It seems we were just a year early. We launched KineticShift.com at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show back in January. Now for 2011, the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) seems to have technology and fitness on the brain as well. Continue reading Consumer Electronics Show Releases More Info on Sports and Fitness Tech Summit
Category: Equipment
Koko FitClub Goes to Silicon Valley
The company that revolutionized the 30 minute in-gym workout is heading to Silicon Valley, and we’ll be curious if this results in any revolutionary technological innovation from the world of fitness. Koko FitClub will be opening a new club in February 2011 in Silicon Valley. Owners Jeff and Elaine Mossner have a belief that traditional gyms don’t actually work for 84 percent of the population, so it will be interesting to see if their club will take off with the potentially unique clientele offered from the high-tech world.
As we previously reported, the Koko Smartraining System guides users through a very personalized yet high-effective workout on the club’s proprietary strength and cardio equipment. “With Koko, we aren’t going to be selling people more stuff they don’t need,” says Elaine Mossner. “An invitation to join Koko is an invitation to make your life better. I can’t wait to meet people and tell them, we have a fitness solution for you!”
Hands On: Shhh! I’m Trying to Ride Here
While at Interbike this year I had the pleasure of riding a 2010 Wazee, offered by Spot Brands from Golden, Colorado. I was interested in riding this bike not because it is a fixed gear bike, but because it is a belt drive, fixed gear bike. Spot utilized the Gates Carbon Drive System with this fixed gear bike and came up with what might be the quietest bike on the market.
I was amazed at how quiet the ride of this bike was and the positive feel of the belt drive system. There was no slop in the chain when backpedaling and after being ridden by countless people at Interbike, the belt was clean. The frame uses track geometry, which made the bike handle very quick and nimble. Continue reading Hands On: Shhh! I’m Trying to Ride Here
Building a Better Bike Helmet, From Cardboard
One of the helmets shown at the London Cycle Show is constructed from corrugated cardboard. A grid framework of cardboard is pieced together, then covered with a shell. This is the concept design of recent graduate Anirundha Surabhi who earned an industrial design degree from London’s Royal College of Art.
Dubbed Kranium, the cardboard helmet weighs less than its polystyrene contemporaries, and is able to withstand more than one impact. The cardboard ribs flex and de-flex, then the remaining amount of energy is absorbed by the crumpling nature of the corrugated cardboard ribs. The Kranium helmet was tested against the British Standards at the Imperial College, and was found to absorb 4 times the amount of impact energy when compared to regular cycling helmets.
A shell for protection covers the corrugated ribs of the helmet. The cardboard is treated with an acrylic waterproofing agent, which protects against rain or inevitable sweat. Even with the acrylic treatment, the helmet is recyclable.
Initially, the helmet will have to be custom fit with head measurement instruments Kranium plans to distribute to stores. Helmets are expected to cost roughly £80 with replacement helmets made from original measurements to be a little less. Designer Surabhi hopes to make a cheaper, mass-produced version in fixed sizes that will be available in vending machines. If a cheaper, more widely available version becomes available this will be a boon for bike rentals, municipal bike share plans, and cyclists in third world countries.
Surabhi was awarded a grant from the James Dyson Fellowship for his design, and is currently in talks for angel funding.
Via [BikeBiz]
Tired of Greasy Hands and Pant Legs?
The Gates Carbon Drive system debuted back in 2008 based on 25 years motorcycle and dragster CDS technology. The Gates Carbon Drive System was developed to offer cyclists a lighter weight, lower maintenance, quieter ride and cleaner drive system than the current chain system on the market. The no-stretch Carbon Drive belt is embedded with carbon fiber cords and requires no lubrication, but the system does require a frame designed around the CDS.
Continue reading Tired of Greasy Hands and Pant Legs?
Row, Row Indo-Row
Rowing machines have long been praised for providing an ideal workout. While many devices at gyms have come and gone, the rowing machine has long remained a staple. Rowing actually provides a really decent workout, and when done right uses 60 percent legs, 20 percent arms and 20 percent core muscles. Thus rowing can provide a really good workout.
