A cabinetmaker and cyclist combined his passions and made a wooden bike. Alonso González Coto will use his creation to compete in a mountain biking competition known as Trans Costa Rica.
He’s been making cabinets since he was 13 and has been cycling for over a decade. The last five years he searched for an ideal prototype, considering weight and resistance, to build his wooden bicycle frame. He designed one for road cycling and used a design by Philippe Karolicky for a mountain bike.
He’s tested the type of glue to use and the chemical process to cure the wood and make it ten times more resistant. The wooden frame contains pine, guanacaste and cedar wood. It has 80 pieces and is put together with wooden pegs.
While a carbon fiber or aluminum frame weighs less than a wooden one, the wood resists more and absorbs four times more vibrations. It also lasts about 10 years while the others last just 5. The wooden frame is advantageous in streets of poor condition because it absorbs vibrations better. Additionally, it’s rigidity allows for pedaling the descents more safely.
