Chris Boardman unveils "Bike of the Future"
Concept product cobbles together existing tech
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12 August 2009 12:14 GMT / By Duncan Geere
Olympic cyclist Chris Boardman has shown off what he reckons we'll all be riding in twenty years time. The concept bicycle combines a number of existing technologies into a bike that counts calories, plays music, and has an "unbreakable" locking device.
Computers are built into the handlebars which track each turn of the pedal to work our exactly how much energy you're burning, and the tyres are puncture-proof self-inflating models that won't be foiled by a pesky chunk of broken glass on the road.
Solar panels mounted on the frame will charge a battery that powers a motor to take over if cyclists get tired, and a fingerprint recognition system should mean that only the owner is able to operate it. The frame is made of carbon fibre.
Chris Boardman told the Daily Mail: "It could be built now if there was a will. All the technologies are already there, it's just that nobody's put them all together before".
However, some are more skeptical. Tom Bogdanowicz from the London Cycling Campaign said that: "some of the ideas behind this bike are clearly things cyclists want. But it really needs to be affordable". Boardman admitted that the bike wouldn't be "financially fasible" for at least twenty years.
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