Rare , unique, and elegant. The only bike for those with back trouble. The most comfortable bike you’ll
ever ride. the most beautiful bicycle you have ever seen
Cheltenham
Pedersen Manufacturer:
Hand made by Individual Bicycles
Ltd. of Victoria Street, Cheltenham in 1986,
(30 miles from the original
Pedersen factory). 1 of only 180 they ever produced:
frame number: 30 12 85 (production number 30 of 180,
December 1985). This unique Bicycle ,number 30,
was assembled in Santa Monica California, returned to the UK;
Used , but virtually unused for
30 years.
Cheltenham
Pedersen: A rare and special machine,
beloved by all who know a Pedersen:
The idea was comfort,
eliminating back, neck and wrist strain, allowing one to ride in a more
natural, upright position.
According to the Cheltenham
Pedersen brochure they updated this design to offer even more comfort and claim
it's the only bike for those with back trouble.
“The ride? Utterly Effortless!
Sit down on the seat, you're in position to naturally push down with your legs
and away you roll. It is amazing how easy these bikes are to ride and how
comfortable they are! The bike, at rest, looks ungainly with the front up so
high, but when you sit down on the seat it all seems perfectly natural and
comfortable”.
Background
of the Cheltenham Pedersen:
The first
Cheltenham Pedersen’s were in fact Copenhagen frames imported from Jesper
Solling’s workshop in 1981.
Later Chris
Margenout’s individual Bicycles Company built their own frames from superior
Reynolds 531 tubing – but ceased production in late 1986.
Cheltenham, UK , is
only about 30 miles from Dursley, where the originals were made a century ago.
Made with Reynolds
531, a superior build quality to Copenhagen Pedersens ( and rarer).
exceptionally high quality
and labour intensive to build. 14 thin tubes , hand brazed
in 57 places forming 21 triangles which provided exceptional support to the
unique hammock saddle around which the frame is designed.
History
of this Cheltenham Pedersen:
I had originally purchased a Cheltenham
Pedersen from the manufactures, at a trade show in 1986, It must have been
their first outing to the USA,( perhaps their only)..
During a servicing ,my big yellow giraffe of a bike was stolen from
the bike shop that had assembled the bikes Chris Margenout had brought out from
the UK. They gave me as compensation the medium sized bike here on offer. This
bike had been given to them by Chris Margenout as payment for assembling the
bikes, and they now gave it to me as compensation for my stolen bike. As big as it looks, it is too
small for me to ride, and I have had it in storage for 20 years. The bike has
really never been used to speak of. It is a medium size, suited to a
medium build individual.
It is totally original, other
than having replaced the original Stumey Archer shift levers, with new Stumey
Archer shift levers, and tires, tubes and shift cables.
SPECIFICATIONS: Frame Size: Medium , for a inside leg of 26-31in , 71-79cm with a seat suspension adjustment of 5"
Cables: New Handlebars: Original Tool Bag: leather attached below
seat: Original
The height of this machine is : Crank to head : 77cm Crank to seat: 64cm Rear wheel hub to head: 95cm Floor to head: 105cm
Essentially the small and medium
frames accomodate the same range of heights. Through seat adjustments the
small frame extends to medium dimensions - medium to large
Praise
for the CHELTENHAM PEDERSEN
This bicycle engenders passion,
hence there is a lot of praise on the web, Well put by Cotswold
Curiosities:
Highly recommend this site: http://www.pedersenbicycles.com/form.htm
The Pedersen may be the most
beautiful bicycle you have ever seen. With clean lines, an elegant shape, and a
structure that appears delicate and sophisticated, the Pedersen is another wonderful
example of scandinavian design. The Pedersen frame is perhaps
the machine's most striking feature. Pairs of structural tubes come together to
form a truss which provides the anchor points for the hammock saddle. Patented
in 1894 by Mikael Pedersen, the design is as daring and futuristic today as it
was more than 100 years ago. The simple straight lines of the
truss structure are perfectly balanced by the graceful curves of the Royal
handlebars. The result is a bicycle like no other. At once unique and exotic,
simple yet compelling, the Pedersen can easily draw a crowd. Most observers will question the
age, and some will guess that it is european in origin. Everyone will want to
know more...
The design priciples can be
clearly seen in truss construction, where a rigid, load-bearing structure is
desired. Pedersen's hammock saddle design required anchor points both front and
rear, and the truss frame was a natural choice. The hammock is suspended from
the frame and the loads on the structure are properly met and distributed. The
forces on the frame members are resolved into either tension or compression,
and bending forces are virtually eliminated. Pavement as we know it today did
not yet exist, and the Pedersen bicycle provided a comfortable ride over the
roads and paths of the late 1890's.
http://www.pedersenbicycles.com/ergonomics.htm
The Pedersen Bicycle offers a
unique driving experience. The upright position is very comfortable and the
hammock saddle provides a very soft ride. The typical stress on the arms and
hands are virtually eliminated. First-time riders are usually surprised at the
upright position and sometimes need to be reminded that there is no need to
hunch over the handlebars. Instead of trying to make your
existing bike more comfortable, why not start with a comfortable bike?
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