B oise
Issue no.
S tat e ’ s
I n d ep e nd e n t
S tud e n t
V o i c e
o f
B oise
S tat e
Sin ce
1933
61
May
02
2011
Volume 23
News
Meet another one of Boise State’s top 10 scholars.
Opinion
Sports
Don’t like being harassed in the Quad? Check out this article.
Track and field shines against Utah schools at final home meet.
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Boise, Idaho
First issue free
The trike builder retools transportation technology By David Gasch, Journalist
There’s a better way to roam out there, and Gregory Allen aims to find it. You know Gregory Allen -- maybe not by name but any Boise State student can recognize him when he cruises through campus on one of his homemade tricycles. His hat made of leather and old ladies’ overcoats, round glasses, beard and unique transportation make him a character distinctive enough to beg recognition from any passerby. The tricycle that sets him apart provides an example of his many solutions for “the better way,” in this case, he means a better way to travel other than by automobile.
When the weather or time permits, he can often be spotted riding one to the grocery store, thrift stores, work or Dawson Taylor Coffee downtown. For the last 11 years he has built the trikes and put thousands of miles on them as an environmentally friendly and low consumption alternative to automobiles. Though he owns a Toyota pickup himself, he does his best to use it only as necessary. The tricycles have grown in popularity and businesses have approached him about obtaining one. “I have sort of become the resident expert on that type of thing, by default,” Allen said. Allen works as a welder and a subcontractor for various jobs around Boise. The skills he utilizes to build his trikes and other projects are the same ones that get him by today, and have supported him since he graduated from Idaho State University’s vocational technical school years ago with a 4.0 GPA. They help him remain selfemployed, a chief desire for a man who prefers not to depend on someone’s permission to earn a living. Allen possesses an aversion Each tricycle is different and each is designed and built to busy work for the in Boise by Gregory Allen. Many of the vehicles use an sake of keeping busy -electrical assist drive to assist the rider’s pedal power. he’d rather spend time
gainfully employed, building his tricycles. “I use these things to fill in when I’m not busy doing something else,” Allen said. “I like to build things. It’s what I do.” His workshop testifies to his love for building and learning. Allen built the shed in which his works of transportation glory are created from a frame and panels that can be taken down in an afternoon. He considers the design an excellent alternative to low-cost or post-disaster housing. The workbench and shelves on the inside, crafted with neat precision, display his talent for woodwork and steel work. The room remains cozy with help from a homemade heater on the workbench, and Allen even built many of the tools he uses to build his tricycles. Not only has he fashioned an alternative method of getting around and produced ideas about temporary housing, but Allen also described a system of rails for vehicles to use electricity to travel in a downtown setting efficiently. He tested the theory by constructing a miniature electric train and tracks that people could ride in, which could easily be transported or used for events. As for hats, Allen makes his own. He assembled his latest tricycle in a large room, but left space to exhibit hats, and has kept it reserved for someone who would want to be self-employed as a hat vendor. One of these hats, worn by a friend, ended up on CNN in an image displaying fashion in Boise. In these ways and many more, Allen’s productivity, positive impact, and distinct character are not difficult to see. His unique character reflects the Boise’s culture in many ways. His individuality and reputation make him significant part of that culture.
ryan johnson/THE ARBITER
The builder’s trikes
Gregory Allen asserts that automobiles use an excessive and unnecessary amount of weight and moving parts to achieve the simple goal of traveling from point A to point B. His solution: build a new mode of transportation that leaves only a miniscule footprint on the environment and allows more endurance even than a traditional bicycle. He said that conventional bikes are upside down and backwards. With this thought a new idea was born. The efficiency of his designs come from several places, the most important being a front wheel drive setup. “Once you’ve got front wheel drive the rest of it is just a trailer,” Allen said. “It’s just a lot more efficient and convenient if it pulls you around instead of pushes you around -- like putting the cart before the horse.” The tricycles generally run on some type of battery which helps the bike accelerate quickly, and supplemented with pedals in front and basic cable brakes. The framework consists of thin, lightweight steel welded together. The various models parked throughout his workshop and garage include their own individual components, such as hidden second seats, doors, storage space, roofs and more.
See Builder’s Trikes I page 2
Illustration by bree jones/the arbiter
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