It looks like the rest of America is catching on. US bike sales have been higher than car sales so far this year. It might have something to do with cars being more expensive than bikes, but we need to take these victories where we find them. The Huffington Post has the full story on how cars are ruining the world and how bikes can be used to kill facists, in case you don’t already know. Sadly, bike sales are still down around 30% for the year, but car sales are so much lower that we’re still killing them.

Let’s face it; one of the barriers to stepping into an electric bike is that you don’t want to go back to being the only kid with training wheels. Trying something new in the bike community isn’t always the easiest move. If Gruber manages to get the price down on their Gruber Assist electric bike motor, it could herald in a whole new era for the machines. The 200-watt electric-assist motor drops into any bike with a 31.6mm seat tube and supplies 1.5 hours of power through any Shimano Hollowtech II bottom bracket. It’s an elegant design with no external batteries or wires save for a button on your handlebars that turn it on and off. The major barrier is the $2,500 price tag and only 1.5 hours of continuous power. Hopefully they can bring the price down while stepping up the tech in the coming years.

Varsity Bike & Transit has gone greener. We have purchased wind credits for our electrical consumption through X-Cel energy. Wind credits are a promise by the consumer to support financing wind power that goes into the national grid, which of course for now is more expensive to produce than conventional “brown” energy. Our power consumption increased when we moved to our new space down the street. This is because it is larger space, recharging the batteries for the electric bikes that we now sell( though it is only 5-10 cents per charge) and because of the grow light we have for our green wall( it is working and the plants are growing like crazy). We felt a need to offset the increased power usage and decided to purchase wind credits to go with an environmentally sound and renewable power source. It was very easy and is only going to increase our monthly bill by about $20. The only odd thing is that you must sign up for a 3 year term with X-Cel energy. This is ok with us because we are planning to try and go green for the long term no matter what happens. This is not just a response to a trend but a change in our outlook and business model. We are always looking for other ways to make Varsity Bike & Transit greener. Currently we recycle tubes and aluminum. We would like to do tires and steel but have not found an effective way to yet. Suggestions are welcome.

Recently I started riding the A2B Metro Electric Bicycle from Ultra Motor. This bike is so much fun it should be illegal. It is so much friggin fun. It is so much more like a moped than a bike but is so much cooler as well. Here are a few of it’s advantages:

• Speed - this thing goes fast. I don’t have a computer on this yet but 20mph easy

• Control - The throttle allows for great agility and quickness

• Power  - It ramps up to speed quickly and will through you off if you are not ready and crank the throttle

• Noise - So quiet, very cool for a “moped”

The A2B Metro from Ultra Motor - too fun to be fair.

I have been thinking about scheduling meetings at more distant locations, or asking my wife to meet me for drinks at some establishment 7 miles away (they say the battery lasts 15 miles). I have told Varsity Bike and Transit that they may never see that bike again (except on the blog or if it breaks down and I need their help), sorry guys.

To learn more check out the article on Electric Bicycles in the Pioneer Press web site at TwinCities.com. The writer, Julio Ojeda-Zapata, does a great job test riding many models. He was not real impressed by my Schwinn Continental unfortunately (I still love the crank shaft - no chain - and the style). Still a great article and overview of what you can ride in the Twin Cities right now.

Craig Baillie

The two electric bikes I have been riding really are different. I am hoping to test some limits of the electric bikes during my commuter adventures. I typically ride from my office in Southeast Minneapolis to downtown. I’m not sure exactly how far this is but my next post will have some data on distance, speeds and power levels. I also often ride to Timberwolves games or now Twins games, so a lot of urban wear and tear.

The main ride for me the last 8 months has been the Schwinn Continental Electric Bike. It is a great ride and has held up well until now. Apparently I broke the battery, some kind of lithium polymer battery thing. I have heard of fuses blowing out but that was not the diagnosis here. The guys at Varsity Bike & Transit have ordered a special part to open the battery and see what is going on. Of course like any good bike doctors they asked some basic questions, like did I drop it, or did it get run over by a truck. I fessed up about some curbs, leaving it plugged in and charging for 10 hours at at time (they recommend only 6). Nothing seemed to interest them until I mentioned the stairs.

“What stairs?” they asked. I sensed concern and disappointment.

“Just some little stairs.”

“Anything else?” 

“Maybe I remember hearing some new sounds maybe after going down the stairs” I confessed.

Now some parties are convinced the stairs some how damaged something inside the battery. Seems like a convenient solution to me, too convenient. Has anyone else had battery problems? Any stair riding incidents on record? I took a photo of the stairs I rode down so we can have a vote or something on this debate. They appear pretty harmless to me.

I rode my Schwinn electric bike down these tiny stairs and now some people believe this is related to the battery breakdown that occurred shortly afterwards.

The Schwinn Continental Electric Bike is still very cool. I have a replacement battery I’ll have to purchase if the controversial battery cannot be fixed. The shaft-driven Continental is a rare model it turns out. I loaned it back to Rob Dehoff at Varsity bike so a reporter could take a test drive and write about this and other electric bike models. I look forward to the article, keep an eye out for it coming from The St. Paul Pioneer Press. 

