The Quest Velomobile
John Williams recently bought a Quest Velomobile from the land of the Velomobile, Holland. Since John lives in the the central Willamette Valley of Oregon, this involved a little bit of transcontinental negotiating and some airfreight:
This shows it neatly wrapped and packed in the back of the truck leaving the factory. After a long flight to Seattle and then a trip down Interstate 5 to its new home, it got unwrapped:
From the nose, from the tail, and a low quarter shot:
Here's John's (terse) first impressions:
Here's three pics of my new Quest velomobile...only one outside Europe. Went on a short ride with Robert Johnson (on a nice Bike Friday!) Learning how to ride and control the trike. It seems pretty fast as well as comfortable.
Basic observations after riding the Quest the past two days...total of 35
miles.
Observations:
1. I am impressed with the overall quality and engineering of the Quest though
I'm no engineer.
2. Once I adjusted the bb to my length, I feel like I'm settling into it. It's
now beginning to feel like a good pair of comfortable shoes.
3 I'm pleased with the steering setup. It turns tighter than I had anticipated
turning well even on tighter bicycle paths in our area.
4. The speed is rather addictive. Coming off what I judged to be a 1% downslope,
I spun out the gearing (for me around 100rpm or so) and showed an indicated 43
mph. The speed carried well down the road where I was still maintaining an
indicated 40mph nearly 2/3 mile down the road and on what appeared to be a flat
slope. It is zippy though it takes a while to wind it out.
5. The suspension really does make a difference. Very noticeable. If it does
"pogo" in the rear while climbing I can't detect it. Brakes are smooth
and seem more than adequate.
6. I was impressed by all the thought and details that went into the design from
the parking brake to the bell to the drivetrain covers.
7. The fit and finish is excellent. Comparable to a nice fiberglass boat.
All for now.