This basically consists of a backpack that contains a parachute and a rocket motor with connections to impact detectors on the users' bicycle.
Basically used to minimise the effects of car-dooring by unobservant motorists. Upon the front wheel impacting the car door or similar obstruction, the rocket motor fires, shooting the cyclist to a safe height to deploy the parachute. Nomex cycle shorts will be mandatory. The overpass detector is an optional extra.-- oneoffdave, Dec 18 2002 Barrett M82A1 http://www.barrettr...om/rifles_82A1.html18 Dec 02 | The 'hand of God" [UB] refers to. [bristolz, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 21 2004] like this http://www.halfbake..._20with_20Parachute [rbl, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] Also handy if you're plummeting off the edge of the Grand Canyon. Oooh, I see a new sport...-- RayfordSteele, Dec 18 2002 No, make 'em suffer. If they don't use lights, they deserve all they get.-- angel, Dec 18 2002 Applying undue levels of practicality to this idea:
It seems unlikely to me that a rocket could fire and remove the cyclist from the bike quickly enough to prevent the cyclist from impacting the now drastically decelerated bike and said car door. (But, I'm no rocket scientist)
Assuming that part would work, I hope there's a foolproof way to make sure that the rocket knows which way is up.-- half, Dec 18 2002 Really. You would want to make sure that the nacelles were facing downward when they fired, otherwise you're just throwing the hapless cyclist very rapidly in a horizontal direction. Especially not good ifthe nacelles tilt backward as the cyclist is pitched forward...-- Pharaoh Mobius, Dec 18 2002 // throwing the hapless cyclist very rapidly in a horizontal direction //
And the problem is .... ?
I will pay a dollar to watch [oneoffdave] test this. Anyone else coming ?-- 8th of 7, Dec 18 2002 [half] by having it as a backpack the rocket should be pointing down most of the time. There may be a problem that if you are head down in the position adopted by time trialists, the rocket will shoot you into the car door even faster.
Assuming military ejector seat like reaction times, it should just whisk the cyclist out of the way in time.
Of course the rapid acceleration will cause its own set of problems/injuries.-- oneoffdave, Dec 18 2002 [Nick] This should be prevented by the optional ultrasound overpass/tree/streetlight detector.
Other optional extras include the g-suit to avoid blacking out due to acceleration and the power pack to enable you to pedal carrying the extra weight.-- oneoffdave, Dec 18 2002 A parachute takes 800ft to open at terminal velocity, landing a parachute on a street is suicide. But like RayfordSteele said, new sport, definitly.-- swimr, Jun 20 2004 random, halfbakery