Back at it

Ever since Trike Trek '11, I have been attempting to find fulfillment through my work by working in bike shops and in welding/fabrication-oriented companies. While these jobs have been fantastic for building my skillset and expanding my knowledge base, nothing excites me quite the way that hatching an idea and bringing it to life does.

​Something I've learned about myself recently is that I need a creative outlet in order to feel fulfilled. I want to have a lasting impact on both the cycling community and transportation sector by introducing vehicles that inspire others and get people excited about the future. With the experience I've gained over the years, I am now in a position to get that ball rolling!

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To that end, I've finally taught myself how to use modeling software, which is changing the game for me. I am now able to virtually build my ideas out, make changes and refinements on the go, and on top of all that, end up with build plans for myself before I even step foot in the garage! This is saving me huge amounts of time and money, and it's helping me ensure that the plans I release to all of you are of much greater value than they would be otherwise.

Who'da thunk it - designing the trikes BEFORE building is helpful... DUH. Unfortunately, my old self was stubbornly in the "garage hacker" mindset, so I figured I could just "feel it out" as I went. That worked okay sometimes, but wasted a lot of time, materials and money other times. Now, I just have to spend the time in the virtual world, and materials and money can stay out of the equation while I dial things in.

Preview of the actual pdf plans I'm currently writing up!

Once the build commences, I will be releasing videos to YouTube to showcase my progress. I'm also considering making more detailed and specific instructional videos that I would release to Patreon only, that would go hand-in-hand with the plans I release. The aim here would be to actually act as a mentor to any prospective builders who desire extra instruction. I personally found it invaluable to have a knowledgeable mentor when I started working at Main Street Pedicabs. He helped me improve my welding technique and showed me some tips and tricks that would have taken me years to discover on my own. I wish to provide that same kind of value to my customers and also create a community of like-minded individuals in the process so that we can all share ideas and learn from each other.

Anyways, if you have, thank you for taking the time to read my brain dump. I am SO very excited to FINALLY serve all of you who have been contacting me over the years asking for various things. I truly hope to get to all of them!

This set of plans will mark the first of many plan sets to be released. Here's my quick list of vehicles I'm interested in making after this one:

- Personal touring velomobile.
- Modified single-seat version of the Raven
- Racing velomobile (body hugging, low slung skinny tire rocket)
- Off road/cargo quad E-velomobile (pickup-truck-esque)
- Longtail cargo bike
- Cafe racer-style E-bike
- Personal delta velomobile (drift velomobile...?)
- Ultralight tube-frame chassis 2-seat electric car w/ coreflute body (one day)

On top of these plans, I'd also love to write a short paperback book on the basics of working with materials like corrugated plastic, aluminum & polycarbonate to add a fairing to almost any vehicle.

Additionally, should the interest and revenue generated from these things prove enough to sustain me, I would consider selling frame kits, fairing kits or even full vehicles.

More to come soon. Stay tuned!