Pedal-Powered "Chore Bike"

Pedal-Powered "Chore Bike" FARM HOME recreation 31-4-18 Keith Ferdon, Motley, Minn., merged a garden cart with a mountain bike to build a 3-wheeled, pedal-powered "chore bike" that he uses on his farm. "It comes in handy for hauling loads around our yard. My daughter and her cousins also enjoy getting rides in it," says Keith. "The idea is based on some bikes that I saw in Europe while in the military." The chore bike rides on the cart's two 28-in. wheels on front and on the bike's rear 26-in. wheel. It steers on a homemade pivot point that's located just ahead of the front axle. He started with an old adult-size mountain bike that he already had and bought a kit to build a garden cart. He cut off the bike's frame just ahead of the seat post and threw away the handlebars and front wheel. He used the bike's front fork assembly and a pipe to form the pivot point. He cut the front forks down flat, placed them upside down, and welded them to a steel plate that's bolted to the bottom of the cart. A pipe goes down from the center of the bike's steering column and between the forks. The garden cart's axle is welded to a metal frame that's bolted onto the rear part of the bike's frame. The garden cart was originally designed with a metal handle that came straight out from the bottom side of the cart. The open end of the cart faced the operator. He turned the cart backward so the open end is now in front, and he relocated the handle, bolting it on back of the cart and bending the handle at a 45 degree angle toward the operator. "It works great for carrying bulky items and anything else that's hard to haul such as insulation, garbage cans, etc.," says Ferdon. "I've even used it to haul up to 200 lbs. of firewood. I made another chore bike for my daughter out of a little kid's bike, and she really enjoys riding it. It was my prototype to see if the idea would work. "The bike's shifter was broke so I left it in the lowest gear. It pedals fairly easily and I can go up hills if they're not too steep, even with a load," notes Ferdon. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Keith Ferdon, 13134 57th Ave., Motley, Minn. 56466 (ph 218 746-4485; keith.ferdon@us.army.mil).

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