I’ll repost Biomega’s breathlessly enthüsiastic press release here for your education and enjoyment, but first the quick highlights on these chainless bikes: Laminated carbon fiber monocoque make up the frame of the LDN, which has a shaft drive, and reminds me of Trek’s 90s era “Y Frame” mountain bikes. The NYC has a more traditional aluminum diamond frame, with a flared out downtube to function as an integrated front fender / mudguard on this belt drive bike. No other product specs are available in the press material, but both bikes appear to have hub gears and disc brakes.
BIOMEGA INTRODUCES TWO NEW ÜBER-DESIGN BICYCLES FOR URBAN LOCOMOTION.
Biomega renews its curatorial commitment to cherry picking the world’s top designers to design its bicycles. Ross Lovegrove displays his organic essentialist sensibility through his fresh vision of an integrated bicycle. His integrated solutions and groundbreaking design makes the LDN bicycle a true urban tool. While Danish design super group KiBiSi stirs things up with an innovative newcomer NYC, following Biomega’s heritage of chainless bikes featuring a belt drive for smooth urban commuting and an integrated mudguard.
Biomega once again combines groundbreaking design with strong urban references and technical features to accommodate modern city lifestyle. The result is two striking city bikes for effective commuting in style, bringing the feel of something unique while moving through the cityscape.
The LDN bike, designed by organic essentialist Ross Lovegrove, and the NYC, designed by Danish design group KiBiSi, both follow the Biomega philosophy of “furniture for urban locomotion”. Classic and honest in their style and function, they meet the specific needs of city dwellers.
LDN: “A TRUE URBAN TOOL”
The LDN amazes with its stunning design by London based Ross Lovegrove. Its frame is made from carbon fiber sheets formed and layered to make a stiff and lightweight one-piece monocoque structure. LDN’s form is derived from a wishbone, linking all the necessary components of the drive steering and drives systems in the most direct and economical way possible. The hole is there to lighten the bike’s mass and to provide a detail from which to hang the bicycle on the wall, thereby saving space in restricted urban interiors. All moving parts of the bicycle are state-of-the-art selections designed to make LDN a true urban tool.
NYC: “THE POTENTIAL OF A CLASSIC”
The NYC takes its cue from the iconic Biomega bicycle CPH, reinvigorating Biomega’s status as a pioneer of chainless bikes – this time with a smooth, quiet carbon fiber belt drive. The NYC’s sleek and no-nonsense look integrates a front mudguard in the aluminum down tube complimenting its aggressive, yet reliable urban driving properties. The NYC is designed by the three creative forces of Danish design group, KiBiSi, with the ambition to create an honest means of transport with the potential of a classic. Biomega dedicates this ultimate bicycle to the ultimate city – NYC.
The LDN bicycle will be displayed at the SHOWHOW design exhibition in Tent London on September 23rd to 26th 2010, while both LDN and NYC will be presented at the Eurobike and Interbike shows in September 2010. Learn more about Biomega at www.biomega.com.
Well good, now we can reblog your post instead of responding to that press release.
The LDN looks like it is just going to catch something with that big scoop/drivetrain. I know it won't but try telling my brain that!
The NYC is a pretty nice looking ride. Clean and efficient too. Not sure how white paint would hold up in the city though. More bikes is more better!
That press release is a little over the top, isn't it?
I'd be interested in knowing the specs on their bikes. Biomega typically uses lower quality components on their bikes.
I've had 2 Biomega bikes (the Copenhagen). The first was spectacular, using top-shelf components and was built and finished beautifully. It was stolen and when I replaced it with an identical, though two-years-newer model, I got a Chinese-built version with downgraded brakes and shifters, off-the-shelf reflectors and shoddy construction all around. Even the paint had gone from a gorgeous pale yellow-green to a dull beige.
I was so disappointed in the newer version that I wrote Biomega to ask why they'd downgraded the bike so heavily. The rather rude response from customer service was that they are constantly revising their designs to meet the changing needs of their customers…apparently their customers were clamoring for crappier bikes?
The low quality of some of their bikes has been pretty shocking to me as well.