I’ve been reading about how Zero Motorcycles was working to get their electric bikes into regular motorcycle dealerships, and I had presumed that here in Denver that would be Fay Myers. Surprisingly, no. Zero just announced that they will be available instead at Grand Prix Motorsports, over at 3105 West County Line Road, in Littleton.

The reason I was figuring Fay Myers is that Zero was in town recently offering demo rides and they were doing so at Fay Myers. Talking with one of the Zero guys at that time, he told me they were looking to get into dealerships and Fay Myers was high on their list. Then later I got a marketing call from someone at Fay Myers asking about my interest in Zero’s bikes.

Apparently those calls showed insufficient interest to lead Fay Myers to make the leap. But Grand Prix jumped in.

Moving into dealerships has got to be a good move for Zero. I read an interview awhile back with some honcho at Brammo, Zero’s main electric motorcycle competitor, who said their initial expectations had been changed. They started out thinking that having no-shift electrics would help lure in non-riders who would be less intimidated. That has proved to be a wrong assumption. Most people buying electrics already ride gas-powered bikes. So Brammo decided the best way to sell more electrics would be to make them as comparable to the gas bikes as possible, and they are now adding gearing to their bikes, rather than scooter-style twist and go.

It stands to reason then that if people who already ride are the ones buying the electrics, you need to sell the electrics at regular dealerships.

In a related story, I just saw a piece yesterday about a new charging system used by the Nissan Leaf (if I remember correctly) electric car that gives a full charge in 30 minutes. And there was a story in the Denver Post about some local outfit that believes they have technology to produce batteries that are a tenth the size and last 10 times as long as current ones. It is technological advancements like these that are going to make electric motorcycles a truly viable option in a much shorter time than most people think.

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Biker Quote for Today

Image is only for riders who stay on long, straight roads.

It was cold, and later it got wet, but I went over to the Fay Myers spring Open House Saturday as planned, to enjoy the show and ride some Zero motorcycles. It was worth it.

The stunt riders did the sort of stunts that by now I’ve seen many times, so even though I can’t come close to doing what they do it’s just not that big a thrill. However, there was a guy doing trials demos and he was definitely impressive. I want to see more of that.

My main reason for going was to demo ride some Zero electric motorcycles. I rode a few about a year ago and the improvements in that year are amazing. Last year we stayed in a parking lot and considering the capabilities of the machines, that was adequate. This year we got out on the street and that just had to be. There’s no way you can experience the power of the new S (street) and DS (dual sport) Zeros in a parking lot. They go fast!

And the Zero guys tell me they also go farther. I can’t wait to see what electrics can do in five years.

So I chatted with a couple of the Zero guys a bit and they filled me in on where things are headed. I asked first if Zero is planning to offer bikes with gears, as Brammo is now doing. There are issues with that, I was told. Adding gears would add weight, which is something they definitely don’t want to do until battery power is better. And I haven’t checked this out so it’s just hearsay, but they guy told me they recently had a race where the new Zeros outran the new geared Brammo. So why add gears?

He also told me that in this race they were competing against gas-powered bikes and the electrics just smoked the gas bikes. Even giving them a head start–I can’t remember how much, three minutes?–he said the electrics all overtook the gassers by the third lap.

One of the bikes I rode was the Zero XU, which in truth seems to be pretty much a scooter. It doesn’t have the power or range of the S and DS and is only intended for running around town. So I asked if Zero was considering selling a scooter. The issue there, I was told, is that it costs in terms of design, production lines, and warehouse space every time you add a new model. There’s a lot the company would like to do but until they can ramp up sales significantly those things are just not going to happen.

One aspect of doing this demoing at Fay Myers is that Zero is looking to sign up dealers to carry their bikes. They’re especially interested in the Colorado market because of the terrific tax credits this state offers for electric vehicles. The highest price Zero is the DS, which has an MSRP of $10,495. With state and federal tax credits, we can buy them here for $5,395. With that bike’s improvements, that’s something worth considering, especially since operating the thing costs about a penny a mile in electricity. How does that measure up to your $3.67 a gallon gas?

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Biker Quote for Today

If loud pipes save lives imagine what learning to ride that thing would do!!!

I had a really interesting visit today with Chris Ravana, of Blindspot Cycles, with him showing me a couple of his homemade electric motorcycles.

