Venom Bike Line By Specialized
by Justin Thomas, Virginia 
on 08.12.05
An innovation on one of the most efficient vehicles around, or high-tech design nonsense? You be the judge! (Update: As a number of astute readers picked up, this is indeed an April fools hoax. But you can't blame us for being optimistic. Hey Specialized, we want the Viper!) Cycling manufacturer Specialized has announced that it is working on prototypes for revolutionary new bikes, set to be released in 2006. The new line of bikes is being dubbed the Venom Line. The bikes feature aerodynamic design and revolutionary technology that was pioneered by a special research team in Japan. The full range of bikes can be seen here.
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Something tells me this is an old April Fool's joke: "All Rights Unreserved - Loof Lirpa Publishing"
dude, gizmodo or boingboing just got fooled by this. They are rendering practice.
I did tell you to be the judge!
Loof Lirpa Publishing = April Fool.. they are not real
These are the work of design students at a university, just designs, never intended to be built. Someone took them and made up the web-site for next years Specialized line. It's a hoax.
at the bottom:
All Rights Unreserved - Loof Lirpa Publishing
Loof Lirpa? try it backwords: apriL fooL
yeah, it's a nice hoax.
Given that the photos come from "Loof Lirpa Publishing" (read the first two backwards), I would take these with a grain of salt.
These designs are a bit too droolworthy ... and far-fetched. That's because it's a hoax. See the discussion here and the source art for one of the images here.
This is a hoax
Are you sure about the sincerity of this report? I thought this was some rendering experts april fools joke. Some of the concepts are indeed cool, though, and the renderings are extremely well done, IMO. Some of you may have seen the hubless motorcycle wheels that some of those chopper guys are using...cool!
sory, hoax: http://eyeteeth.blogspot.com/2005/07/venom-line.html
This is a hoax: http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/index.php#specialized-clown-bikes-116826
hoax
I think you've been duped. See this before you start emailing Specialized with questions and pre-orders:
http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/specialized-clown-bikes-116826.php
You might notice that Loof Lirpa (the "publisher of the article), is April Fool spelled backwards.
Sorry, its a hoax. Flip the name of the publishing company ('Loof Lirpa' -> 'April Fool').
More details:
http://jwz.livejournal.com/522728.html?nc=38
http://www.drawthrough.com/tutorials/indoorbike.html
The renderings are worth looking at even though the related story is a hoax. I saw all of these concept bike renderings, except the last one, when they were circulated by email a little over a year ago. Though these were not intended as production bikes, they do reflect the company's creative culture. I like the fact that Specialized was one of the first bike companies to really push industrial design about 10 years ago.
just curious ....doesn't anyone read anyone else's comments before posting?
Also, the original story says the press conference announcing the line was held on November 31, which is only a bit less far-fetched than one held on the 32nd.
It's a h--.
Oh.
Anyway.
I especially liked the ones with the large rear wheel and the smaller front wheel that have no possible way to steer. Sweet!
There weren't any comments when I posted. I suspect there might have been a problem with comments being added or displayed properly.
Comments not posted from registered Typekey accounts have to be approved by Treehugger's moderation system. Lots of comments end up in the queue and get approved at the same time, so there's bound to be some duplicates.
Getting a Typekey account is recommended. It'll make comments appear immediately.
even if they were real, they're not very aerodynamic. Nice renders thou.
Those who are working on the bike designs of tomorrow should create new seats that don't make my azz hurt after long rides and tires that cannot be punctured. They have solutions today, but none that I'd consider to be innovative.
The fact that you can't buy these designs hardly detracts from the story. It's not like the average mortal could possibly afford them anyway. The point is that human-powered transport SHOULD be this exciting and sexy. Hopefully more comfortable, though - those seats look brutal.