Bob Swain is a collector of unusual bikes. He has about 250 of them and one is a completely unique B2B triplet. As usual, I wanted to learn more about this bike, so I asked Bob a few questions.

Who came with the idea of such a bike and why?
I am not sure whose idea it was but my understanding my bike is 1 of 2.

Is it built by Bilenky?
It was made by Bilenky in Philadelphia. It had a Penn State them and we called it ‘Three View PSU.’

Do I understand correctly that the middle rider steers the bike?
The captain is in the middle while the stokers are on the book ends position. I have always told the riders that the rider facing the rear is my rearview mirror. The person facing rear has a vested image in telling the captain of any issues from the rear since the rear passenger will get hit first.

How do you pedal on such a bike?
If the stokers are engaged, then the captain must pedal. If the stokers are not pedaling then the captain can pedal or not pedal.

How do you use the bike?
The bike is a great parade bike, work with the visually impaired, or just a great social ride with everyone having their own unique view.

I did 42 mile Bike New York once in the rain with stuffed animals. My stokers would not do it in the rain hence I put two stuffed animals to replace the human stokers. As the ride progressed, the stuffed animals became heavier being rain soaked.

The other time the president of Penn State and his daughter were the stokers.

My daughter and a friend set a record by each juggling 5 balls as stokers while riding the Three View PSU. We also set a world record for the highest average age for a three passenger bicycle.

Thank you Bob!

If you want to know more about Bob and his collection, you can read an article here. If the world record of juggling interests you, here are few more photos.

I got some more info from Bilenky as well:
We have made 3 of the B2B triplet (We call it the Waltz – 3 person version of our ViewPoint semi-recumbent tandem) It was conceived by Jim Weaver who made the original CounterPoint tandem.

  • The bike was used to set a world record in highest average age on a triplet as well. The average was 83 in this case.
  • The world record in number of juggling people with 5 balls on a bike. Bob’s daughter and her friend.