Recently, I came across a Time magazine article with the pithy title "Electric Bikes Sell as Gas Climbs." (Apparently, for the first time in my life, I'm helping to set a trend instead of being oblivious to it.) Here's a close-up of the bike being ridden in the article. It certainly looks cool. I have no idea how well it actually performs other than it takes the standard five hours to charge. From Time:
... sales [of electric bikes in general] are up about 50 percent so far this year over last. Amazon.com Inc. says sales of electric bikes surged more than 6,000 percent in July from a year earlier, in part because of its expanded offerings.
A few hundred dollars gets you an IZIP mountain bike from Amazon with a heavy lead-acid battery. For $1,400, you can buy a 250-watt folding bike powered by a more-powerful, longer-lasting nickel-metal hydride battery like those in a camera or a Toyota Prius. At the high end, $2,525 buys an extra-light 350-watt model sporting a lightweight lithium-ion battery similar to a laptop's
89,000 electric bikes were sold in the Netherlands last year, while 60,000 power-assisted bikes were sold in Germany ... in China, ... they are selling at the rate of 2.6 million electric bikes a year.
The Energy Bulletin has some really cool photos that document how the rest of the world bikes. I also have five photos sitting in my cell phone of electric bikes I've encountered in the past two weeks. Every one of them is a different model.
Following are a few electric bicycle comments culled from my inbox this week:
... I just wanted to let you know I have been putting the bike through its paces. As they say in the space program 'all systems are performing nominally'. One thing that was a real eye opener- The watts used. While I have only gotten over 600 watts for brief spikes, it is great to have that power in reserve. I think that the 750 watt limit on 'street legal' production bikes means that the off-the-shelf product will never really have satisfactory performance ... After spending $2600 on two Chineese LiFePO4 packs and the fact that neither one currently works, I would very much like to try making my own
... You've got to be kidding me! I'm afraid I left those batteries in the pack for about a week with the controller "on" and now all four of those batteries just "blink" in the chargers. Do you think they're really completely dead?
Not just dead, but irrepariably damaged, and good luck with that. I'm getting word that there is a shortage of electric bike components. China can't make them fast enough.
On the old-fashioned two-wheelers: I also get the occasional comment from a beardless youth that goes something like this, "I'm young and fit and have no need for your girly man electric assisted bicycle. But, hey, if it gets you on a bike I'm all for it."
The response I'm tempted to give would go something like this: "Tell that to my butt as I blow by you going up a steep hill. Having a throttle doesn't mean you have to use it. Let me send you my recipe for Schweaty Balls. Nothing co-workers like better."
The world really needs a standard battery pack as reliable, robust, and powerful as the 36-volt Dewalt power tool line, complete with a battery management system designed for electric bikes that can be charged in under and hour and be chained together as is done with 12-volt lead-acid batteries to obtain different voltages and amp-hour ratings.
In other bike news, the Seattle Critical Mass ride made headlines when another irate guy mowed down some bikers. I wasn't on this ride but I've seen this happen several times. It usually doesn't make the news. The injuries are not usually serious and the bikers don't usually assault the driver or slash his tires after he plows through them -- probably because they can't catch him. These clashes are inevitable when you get hundreds of young men and women, but especially young men, unleashed from their work cubicles, riding bikes en masse on a Friday night.
Do we need nuclear and coal plants for baseload power?
SolarCity makes electric cars an even smarter investment
Comments
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Delay And Deny Posted 3:14 am
28 Aug 2008
Half of my bike commute is a 3 mile, 500 ft climb up Kent East Hill (I used my Garmin GPS to measure the change in elevation).
My research into electric bikes seemed to show me there were none with sufficient power to make it up the hill, so I decided to stick with my $240 Trek 7000 and just take the most leisurely grade (Canyon Drive) of the three streets that go up the Hill.
I think people considering electric bikes who have to do any uphill really should do the research before buying...and maybe spend the money on real (human powered) bike with a big 7th gear (like mine).
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Biodiversivist Posted 3:41 am
28 Aug 2008
Send me an email. I'll meet you at the base of that hill. Let's document what an electric bike can do. We can mount the video camera on the front of your bike or the back of mine.
I routinely ride to the top of Capital hill (420 feet) without breaking a sweat and back using a third of my power reserve. I have also ridden to the top of Queen Anne hill uncounted times (450 feet). I'm all over Seattle and it endless hills.
http://www.komonews.com/news/content/17832439.html
In Seattle, it's all about the hills. Once in a while I will ride up a hill without power assist just to remind myself of the value of power assist. Sometimes I'll see some poor person on a shiny new bike struggling mightily to get up one of these hills. They want to get out of their cars but when they hit these hills a lot of them will conclude it isn't worth the sweat and lost time.
Beacon Hill: 320
Ballard: 50-125
Broadview: 450
Capitol Hill: 420
Downtown: 150
First Hill: 350
Fremont: 250
Green Lake: 200
Madrona: 300
Magnolia: 375
Maple Leaf: 450
Northgate: 300
Queen Anne: 450
Phinney Ridge: 350
Rainier Valley: 160
Ravenna: 200
SW Seattle (Othello & 35th): 520
Wedgwood: 350
West Seattle (Admiral): 350
White Center: 400
In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world
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Pangolin Posted 5:08 am
28 Aug 2008
Oh yeah, I was riding my Xtracycle equipped cruiser with about 12 pounds of locks and cable, some groceries, a few books and a 400 ml water bottle. It's one long cadillac of smooth and plush riding and it weighs just a bit more than your average road bike.
So if my 250 lb., well-padded, self can ride around in blazing heat comfortably I think the rest of you can manage allright on whatever is comfortable for you to ride. The trick in the heat is to cool your neck down with a wet cloth and then get inside a cooled space asap after locking your bike. The wind of passage wicks any sweat off of you so it doesn't' collect.
If like jabailo you have to climb hills rear wheel or stoker conversion kits are available that allow you that allow you to use your current gear cluster or other pre-assembled bikes. This australian blog has an some insights as to how to get the job done. Of course the famed and rare Bigdummy/Stokemonkey combo is the current apex in cargo bike with electric assist but demand even at the staggering price exceeds production.
There are even a few guys out there cruising in hand-trikes. So if you can walk and see where you're going ya got no excuses with me.
Put the Carbon Back
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Wolverine Posted 8:49 am
28 Aug 2008
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Biodiversivist Posted 10:39 am
28 Aug 2008
In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world
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