Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
How does a legendary recumbent and velomobile builder end up crafting a secret weapon for the Tour de France?
In this interview, we sit down with Jürg Birkenstock (creator of the iconic Birk "Butterfly") and his long time collaborator Charles Henry (original designer of the Peregrin recumbent bike) to uncover the untold story behind the radical 2004 BMC Time Machine 1 (TT01) Jürg built for Tyler Hamilton. We'll discover how a master craftsman from the recumbent community built the bike that took Hamilton to the fastest time at the 2004 Athens Olympics and laid the blueprint for modern time trial bikes!
Jürg and Charles then take us on a fascinating tour of the Birkenstock facility where we learn about the equipment they use to design, build and repair bikes and velomobiles in the shop.
This video was recorded on site at the Birkenstock shop just outside of Zurich, Switzerland. Many thanks to my Swiss pal Armin Ziegler for his excellent videography skills used to record this interview!
How does a legendary recumbent and velomobile builder end up crafting a secret weapon for the Tour de France?
In this interview, we sit down with Jürg Birkenstock (creator of the iconic Birk "Butterfly") and his long time collaborator Charles Henry (original designer of the Peregrin recumbent bike) to uncover the untold story behind the radical 2004 BMC Time Machine 1 (TT01) Jürg built for Tyler Hamilton. We'll discover how a master craftsman from the recumbent community built the bike that took Hamilton to the fastest time at the 2004 Athens Olympics and laid the blueprint for modern time trial bikes!
Jürg and Charles then take us on a fascinating tour of the Birkenstock facility where we learn about the equipment they use to design, build and repair bikes and velomobiles in the shop.
This video was recorded on site at the Birkenstock shop just outside of Zurich, Switzerland. Many thanks to my Swiss pal Armin Ziegler for his excellent videography skills used to record this interview!
