found on the US manufacturer's website.
The first Dutch velomobile was the "Flevo" Alleweder. This design is manufactured in the US by VelomobileUSA.	Alligt Alleweder, Dutch manufacturer. A US manufacturer; German manufacturer The Alligt Alleweder (sometimes called "AA") has a smoother profile than the Flevo Alleweder (known as "FAW"). Updated Alligts have been introduced recently in Europe and the US.	The glass/carbon fiber C-Alleweder or Limit was manufactured briefly in the Netherlands in the 1990's during the transition from the aluminum Alleweders to the modern Quest and Mango. (Film clip)
Velomobiel, in Dronten, the Netherlands, manufactures the Quest and Mango velomobiles. At velomobile events, Quests outnumber everything else. They are known for speed and comfort, but they require tall, thin riders. The Mango is smaller, more maneuverable (having open wheel-wells) and not as fast the Quest. (There has also been a Quest with open wheel-wells; the other distinguishing feature is the longer tail on the Quest.)
	Above and to the left are front and rear views of a Mango.	This is the large-wheeled Quest with the open wheel-wells.
		The Mango and Quest are similar-looking at first glance, but the Quest's closed wheel-wells and long tail give it a smoother look. The Mango is the red velomobile in the center. The Quest in this photo was ridden over 400 km in one day to reach this velomobile meeting. Note the open wheel-wells and the stubby tail on the yellow Mango.
Not pictured: Tri-Sled Sorcerer Birk Butterfly Other velomobiles: Berkut Cyclodyne Car-cycle	Cab-Bike with Annie the Jack Russell terrier. This was at the end of a 100-mile ride on September 11, 2004.	New velomobile projects: Reg Rodaro of Niagara on the Lake, Ontario: Stormy Weather Velomobile Steve Schleicher near Vancouver, B.C: Aurora Velomobile and Jon Nygren's 2-wheel "Streetliner" in Minnesota. Photos above mostly link to gallery pages with further photos (when we have them).

Velomobiles are human-powered (sometimes with electric or other assist) small, enclosed or semi-enclosed vehicles. The number of wheels is usually 3, though sometimes 2 or 4. They have a long history, having been produced in France between the World Wars and elsewhere during times of shortages. Sweden's post-war HPV production was especially varied and robust. The US came up with a couple of unsuccessful models during the oil crisis of the 1970's. The guy above in the black hat is Michael Gruetzner, a transportation historian whose website shows a number of "Velocars." The modern history of the velomobile begins around 1980 in Denmark and the Netherlands, where two different designs were developed. The Danish Leitra is still produced. The Alleweder has been through several different manufacturers and versions and persists not only in variations under the name Alleweder (produced in the Netherlands, Germany, and Texas) but also in several offspring among the other modern velomobiles. In addition to the Leitra and the various Alleweders, there is the Belgian WAW, the Dutch Quest, Mango, and Versatile, the German Cab-Bike, go-one, and Leiba, the Swiss Birkenstock Butterfly, and the Australian Tri-Sled Sorcerer. North America has produced the Cyclodyne and the Car-Cycle, and there are velomobiles being made in Canada by Reg Rodaro ("Stormy Weather"). Steve Schleicher ("Aurora") is well along in development of a "delta" (one wheel in front and two in back) velomobile in British Columbia. The Berkut velomobile was made in Russia and can still be obtained on special order. The Limit/C-Alleweder was built in the Netherlands. European 2-wheel prototypes included the Aeolos and the Desira. There are some 2-wheel projects going on in North America as well, and of course the fastest Human-Powered Vehicles are a sort of 2-wheeled velomobile (White Hawk, Varna, and faired Gold Rush among others). See 2-wheelers. Many people have added fairings to bicycles and tricycles to make them more weather-resistant.

How can you keep track of all these different models? Start with the photos and links above. Try the other articles in the "Content" section or go to the links page for more information.

Although they are still rare, velomobiles can now be seen in crowds at times. Rallies in Europe have exceeded 60 participants. An autumn meeting in Giessen, Germany attracts over 40 now, and a ride between Christmas and New Year's in the Netherlands approaches 80. Check the Events listings on the Home Page for dates and locations of velomobile events in the US, Europe, and elsewhere.

The photos above were taken at the SPEZI bike show in Germany in 2004 and 2005, in Dronten, Netherlands in the spring of 2005, at the Sixth International Velomobile Meeting in Giessen, Germany in 2005, and near my home in Minneapolis. All photos on this site are by Mary Arneson or Dale Hammerschmidt (or taken with our camera by friends or passers-by) unless otherwise noted. If you want to use a copy of a photo in a web article or a school report, please include a credit line and/or a link to our site. For commercial use, please contact us.

For more information on velomobiles try Ethan Davis' site at www.velomobiles.net
In French, there's a velomobile site at www.velomobile.net
In German, with translations to other languages, you can go to www.velomobile.de
In Dutch, www.velomobiel.nl is a commercial site with a lot of useful information.
In Swedish, try www.velomobil.se, for information about velomobiles and velomobilists in Sweden.