This story starts in Yorkville where Janiece and Jeff Bersky, both University of Illinois grads, were struggling to find a bike that would work for their son who has a form of dwarfism. Standard kids bikes didn’t fit, so they went back to their alma mater, in hopes that some savvy engineering students just might have a fix.
Enter the McGyvers of engineering: Austin Kody and Henry Beuving and Ryan Klein, all engineering majors at U of I. The idea of the bike got their wheels spinning.
“The challenge that Logan had was his proportions were a little bit unique,” Klein said.
“Coming up with the 3D model took about two weeks,” Beuving said.
They came up with a fully custom bike complete with adaptive handlebars, gear hub and frame.
“Because of who the project was for we went the extra mile, making the safest decisions most fitted to Logan,” Kody said.
As the project gained momentum, so did support, from donated bike spokes to the silver machine shop who welded the frame.
Three months later, the big hearted engineers were finally ready and delivered the custom beauty to 8-year-old Logan.
“It was definitely a big nervous excitement for all of us,” Klein said.
For most engineering majors, the reward is that final project grade, for this team, it was the smile of a boy with a bike all his own.
The whole team , including two others who worked on the project, will graduate from U of I this Spring, with a degree under their arm and pride knowing their work made a difference for a kid who’ll likely be cruising down the street on a bike.
Erin McElroy
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