Hybrids recharge biking

[question everything]

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Hybrids recharge biking

The Orange County Register

What if riding a bike to run errands or get to work was as easy as charging your cell phone? What if you didn't need Lance Armstrong quads to scale hills or ride 30 miles?

The old-fashioned bicycle – with a modern upgrade – is gaining speed as a way to make cycling more practical for transportation and fitness. The electric bicycle runs on pedal power and a battery-operated motor fixed to the back tire. Riders can zip up hills without panting or bike to work without sweating.

After about 30 miles, plug in the bike – just like a phone. The recharge cost comes to about 18 cents. "An electric bike is actually a human hybrid," said Kevin Penrose, who owns Electric Cyclery, Orange County's only shop selling exclusively electric bikes and scooters. "You're using power from your body with assistance from the motor."

(snip)

Most of Penrose's customers are baby boomers. Some bought the bike after a DUI. Unlike motorized scooters, the bikes don't require a driver's license. "It's not that we're trying to replace bicycles; we're trying to replace cars. You can ride to work in a suit and be just fine," Penrose said. "For short trips, there's no reason to take a two-ton SUV down for frozen yogurt." And if the battery dies? The worst that can happen is an old-fashioned bike ride back.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/money/abox/article_1189277.php

[dysfunctional press]

1. are they all that small...?

personally, i have very long legs- so to ride that thing properly, i'd have to have the seat and handle-bars extended pretty far. and i just generally don't like bicycles with such little tires.

but- if they develop other models, or an adaptor kit for regular bikes...let me know.

[melnjones]

10. Yes, you can put a motor on most bikes.

And electric bikes come in a lot of sizes and styles.

[RufusEarl]

2. This is a good idea,

but why aren't we building electric cars? How many here watched the program NOW on PBS, it was about the electric car, and the documentary "Who Killed The Electric Car"

Back in the late 80's and early 90's California got the big three auto companies to build a fleet of electric cars, and they were very successful.

Why not do that again? build electric car for the masses. I'd buy one if they could build an affordable auto, i bet allot of folks would.

The electric bike is a great idea, if you live in an urban area it makes even more sense.

[question everything]

4. Electric cars are still cars

You need to have a parking space for them and you still use the roads like any car.

A bike can lean on the side of a building and it is easy to jump on a bike then to jump into a car and hit the road.

I think that what killed the electric cars, besides the usual suspects was the fact that your range was only 30 miles and that you needed a charging station while the bikes can be charged at home.

Electric cars were expected to be used like regular cars while electric bikes would be for short distance, like going a few blocks away to purchase a bottle of milk, or a birthday card, a pack of cigarettes (if you smoke), renting a movie or watching the little league ball game.

[lindisfarne]

13. Bikes also don't require the roads that cars do -- far cheaper to build

roads for bikes - or kick the cars off the freeways and turn them over to bikes.

[kestrel91316]

18. I want a PLUG-IN Hybrid car, so during the week I can use only the

electric motor coming and going from work and errands. And then on the weekend when I want to drive a distance, I use gas but get hybrid mileage. The best of both worlds and quite do-able.

[Gormy Cuss]

3. I do so hope these take off

The prices are reasonable enough. I used my bike for recreation and short shopping trips but I have to be creative in routing because of the steep hills. While I can muscle my way up some of them, I hate doing so when there's a lot of traffic.

On edit: QuestionAll, there are other models available that look more like standard size bike frames and some vendors who sell conversion kits. I've seen prices for conversions in the $500 range and electric bikes for as little as $800, although most are higher than that.

[Warpy]

5. Another alternative is the one I have

http://www.egovehicles.com



I've been riding it for 3 years now and use it for short trips that don't require hauling a lot of stuff. With the collapsible wire panniers on the back, it's perfectly adequate for most shopping trips.

I'm not a dealer. This is just a plug for a great product.

[melnjones]

11. I've looked at those...

but between the high price and the fact that if I ran out of charge somewhere I'd be in trouble, I think I'd rather have a pedal/electric bike.

[TlalocW]

6. There are also kits

That allow you to change your current bike into one of these hybrids. A friend of mine who used to live in Kansas City would ride his to work and back and on small errands.