The way Chris does it there’s nothing magical, or even particularly high-tech, about building an electric bike. He goes to a salvage yard and buys an old junk motorcycle body, picks up a few necessary parts, and then puts an electric motor in it. The motor runs off a stack of standard automotive-type batteries, although they are of the deep-cycle variety that can stand to be deeply discharged before being charged again.

And there’s nothing all that special about the motor. It’s just a basic industrial-type electric motor.

The whole business couldn’t be much more straightforward. I’m not going to go into a lot of detail here because I’ll be writing a lot more about Chris and his bikes for RumBum.com and Examiner.com, but, as always, I wanted to tell you the backstory here.

I just ran across an article about Chris and what he’s doing by chance, somewhere on the web, and it turned out he lives just up north in Fort Collins. I emailed him about getting together but didn’t hear anything back, so I called. He apologized for not replying but told me his wife had just had a baby the day before. So he’s been a little, shall we say, busy. Oh yeah, some excuse.

Today was a beautiful and warm day so I jumped on the Kawi and headed up there but along the way it got very cold. I was glad I had my electric vest. We talked about his bikes why he does all this, as well as the other things he does, and then it was time to ride.

Chris had two bikes prepped for us and off we went. This is not the first time I’ve ridden electric motorcycles but it’s still a kick. They’re silent when you’re sitting still, but twist that throttle and you absolutely do go forward, as in right now. Then you can cruise along side by side and talk, because there’s no engine noise. Not shout, talk.

What can I say? It was a lot of fun. He’s an interesting guy.

And then, just to show you how fickle the weather in Colorado can be, I headed back to Denver and rode back into sunshine and warmth. I knew there had been a beautiful day somewhere around here.

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Biker Quote for Today

If motorcycles are not allowed in heaven then I’ll ride mine to hell.

I guess it makes sense that it’s happening first with motorcycles. Sure there are some hybrid cars out there, and you’ve got the (very high-end) Tesla roadster. But when it comes to going electric, motorcycles are way out in front.

Think about it. The biggest stumbling block in the quest to successfully produce and market electric vehicles is the limitation of battery power. And the lighter the vehicle, the greater distance you can coax out of those batteries. Motorcycles are lighter than cars. (Duh!) And sure, you can load more batteries into a car than you can onto a motorcycle, but weight is also a big factor in speed. It just makes sense.

Have you seen what is out there now in the way of electric bikes? I’ve been paying some attention but obviously not enough, as the November 2010 issue of Motorcyclist magazine has shown me. This issue, which I’m still working my way through, has story after story about one electric motorcycle maker after another. It’s incredible.

Probably everyone has heard of Brammo and Zero. They’re two of the best-known producers of electric bikes, and they sell smaller bikes with limited range and speed. But have you heard of the MotoCzysz e1pc? This is a superbike and it’s in its third generation. Have you heard of the Mavizen TTX02? Another superbike. How about the Roehr eSuperBike or the Mission Motors Mission One? This is not a complete list.

OK, so hold it. Why all the superbikes? Two simple answers. First, a sportbike is lighter than a bagger–you start small. Second, technological advances frequently come to the racetrack first. What works on the track eventually makes its way into street bikes. Plus, what better way to demonstrate that these things are for real than by going out and kicking the pants of gas-powered bikes?

Not that that has happened yet. We’re not that far along, although a new class in Moto GP has been created specifically for electrics.

Make no mistake. This is going to happen, and probably a lot sooner than most people think. And here’s something for many traditionalist nay-sayers to think about. Many of these companies are American. That’s American iron being produced. And there are a lot of ways to produce electricity that do not put money in the pockets of people half-way around the globe who hate us and wish us harm. The U.S. produces enough of its own oil that we can continue to drive our gas-powered bikes, so they’re not going away. The sooner we shift a significant portion of our vehicles to electricity the better off we’re going to be. It can’t happen soon enough.

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Biker Quote for Today

At the end of the day, you’ve still got to twist that throttle.

A very busy weekend, what with all the motorcycle riding I had to do. This is a dirty job and . . . oh yeah, you probably don’t want to hear it. OK, it’s a sweet job.

On Saturday, as I said I would, I went to test ride Zero electric motorcycles. Local Zero rep Chuck Pratt and a bunch of folks from the home office were on hand with a variety of bikes, offering test rides to all comers.

