Adjustable bicycle sail apparatus

A sail apparatus in combination with a bicycle having a frame, the sail apparatus comprising:

• a pair of sail grids, each of the pair of sail grids comprising a rigid, generally planar member defining a constant fixed sail surface area, and a leading edge of each of said pair of sail grids being pivotally mounted to the bicycle frame via a pair of spaced apart pivotable brackets, the pair of spaced apart pivot brackets each defining a pivot axis for the attached sail grid, and the pivot axes for the pair of sail grids being spaced apart from one another and extending parallel to one another;
• and the pair of sail grids being positionable between a closed position, where the pair of sail grids extend substantially parallel to one another and a longitudinal plane defined by the bicycle, and a fully opened position, where the pair of sail grids are located obliquely with respect to the plane defined by the bicycle;
• a control mechanism for controlling the position of the pair of sail grids attached to the frame of the bicycle;
• and
• a pair of linkage arms, each one of the linkage arms interconnecting the control mechanism with one of the pair of sail grids for controlling a position of the sail grids;
• a removable fabric sail covering each one of the pair of sail grids, and the removable fabric sail being substantially impermeable by air;
• and
• the sail apparatus further including a wheel guard, the wheel guard being a U-shaped member which has a pair of opposed free ends attached to the frame of the bicycle and an intermediate portion of the U-shaped member being connected to the control mechanism.

A method of utilizing wind while operating a bicycle, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing a pair of sail grids which each support a sail, each of the pair of sail grids comprising a rigid, generally planar member defining a constant fixed sail surface area;
• pivotally attaching a leading edge portion of each of the sail grids to a frame of a bicycle via at least one bracket, defining a pivot axis of the attached sail grid by each of the at least one brackets, spacing the pivot axes for the sail grids apart from one another and having the pivot axes extends parallel to one another;
• interconnecting an intermediate portion of each one of the sail grids to a control mechanism, via a pair of linkage arms, to control operation of the pair of sail grids;
• and
• manipulating the control mechanism to control a position of the pair of sail grids during operation of the bicycle;
• allowing the pair of sail grids to be positionable between a closed position, where the sail grids extend substantially parallel to a longitudinal plane defined by the bicycle, and a fully open position, where the sail grids are positioned obliquely with respect to the plane defined by the bicycle.