A new electric bike, a demo model, was given to me to try out. To date I had not test riden any of the other bikes, I liked the style of the Schwinn so I never looked further. It’s the A2B METRO from Ultra Motor. Wow! What a ride. It looks like some NASA inspired bmx meets mountain bike hybrid. It has motorcycle style thick tires and probably weighs a million pounds. 

The space age A2B Metro Electric Bike from Ultra Motor, super fun to ride and looks tough. Can it handle the battery breaking stairs?

The A2B METRO Electric Bike rides a lot more like a scooter or a moped. It has a throttle for immediate and continuous power and ramps up to top speed very quickly, 20 mph according to their web site, feels faster. I only pedal when going uphill and just when I start up, it does seem to assist in the power level at those times. This bike can really fly. Feels great on turns with the thick tires and is extremely quiet and quick. Incredible feeling for urban travel, with many stops and frequent turns. Does feel like cheating somehow…

I don’t have a computer on this yet but I will be doing that soon. Then I plan to do a series of tests on both bikes. Soon we will find out if the A2B Metro can handle the stairs. I’ll try to remember to wear my helmut.

Craig Baillie

Last year they were walking around in their sister’s jeans and now everyone’s stealing their spinster aunt’s fanny packs. Thanks to Chrome and Urban Hunter, these mini utility bags (fanny packs) or lock holsters are the latest way to keep a U-lock at the ready in case you need to dent some cars. There was a brief and ill-advised time where I kept a store sticker on my Evo mini, but it came off as soon as I imagined a cop walking into the store waving the lock around and looking for the guy who threw it into the back window of a minivan that cut him off. The Chrome Hippouch sells for about $40 and the Urban Hunter lock holster is around $30.

I Colorized My Bike

I took the plunge and colorized my bike.

We need to come up with a better word for that.  At least I get to blame my daughter.  She started it by taking off her purple “girl talk” top tube protector and adding it to my bike.  That gave me the inspiration for my color scheme: blue, purple, green, pink and white.  The real reason, though, is my bike was hurting.  It was making a variety of scary noises and had imminent problems so I could justify almost everything I did to it.  The proof was in riding the “new bike”.  I cannot believe I let my bike get in such sorry shape.  It now rides like a dream and I am now taking the long way to everywhere I need to go.  I would say it makes me ride more often but I already ride as much as I can…and still I wish I could ride more.

The nuts and bolts of adding colored parts to my bike

The Frame- My frame is an 80’s Bridgestone RB-2.  I love Bridgestones in particular and nice steel frames in general.  I wish the other Bridgestones in my life had not been stolen.

Wheels- I used green Origin-8 flip flop hubs with purple Velocity deep V rims and pink, green, blue and white spokes.  These wheels were a challenge to build because of the spoke color scheme.  Also, the front and rear have different patterns.  Just because a spoke is next to another spoke at the rim does not mean it is at the hub. They turned out great and are a joy to ride.  I added blue Panaracer T-Serv 25c tires and a Origin-8 freewheel that is very smooth, has very quick engagement and sounds cool when coasting. I did not need new wheels except that I will use the old ones for the winter.  The tires were toast after two years of winter riding and the freewheel was done too.

Cranks and Pedals- I put purple Origin-8 cranks with a blue Origin-8 1/8 ring and purple, green and blue chainring bolts.  I put 4 extra bolts on the ring just for fun because the chainring has holes for them.  The pedals are green Soma Hellyers with pink Soma Double Gate toe clips and pink and green Pake toe straps. I replaced them because they were both creaking badly.  The pedal bearings were done and the chain ring was worn out.

Seat- I put on a Soma Glitter green seat and so far it is very     comfortable and I love the slippery vinyl cover because it sheds water and my pants do not get caught on it like with some seats. I replaced it since it was the original seat on a 20 year old bike and had many tears in it.

Brakes- They were replaced with Diacompe double pivot brakes, green in front and pink in the rear.  I created funky cable housing that is alternately green and blue with housing connectors. They were the original single pivot brakes and after many years of hard commuting the springs were toast and the insides were very corroded.

Grips- The old ones were done and were replaced with Oury purple grips which I love.  They feel great and I will see how long they last or if they get the dreaded grip stickiness disease.

Chain- The old one was very stretched and winter abused.  This turned out to be my favorite colored item.  I used two KMC 1/8 chains, half green and half purple     to create one chain that looks super cool when riding.

Extras- I put a purple Knog light on the front hub so it spins and a green Flashflight flashing light in each wheel.  Style and safety in one.  A little colored Duct tape on the top tube to bring everything together and some colored cable end crimps to top it off.

Old parts- I kept my seat post, stem, handlebars and brake levers.  They all work fine and I have no reason to change them.  I want to change the handlebar just for     looks but I am trying to resist.  Of course, my daughter’s “girl talk” top tube protector that inspired it all had to stay.

I think it turned out great but I am biased (rightly so).  You may not like what I have done but remember, there is no such thing as right or wrong in color land, just opinion.

Kingston

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