T.C. Hazzard - Mango M032
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Mango M032 has made its way back to New England. I have been informed that Ray Mickevicius, BlueVelo, sold Mango M032 to Kelly Slough who resides in Pioneer Valley, Massachusetts, known by some as the "Happy Valley". Hopefully Kelly will put up a web site. If so, I will provide a link from this page.
If you are looking for information on the Quest velomobile I replaced the Mango with, then please update your bookmarks to www.hazbro.com/velomobile/.
Above is a picture of my Mango. The Mango is a velomobile made by Velomobiel.nl, De Vliet 6, 8253 PB Dronten, The Netherlands, tel 321-332717. For more information about velomobiles in general, cruise over to the North American Velomobilist and Mary Arneson's Velomobiling web sites. In addition, there are two North American-based velomobile products underway. The first, VelomobileUSA, LLC, is a Texas-based company which is actively selling the Alligt and Flevobike Alleweder in ready-to-ride and kit form. The second is a new design velomobile being developed by Rainforest Designs Ltd of British Columbia, Canada. Updates on this new velomobile are added frequently to the site, so check back often. I applaud both of these efforts and hope they help spur the growth of velomobile use in North America.
My Mango, M032, was the first Mango imported into the US. The options added at the time of purchase included a 24-speed SRAM Dual Drive, directional signals, rear view mirror, and 155 mm cranks.
The Mango typically comes with an 8-speed cassette (12-30) and a 46t ring. I opted to add a SRAM Dual Drive due to the hills along my commuting route and my intention to use this velomobile for longer trips from time to time. The SRAM Dual Drive uses a 3-speed hub in conjunction with an 8-speed SRAM cassette (11-32), providing for a 24-speed gear ratio of 524%. At approximately 2,000 miles/3,226 km, swapped out the 46t ring for Rotor Cranks RS03 with a triple ring (46t-39t-30t) to further increase my potential gear range (the range is now 17 to 141.5 in gear inches). At 2,400 miles/3,871 km I upgraded the rear derailleur from the Shimano Deore to the Shimano Ultegra. You can read more about this upgrade in my BLOG.
For more information on gear ratios calculations check out the gearing spreadsheet. This spreadsheet is set up with the specifics of the Mango drivetrain and various front ring combinations. I do not know the original authors, but the above file was passed onto me by Johannes Groesbrink of NorthEast Recumbents.
The folks at Velomobiel.nl, namely Ymte Sijbrandij, were very easy to work with. Ymte was very prompt and thorough in his responses to all my questions. Currently you need to make payment via wire transfer or via certified check. Paypal may be an option in the future.
The crate used to ship the Mango in was roughly 330 pounds and its dimensions (which are more important for obtaining a shipping quote via boat) are 8.2 ft. long x 2.6 ft. wide x 3.3 ft. high. Emery Worldwide, the shipper I used, recommended that the crate be secured to a skid via strapping. The crate should be strong enough to withstand stacking and should be clearly marked as "Fragile" and indicate that the crate should only be lifted from the skid (two VMs shipped to the US have been damaged by fork lifts due to improper marking/handling). The shipper's address and your address should be clearly marked on the outside of the crate (see the pictures below for an idea of what the crate should look like).
A couple of additional recommendations when arranging for shipping of your velomobile. Other's who have imported velomobiles from Europe have stressed that your invoice needs to be written in English. This simplifies the process of passing through US Customs. Also, make sure that you use the correct harmonized tariff. It should be HTS# 8712.00.5000, otherwise known as "Other Cycles" The duty rate for this category is 3.7%. Other types of bicycles carry a higher duty rate.
Just go HERE to read about my adventures with the Mango.
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| 2002 Burley Rumba |
1999 Trek 6500 I have two of these |
Burley d'lite trailer |
An article about my use of the Mango for year round bike commuting, which appeared in the Portland Press Herald March 15, 2005.
My letter to the editor describing why I choose to commute to work by bicycle.
Information about an effort to develop trails which connect Maine communities, known as Trails for a Healthy Maine Coalition.
International Human Powered Vehicle Association - Looking for information on HPV's, then here is your place
Bike Forums - Great message board for bike related issues
BentRiders Online - Magazine and online resource for recumbent riders
