Lightfoot Cycles - an exhibitor on Cyclorama, the online guide to outstanding and specialised cycles

The extremely simple, sturdy and capable PET hand-trike was designed by Earl Miner to meet the needs of victims of land-mine explosions. It was redesigned by Rod Miner, a design which stood for its first six years of manufacture at Lightfoot Cycles. The PET has substantial cargo capacity for hauling a child, tools or market goods. It moves at walking speed, and has good off-pavement traction and handling. The PET is now built in 10 locations worldwide by a network of volunteer manufacturers, groups and individuals. The steadily-growing PET Project International has the goal of providing mobility for the millions of crippled land-mine and disease survivors in rural areas of war-torn developing nations. The 15,000th PET was produced in 2009.

Exhibitor Profile: Lightfoot Cycles

Rod Miner built his first recumbent bike in 1983, a long wheelbase model that eventually evolved into the first Lightfoot. Having broken a bone in his neck in college gymnastics, Rod found relief from the pain and headaches that often plagued him when commuting and touring on his upright bikes, and discovered that the new bike was both safer and much more comfortable for him than his other bikes. Thousands of enjoyable miles were ridden on this bike before it was displaced by the first Lightfoot Explorer. This bike, though looking pretty crude by comparison with our present models, was still in service when last seen with its new owner in 2008, a quarter century after it was created.

At Lightfoot Cycles, our aim is not just to create safe and comfortable bicycles, but to create the most useful, efficient and capable human-powered vehicles (HPV's) possible. If you want to use our multifunctional bicycles and tricycles simply for recreation and exercise, they will serve beautifully. If you want to use them as daily-use commuting or working vehicles, we have designed with you in mind. If you want to tour cross country, several of our models are appropriate. And if you need adaptations for special needs, we have designed these in as well.

We specialize in recumbent bikes and recumbent trikes, and offer cargo conversions for recumbent bikes and common upright bikes. Bikes and trikes that provide a recumbent body position lend themselves to adaptation for special physical requirements, and are uniquely suited for the creation of all-weather, streamlined and highly efficient "velomobile" designs.

Our offerings include recumbent two-seat cycles, variously known as quadracycles, sociable tandems or recumbent tandems. We have a trailer tandem that can be towed behind any bike creating a two-part or modular tandem bicycle. We build a Big and Tall trike; the Magnum. We build utility cycles, cargo tricycles, delivery bikes, work trikes and industrial trikes of various forms in both recumbent and upright versions. The largest versions are essentially pedal trucks or peditrucks, which can be converted to serve as pedicabs or rickshaws. We build several versions of hand-cranked trikes, including a new two wheel-drive handcycle.

Almost all of our human-powered vehicles are designed to accept optional power assist, if desired. Our power-assisted tricycles are available with either an electric motor or a gas engine.

An investment in a Lightfoot is a long-term investment. These are not cheap, disposable bikes. Our prices are handcrafted-in-America-at-small-scale prices; they represent our very large ongoing investment in research and innovation, and are necessary to keep Lightfoot in business, producing cycles, covering our warranties, and serving our customers over the long haul. Our cycle frames are warranted for a lifetime.

We work for the best possible resource efficiency in manufacture, we use renewable energy sources, and we make our products of recyclable materials as much as possible.

Lightfoot designs are by Rodney Miner. TRAG and PET designs are by Earl Miner.

We are located in Darby, Montana, USA.

Visit this exhibitor's website: http://www.lightfootcycles.com