The problem with many machines is that they don’t quite capture the same type of physical activity as actual rowing on water. Worse still the best rowing machines do the job, but then take up so much room that even health clubs are reluctant to utilize them. Some boats seem only slightly bigger. Continue reading Row, Row Indo-Row
GPS Transcends to Snow Goggles
If The Terminator ever got on a snowboard he’d likely have useful information, such as speed and temperature, right in the front of his eyes – or visual optical system or whatever it was supposed to be. The rest of us have traditionally had to look down at a device to get all that data. When roaring down a mountain looking down isn’t a good idea, so you either have to stop what you’re doing or hope for the best. But Zeal Optics will change everything beginning this Sunday, October 10, with the release of the world’s first GPS enable goggle, the Transcend GPS – which could truly transcend the way you track your activity. Continue reading GPS Transcends to Snow Goggles
Almost Like Running in Space
In space no one can hear you scream. That’s an old science fiction line of course, but it has truth to it because sound doesn’t travel in a vacuum. What can travel in a vacuum is you, as in you can still run in a vacuum. The question of course is why would you want to do so?
Well, the answer is that running results in pounding on the joints, and this repetitive pounding on knees, hips and ankles isn’t good. The irony is that running is great for the heart. So how do you keep the running and reduce the pounding? A trip to the International Space Station would work, but that would be pricey. The alternative is an anti-gravity treadmill.
That might sound like something out of Star Trek but the technology is around today. The Alter G Anti-Gravity Treadmill allows runners to essentially climb into a shoe shaped enclosure, which utilizes pressure regulation that can reduce body weight from 0 percent to 80 percent. Users still have to suit up with a special pair of shorts, and while not as cumbersome as a full space suit, these aren’t exactly your normal running attire either. Continue reading Almost Like Running in Space
SkateCycle – More Than a Hubless Skateboard
We’ve seen many attempts to converge technology together. Some, like the bicycle treadmill are just confusing, but the SkateCycle seems like real evolution and innovation. While it could be called a “hubless skateboard” that’s not quite the most accurate description for this deck – or rather deckles device. The FreeRider SkateCycle, which was conceived by Alon Karpman from Brooklyn Workshop with the help of Antonio Mezo, takes the basic skateboard concept, but ditches the hubs and trucks, and even the classic deck. Continue reading SkateCycle – More Than a Hubless Skateboard
A Mount that Fixes an iPhone to Bike
There’s a number of cycle computer-type apps for the iPhone. They track your speed, distance, map where you’ve been or plan to go, and so on. But that info is all useless if your phone is in your pocket.
A company called RAM Mount has a cradle that secures your iPhone 4 to the handlebar of any bike. The RAM EZ-On/Off handlebar mount is constructed of high-strength composite. It uses zip ties to attach, making it easy to adjust to a variety of handlebar thicknesses. Once mounted, you can adjust the angle to make the screen more visible when you’re riding.
Via [BoingBoing]
Get Into the Sling of it With aeroSling Elite
Suspension technology is catching on. It is an easy way to get a decent workout at home or on the road, and these are among the easiest pieces of equipment to take on the go. This month the latest innovation in suspension technology is arriving in the United States from Germany, and this one might be worth a bit of suspension of disbelief.
Smooth Fitness, the online retailer of home exercise equipment, is bringing the aeroSling Elite to the America. The modular, flexible band relies on a person’s bodyweight to provide the resistance while the suspension system can strengthen core muscles. This piece of equipment can be used on doors, hooks or even outdoors on trees, and it can be anchored at different heights and adjusted for varied degrees of fitness levels.
“The aeroSling represents the next generation of suspension training, with its innovative pulley system that allows for a multitude of new exercises to train every muscle group with a greater range of motion,” said William Olson, President and CEO of Smooth Fitness. “It truly is a trip to the gym in one small mesh bag, and can even be incorporated into yoga and pilates.”
The aeroSling Elite will be launched later this month by Smooth Fitness, and will be available exlusively through the website. We will try to get our hands on one and let you know if we got into the sling of things.
Will 3D Change the Way the Game is Played
There has been a lot of talk this year about 3D, and what 3D means for sports. But most of the talk has been centered around how those sitting on the couch will experience the game, not in how it is played. So far the emphasis has been in watching sports in 3D on TV, but this weekend The New York Times reported that another facet of 3D is in the works, which could make the way the athletes prepare for the game – big and small. Continue reading Will 3D Change the Way the Game is Played
aboutGolf Monitors Your Swing
For those who take their golf game seriously, and we mean seriously there is no substitute for hitting the driving range to improve your game. Well, there is the aboutGolf aG Studio, a new monitor and club tracking device that might make you want to hit the simulator rather than the range. This new, integrated device is powered by 3Trak, aboutGolf’s proprietary 3D, high-speed photography tracking technology.
It is designed for indoor use, and from the comfort of your own home (or other indoor virtual course) can provide data on ball speed, trajectory angle, distance, spin, club speed, angle of attack and horizontal path. The system is further equipped with 3Trak, so that the aG Studio “sees” like no other launch monitor. Continue reading aboutGolf Monitors Your Swing