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I don't know if this is the right section to put this in but I am trying to help a mate who is a bare foot runner. He wants to make a rickshaw that he can pull behind him. Just wondering if anyone has plans to build one at all. Many thanks in advance if anyone can help.
Cheers
Darren
No plans, but have a look at the following sites for possible inspiration -
MONOWALKER
Chariot Carriers: Bike Trailers, Jogging Strollers and more, for bicycle riders and joggers
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Graeme
I talked a length to a man who ran one for a living and built his own. The most important, and difficult parts of building one are
1. Balance. If the balance fore and aft is off it will make the rickshaw hard to use and manuever. It to span(handles) heavy the driver will tire easily and can injure themselves lifting to start once loaded. If to seat(rear, some have cargo areas aft of or under the seating) the rickshaw will be light at the span. This makes the driver have to hold down on the span and also makes the rickshaw too easy to steer and hard to stop.
2. The span has to be the right width for the driver, each varies, it should be a width that keeps the drivers arms just slightly out from verticle. This helps prevent tiring, makes the load seem under the driver and not to the sides, and allows the driver some lean to steer in difficult areas by being able to lean into the direction of desired travel. The length of the span fore and aft should be constructed longer than desired so the driver can move fore or aft to partially compensate for varying load distribution.
3. The rickshaw should have as large a diameter wheel as possible to make the rickshaw roll easily over bumps and objects. Balloon tires are best used in place of suspension as this option cause deflection in the drivers control when hitting bumps, and passenger movement.
There is a lot more to it than I ever thought. So there you go. I have seen some really nasty ones, as well as some beautiful ones so well made it was a shame they ever were used. They all however took these constants in their design. I know this is an old post and hopefully your project came out great. I do hop it serves someone else in building theirs.