Local Man's Invention on Display at Minnesota State Fair

Rich Kronfeld felt like he was always one idea away from a good invention. The Golden Valley resident would often page through issues of Skymall Magazine and think to himself, 'I could have invented that.'

Finally, while riding his bike to work one day in 2009, Kronfeld had his "aha" moment. Inspired by the need to create a bike that could travel great distances and shelter its riders from Minnesota's winters, the Rahtmobile was born.

Short for Recumbent Automotive Human Transport Mobile, the Rahtmobile is a type of covered, electric bicycle. The bike's pedals are connected to generator that uses human power to continually charge the bike's battery.

And while the Rahtmobile is on display at the Minnesota State Fair this year, Kronfeld's idea almost didn't come to fruition.

In late 2010, after convincing his wife to invest some money to design the Rahtmobile, Kronfeld joined the Minnesota Electric Auto Association. When Kronfeld applied for a grant that came from the University of Mankato, and didn't hear back for months, he thought his invention dreams were over.

"I called the head of [Minnesota State University Mankato's] automotive engineering department one day just to confirm that I didn't receive the grant," Kronfeld remembered. "He didn't answer his phone, so I left a message."

Later that day, Kronfeld was shocked to learn that he had won the grant money and would be awarded $50,000 to build the Rahtmobile.

After working with a designer who both designed and built the Rahtmobile in Winona, Minn., Kronfeld brought the bike to The Foreign Service in Roseville for installation of the bike's computer. Now, the self-made inventor is looking for ways to manufacture and sell his bike.

"This is the solution for how to incorperate physical activity into anyone's life," Kronfeld said of his Rahtmobile. "I want to keep it affordable, so people can really use it."