Bikers roll into Manchester for weekend event
By JUSTIN PENLAND
Monday, August 18, 2008 8:38 AM EDT
NORTH MANCHESTER - What started as an idea five years ago turned into an annual event for local resident Jeff Hunn.
Over the weekend, Hunn hosted the fifth annual Northern Indiana Human-Powered Race America race. Competitors come from around the Midwest, including Ohio, Iowa and Ontario, Canada.
The event was different in the sense of the types of vehicles in the races. Most of the racers rode recumbent bikes, which are bikes where the riders are almost laying down.
“I first got interested in recumbent bikes when I saw one and thought they were really neat,” Hunn said.
Hunn became more interested in 1991 when he and his wife, Jane, took a cross-country bike trip.
“The more and more we would get sore riding a bike sitting on that little seat and it just appealed to me from the comfort aspect,” Hunn said.
“When you first get on a recumbent, it's like ‘wow this doesn't hurt, it can be fun again' it's almost like you rediscovered the joy of bicycling.”
Hunn talked to a few bike dealers about their recumbents and found builders. They kept talking to people and eventually found out about the recumbent races and started attending them, even though Hunn doesn't consider himself very a very competitive racer.
“I just do it for fun,” Hunn said. “Once I heard there was an open month in the schedule, I thought I would try to get it here.”
Hunn says that the hardest part of putting together an event like this is organization. He first held the races in Warsaw, then four years ago moved it to Manchester.
“Part of it is just showing how nice of a little town we are,” Hunn said.
Hunn was in talks with Manchester High School about funding the event in the parking lot.
“I enjoy putting on this event, it just helps get people together,” Hunn said.
Hunn said that because the recumbent bikes are still a niche market, the hobby is not a cheap one. A recumbent bike will cost anywhere between $1,500 to $2,000, adding a brand new one is approximately double that.
Hunn rides his recumbent to work every day, about a one-mile commute, as long as the weather is nice.
“Some people have concerns, especially for the lower ones, about not being seen. I just have a flag I put on the back of my bike when I ride up town,” Hunn said.
“I just want people to know that there is an alternative to regular bikes. A lot of people have sore backs, sore shoulders, I just want to show them there's another way.”
Hunn plans on keeping the annual event going, as long as people keep coming out to race and watch.
A European sensation
Also present at the races was a Velomobile, a three-wheeled recumbent trike with a body shell for weather protection and addition speed. The trike is
Garrie Hill of Granville, Ohio, had his Velomobile in the Superstock, Superstreet and Streamliner race.
According to Hill, most of the Velomobiles are European made and are very expensive to import.
“It's a very cost-effective situation, but it's a one-time price,” Hill said. “You're not paying fuel costs, you're not paying insurance costs, you're not paying licensing costs.”
Hill said that one reason why the idea hasn't hit the U.S. hard is because of how spread out the area is.
“I talk to a guy from the Netherlands and he says how he wants to fly into Chicago and take a trip down to Disney World, they have a different comprehension of distance,” Hill said.
Hill noted that the Velomobile is something that is good for short-distance travel, usually no more than 30 miles one-way. He said that it is also a great way to get in shape, as you are the one moving the car by pedaling.
Hill said that during the winter, your body will generate enough heat to keep you warm with the top latched. He noted even with the hatch off during the summer, with the confined space it gets a little warm.
Hill also joked about what you must do to put it in reverse.
“You have to do the Flintstones thing and push it backwards with your feet,” Hill said jokingly.
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