Wingman : the MTB Hitch

The idea came from a wish to reach and explore local off-road trails without having to pedal the distance, as also to avoid using a car when just going out solo.

Of the handful of ways that one can carry a bicycle on/with a two-wheeler, some need removal of one or both wheels from the bike, others need ungainly frames and straps occupying part of the vehicle’s seat. I wished for a clever solution around these inconveniences - with minimum modification to the vehicle or bicycle, something easily removable and versatile to some extent.

Initial ideas around a trailer to hold the bike soon converged into the bike itself becoming the trailer - its front wheel held up by the vehicle and the rear trailing on the road surface. The first prototype carrier was fabricated as a one-piece attachment simply to check functionality and safety. With those checkpoints crossed, the design evolved to accommodate different wheel sizes, and a feature for quick removal that would leave a small ‘adapter’ part mounted to the vehicle only.

This adapter is one part of Wingman that requires custom fabrication and is made to order, to fit different makes and models of two-wheelers in the market. I have been using my Wingman for a few years now and it has held up very well on short as well as long shuttles. It does an even better job at grabbing attention on the road from onlookers! Wingman has found its way onto the scooters of a few like-minded cyclist friends as well.

Bottle Brush Lamp

If you want to know the story, then it has to start in Crawford Crowded Market. I stumbled upon this old man who sat in the corner of a very noisy street, hardly visible behind this whole bunch of bottle brushes! I asked him if he would sell half his stock, and his eyes lit up. The colors were vibrant and had me excited with ideas. Skirt? well, quite impractical and I don't walk the ramps! And so it was a lamp shade.

I think, it was hardly 'designed' because I dived right into hands-on experiments. The skeleton to hold the brushes was custom-made at a fabricator's workshop. The construction is robust and long-lasting with the brushes held together on a ring that can be removed for cleaning.

The lamp casts beautiful shadows and throws filtered light through the colored bristles.

It adorned our home and became home to many creatures for years! The original pictures were lost to some old hard drives and here we are left with some posters.