Two longtime friends have created the Land Zeppelin, a blimp-shaped, all-weather bike fairing.
Currently only in its infancy, the project from entrepreneurs Jim Gorman and Mark Keillor is a lightweight enclosure made of prestressed fiberglass, vinyl, plastic, and some metal. By offering grants to deserving riders, the Land Zeppelin creators hope for a social benefit from their product, making commuting more pleasant in a greater variety of conditions and helping those that need their bikes to get to/from work. We think it’d be fun for things like Tour de Fat and World Naked Bike Rides.
They claim a lower aerodynamic drag while riding and protection from precipitation and insects. While fairings are not new -something the Land Zeppelin folks readily acknowledge- they hope that their design gets more people over the perceived burdens of cycling and out on their bikes (within a zeppelin-shaped pod). More info at www.landzeppelin.com.