It was an absurdly windy day and there was no dirt to test ride the dirt bikes in, but it was still enough to get a feel for what an electric motorcycle is like. After being reassured that the thing really is running, as you sit there without holding a clutch in, squeezing brakes, or anything else, you twist the throttle and by golly you take off!

I’ll be giving a full report on Examiner.com about the Zeros, and I’ll come back here and link to that report once it’s up, but there’s one extremely interesting thing I want to share with you here. If you live in Colorado, you can have a Zero S (street) or DS (dual sport) for an incredible price.

They are listed at about $10,000 but thanks to state and federal tax credits for purchases of electric vehicles, a Colorado resident can ride off with one for only $5,100. That’s mostly thanks to the Colorado tax credit, which is the largest offered anywhere in the country. If I had room to park a third bike, and a normal job that actually paid real money, I’d be a fish on the line for them to reel in. You might want to consider it.

Old Bike Ride 8

Sunday was a whole other gig. Working through Norton Colorado, a group of local Norton owners, Bob Ohman put together this eighth annual ride of old bikes. The loosely structured–and completely unenforced, as far as I could tell, but who cares?–rules were you needed to be riding a bike at least 25 years old or be at least 65 years old yourself. I rode my 1980 Honda CB750 Custom.

This was a ride the way things used to be before lawsuit-happy Americans ruined things for themselves and others: no riding fee, no liability waiver–just come and join the gang and go for nice ride on a terrific day for riding. And there were Ducatis, Hondas, Nortons, BSAs, Yamahas, Harleys, at least one Laverda, and a bunch of others. Oh yeah, an Indian or two.

Heading out, the first thing we did was ride to the top of Lookout Mountain and then stop near Buffalo Bill’s grave for more schmoozing and oogling of old iron. Then back down the hill and up Clear Creek Canyon to the Peak to Peak Highway, and north to the Millsite Inn, outside of Ward, a popular biker stop.

After lunch and more oogling it was pick-your-own-route back to Golden and regroup, or head on home. Other than being more chilly than expected up on the Peak to Peak, we couldn’t have asked for a nicer day to ride and it was a lot of fun. Last Sunday in May; put it on your calendar for next year.

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Biker Quote for Today

I may be a poor rider, but my bike sure is SLOW.

Hot diggity, I’ve been waiting for this. Come Saturday I’m going to finally get the opportunity to test ride some Zero electric motorcycles.

I first started trying a couple months ago to set something up so I could see what these new-fangled electrics are like. Well, the day is nearly here. And you can bet I’ll have plenty to say afterward. Stay tuned.

I’m counting on getting to ride all four of the 2010 models, but that may depend on how many other people are there with the same intentions. Zero currently sells these four:

• Zero MX is a motocross bike, set up for the track and for jumps
• Zero X is a dirt bike, for trails and technical stuff
• Zero S is a street bike
• Zero DS is a dual sport bike

The one thing I’m wondering about is if we’ll get a chance to actually ride the dirt-oriented bikes in dirt. This event is taking place at a parking lot and if all we get to do is ride the dirt bikes around on the pavement that won’t be truly satisfying. Who knows. I guess I will come Saturday. And you will soon afterward.

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Biker Quote for Today

Loud pipes risk rights!

Today I just want to point you to an interesting article I ran across on the MotorcycleUSA.com website. It discusses the many variations on the motorcycle theme that have been tried over the last 140 years and then turns to what future bikes may look like. Now, I’m not saying visually, I’m talking about their power plant and methods of motivation.

Bart Madson, the writer, starts out describing what is believed to be the first motorcycle ever invented, which ran on a twin-cylinder steam engine. A charcoal-fired stove sat under the seat to create the steam.

Then he continues saying:

Due to environmental concerns and the fact that $4/gallon gas is now a reality, the desire for alternatives to the internal combustion engine are more in demand than ever before. So, like automobiles, future motorcycles figure to be greener, more efficient machines.

He then goes on to talk about electric bikes, fuel-cell powered bikes, and even bikes that run on compressed air. All of these are under development somewhere, and some are available now.

Madson focused specifically on bikes such as the Suzuki Crosscage, the Piaggio HyS Hybrid, the Killacycle, the electrobike Pi, the Zero X, the Brammo Enertia, the Vectrix ZEV, and the Yamaha BOBBY. Never heard of any of those? Neither had I. Interesting stuff.

Go check them out. You could be riding one of these some day.

Biker Quote for Today

The best modifications cannot be seen from the outside.