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Designer Ben Wilson has produced a monowheel – a cycle where the rider sits inside a large, spokeless wheel.
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The cycle was commissioned for the XXIst Century Man exhibition at 21_21 Design Sight in Tokyo.
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“As part of the exhibition the 21st century man (showing at 21-21 tokyo midtown until july) I was comissioned to create a new piece of work,” says Wilson.
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“Ever since cycling for the first time without stablisers I have been fascinated by human propulsion. Over the years the myth of the monowheel has become an equal fascination.”
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“Since the 1860’s many patents have been filed in the monowheel’’s name and today there are even rumors of a production monowheel in China, but as it stands there is nothing currently available. As we couldn’t buy a monowheel we made one.”
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“We don’’t suggest for one moment that a functioning human powered monowheel could ever provide an improvement on the modern bicycle. Instead its value comes from the discourse and ideas generated as a result of this research.”