In the News
2009.05.24 45th Annual Great Western Bicycle Rally
We are proud to be voted the winner of the best recumbent award during the 45th Annual Great Western Bicycle Rally. There were over 1500 participants at the rally that was held in Paso Robles, California over memorial Weekend.
Off-Road Recumbent Tricycle Gaining Traction: An injury on a mountain bike sets in motion a local entrepreneur’s business concept. When Adam Stephens flew over a 12-foot ledge on his mountain bike two years ago, he had no idea the resulting injury would spin off a business.
Stephens, an avid cyclist, broke the front end of his mountain bike and compressed two disks in his lower back, which made traditional cycling too painful for him. Stephens used his injury as a catalyst to create a prototype for an off-road, recumbent tricycle that could tackle the terrain he loved while taking the pressure off his spine. “The original trikes just didn’t fit me,” he said……The young company was formed after Stephens met Brian Gobrogge at an MIT Enterprise Forum in Santa Barbara in April 2008……
2008.10.14 Fall 2008 Cal Poly Alumni E-Newsletter
From Thesis to New Venture: The Berserker Story. Many of you who have visited campus recently know Adam Stephens, who got an MS degree in the program a year ago……Adam has always been interested in off-road cycling. For personal reasons, he developed a passion for designing and fabricating an off-road trike that enables people with minor disabilities to have a somewhat more stable platform to attack mountain trails. During 2006-2007 Adam developed the design, fabricated the trike, field-tested it, and tweaked the design. During the 2007-2008 academic year there were further design modifications, and considerable media attention…..
2008.07.01 Summer 2008 Cal Poly Magazine - Hot Shot
ADAM Stephens Conquers the Hills with Innovative Trike: ADAM STEPHENS’ OUTLOOK on a favorite pastime changed one day along the slopes of California’s Mt. Diablo. That’s when the Cal Poly industrial technology professor accidentally plunged his mountain bike off a l2-foot vertical drop, shearing offhis bike’s front fork and pulverizing the rear - leaving him splayed on the ground, writhing in pain. Stephens was afraid he would never ride a mountain bike again, at least not in comfort, due to a slipped spinal disk…..Two years ago, Stephens began developing a bike designed specifically for back pain sufferers: “The Berserkeri’ a recumbent, off-road tricycle that minimizes prostate and back pain, as well as palm and foot numbness. “The bike makes you feel like you’re almost floating above the terraini’ Stephens says. Suspension systems on each wheel absorb shock and prevent body pain, while larger-than-average wheels allow the bike to roll over big objects…..
2008.02.25 San Louis Obispo County News
A new offroad trike is put to the test. The tricycle is so easy to use, even our own Rob Carlmark put the pedal to the pavement, helping test the prototype at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. The tricycle was designed by a Cal Poly instructor and graduate students to help people with back problems ride more comfortably downhill on mountain trails. “It is for anybody that wants to have fun, drop it down something, mob it down stairs, or come across any obstacles that come their way,” Adam Stephens, Cal Poly instructor…..
2008.02.14 Orfalea Business College & Alumni Magazine - Spring 2008
Industrial Technology Students Travel Off-Road: A Cal Poly Industrial Technology Instructor and graduate students of the Orfalea College of Business began testing the riding comfort of a newly developed off-road tricycle around campus…..The “Berserker” Trike sports two front wheels an one rear, all with their own shock absorbers. It also has larger wheels than most traditional tricycles and the handle bars are positioned under the seat.
Cal Poly Students Work to “Package” Humans in a New Off-Road Tricycle: SAN LUIS OBISPO – A Cal Poly Industrial Technology instructor and graduate students of the Orfalea College of Business are set to begin testing the riding comfort of a newly developed off-road tricycle, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 15 and 16. Cal Poly Industrial Technology (IT) instructor Adam Stephens designed a new long-travel, full suspension off-road tricycle as part of his graduate work while at Cal Poly. Stephens fabricated the trike to absorb shock, rather than the rider. For the frame he used an aircraft-grade aluminum alloy to keep the trike light, provide rigidity in an off-road environment and allow it to track well….“The idea was to design a vehicle that would allow people with back
problems the ability to navigate off-road terrain in comfort.” The 26 year-old instructor suffers from chronic back pain due to a compressed disc – he missed a landing after jumping off a sand cliff on a
bicycle….The ‘Berserker’ sports two front wheels and one rear, all with their own shock absorber. It also uses larger front wheels than most traditional tricycles. The handle bars are positioned under the seat and the rider pedals with their feet in a reclined position.
