Kevin Hornibrook once devoted his life to professional bicycle racing. But today the bicycle mechanic and artist cruises the streets of Logan on some slower and definitely different wheels.
His new riding contraption is made of two-by-fours and in addition to transportation, it serves as a prototype for a more refined wooden bicycle Hornibrook has spent the past four years building."Response to the bike has been incredible, in fact, maybe even a little bit annoying," Hornibrook said of the prototype. "People are just amazed that it is working and holding up, especially when you're flying by at a pretty good clip."
Hornibrook was inspired to build a wooden bicycle a few years ago while rooming with an artist in Milwaukee, Wis. They built the prototype out of $10 worth of boards and the idea grew from there.
The artist, Rick Beda, has built a number of the bikes. He placed one in an art gallery in Chicago - where it was stolen, another in a cyclery shop in Illinois and another in a museum in Racine, Wis.
Meanwhile, Hornibrook is nearing completion of his first effort made of 7-ply, recycled, walnut-faced plywood, which came from the inside of a house.
The bike weighs approximately 8 pounds, has a cross-frame design and is constructed using normal cabinetmaking tools. The ride is "more supple than a normal bike and it flexes when you ride on it. It's definitely not something you can stand up and `hammer' on," the cyclist said.
He explained the geometry of a bike can be artistically limiting, if you want to use it for riding. "If you don't do everything right, you're going to end up with a bike with a pretty funny ride," he said.
Hornibrook plans on building one more bike before he moves on to some other artistic endeavor. The next version, however, will be made out of better material and possibly designed to be used in a road race or as a performance art piece.
Although the vehicle is unique, Hornibrook doesn't claim to be the first or only maker of wooden bicycles. He said wooden bicycles were built in the 1800s, and he may be just getting in on the first stages of a widespread comeback.
"Maybe after I start riding this new one around, there will be tons of people building wooden bikes in Logan. They'll be saying, `Hey, I made this thing in four hours. That kid's an idiot,' " laughed Hornibrook.