TlalocW

[eppur_se_muova]

7. About time! Thanks for the links. nt

[Kolesar]

8. I doubt the 30 mile range claim

I have been researching electric bicycles because I would like to do a conversion. My hunch is that even some of the good products are limited due to efficiency. Such bikes just cannot match the energy density performance of an internal combustion engine in a scooter. The synchronous-hub-motor ones have drag due to the pole faces magnetically attracting the permanent magnets.

I doubt that I could get satisfactory results with a 14 mile commute and 900 feet of climbing.

There is a thread in the bicycling forum:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=324&topic_id=1049&mesg_id=1049

[melnjones]

12. You're right...

Few of the e-bikes I've looked at have that long of a range. Most are between 12-20 miles.

on edit...the good thing though is that you can always pedal the rest of the way if you run out of charge, and also the charge lasts longer depending on how much you pedal while using the motor.

[lindisfarne]

14. Depends on the battery, no? And how much pedaling you do while

on power?

[Kolesar]

16. The Crystalyte dealer specified a 72 volt motor for the steep hills I have

There is a 16% grade on my commute, so I would need a high voltage to get enough torque to get up that hill. Bicycles are usually designed with 24 Volt through 48 Volt supplies (batteries). That means I would have to put a lot of 12 Volt or 24 Volt batteries in series to get that big 72V. An economical sealed lead acid battery implementation would be 60 pounds of batteries alone (recalling from memory). I would rather buy lighter NiMH batteries, but I could see spending $500 to $1000.

The readout on the stair machine at the fitness center tells me that I am putting out 100 Watts during my 20 minute workout. Bicycle motors often specify 250 W to 600 W motors. I am skeptical on the 600 W output. I expect I would pedal at about 75 W the whole trip, and use "hundreds of watts" from the battery to climb the big hills, then dial in a mere 75 W when I am just cruising on the flat or on a slight upgrade.

The system I really like so far is the Currie kit, with a DC motor. It is considered "the best" from sites I have read. The Currie is not the 72 Volt system I referred to.

Does this make any sense? There is some good reading at the links in that DU Bicycling Forum thread I referenced upthread.

[lindisfarne]

19. Makes sense to a point. Sounds like bike batteries need improvement

I won't hold my breath - not enough profit in it. But maybe eventually a battery designed for some other purpose could be attached to a bike. Going downhill you'd get a lot of time out of the battery. :)

[Schema Thing]

9. Wes Clark joined an electric bike maker as CEO

....When he first retired from the military. http://www.greenspeed.us/wesley_clark.htm


Just took a further look, and they seem to have given up on at least the marketing part of bicycles. They have an interesting looking scooter product however. (the company is wavecrest laboratories)


I don't believe Clark is still involved with them, but I could be wrong.

[democracy eh]

15. Tidalforce bikes

I drove one a few weeks ago, they are not like a bike, more like a quiet, smooth riding scooter, freakin fast, almost too powerful the sales guy said something about the discontinuation, but he didn't have much info, he had just heard.

too bad about the discontinuation

I wonder if someone else will pick it up?

[lindisfarne]

20. Here's something about Tidalforce:

A Note About Wavecrest Bikes

In October 2005 Wavecrest announced they were returning to their research and development roots and would no longer sell TidalForce bicycles. They maintain inventory of parts and supplies necessary to provide all warranty support for the bikes and have committed to providing all warranty support for TidalForce bikes sold by their dealers.

In December 2005 Wavecrest informed The Electric Bike Network that there are three companies in negotiations with Wavecrest to purchase the rights to manufacture and sell TidalForce bikes. As a result, we are hopeful it will not be long before additional TidalForce bikes are again available to us. We are currently selling our remaining (and, unfortunately, limited) inventory of TidalForce bikes. Please contact us via either email or telephone if you have any questions.

http://www.myebike.com/bikes/TidalForceM-750.html

[Schema Thing]

21. Kinda sad, but seems like this sort of thing always happens

And unfortunately, it's we-the-people to blame.

[Kolesar]

17. Clark has done a respectible amount of activism on climate protection

So now I have a candidate I am watching for 2008