Fossil Free Friday: Powered Wheels (for bikes) Overview

This is a weird but very promising category. The hard part is the Copenhagen Wheel.

Have you ever watched a food commercial that made you really hungry for something, but the place advertising was too far away so you went to a closer version of (virtually) the same thing? It's like that. The early videos and Kickstarter and promos for the Copenhagen Wheel had us e-biker and wannabe e-bikers drooling and scrambling to come up with money to send them to reserve our expensive but oh-so-cool Copenhagen Wheels. I was, at the time, broke (for which I am strangely thankful).

So, competitors started developing similar products and the race was on, or so it seemed. The competitors built their products, got them to market, and are now putting out updated versions and spin-off products. And those poor people who ponied up the reservation money a few years ago are starting to see some light at the end of their CW tunnels, but you still can't just order a Copenhagen Wheel, snagit!

So, what it so cool about these products? They are ultrasimple in installation and operation, and shipping for them is relatively cheap.

How simple are they? To be a fully capable powered wheel installer/e-bike rider you have to have two basic skills.

1. Can you fix a flat on a bicycle? (Or can you get your bike to a bike shop?)
2. Can you install and operate an app on a smartphone? (Or, do you know any teenagers who are willing to help?)

If you can answer "yes" to a few of those questions, you are ready for a powered wheel install and operation. There are even how-to youtube videos to show you how in case you have a few struggles with answering "yes".

The concept is simple. Motor, controller, throttle, and batteries are all contained in a wheel. Slap it on your bike, download an app and pair it to your wheel. You're good to go. In some cases, the setup has a dashboard, so you don't even need the smartphone.

Installing a FlyKly Smart Wheel (4-minute video)

 

What's available now: the FlyKly

 

The Flykly Smart Wheel (click here)

 

Yep Flykly got their product to market quickly. Their Smart Wheel will cost you $999, regardless of which size (20", 26", or 28") you choose. It can only be had as a rear wheel, which complicates installation a tiny bit, but many people (like me) prefer the ride characteristics of rear-wheel motors. The Smart Wheel can carry you up to 16 mph for  25-60 miles. And it's pretty stealthy. Most people won't know you are riding an electric bike. By the way, the FlyKly is an assist-only product. If you don't pedal, you don't go.

 

You can also buy a FlyKly Smart Bicycle for $1590 (cool, basic, with 20" wheels) or you can buy one of the coolest folding people movers on the planet, the FlyKly Smart Ped, for $999. I don't even like kick scooters (it's a fat middle-aged guy thing) but I have to admit this thing is a great execution of a phenomenal idea.

 

What's available now: the Evelo Omni Wheel

 

Evelo Omni Wheel - Definitely not stealthy! (install video on site)

 

 

The Evelo Omni Wheel is also available for immediate shipping. While it has similarities to the FlyKly, there are some very big differences. At 350 watts, it is considerably more powerful - so it should be faster and/or capable of carrying larger loads (like me, for instance). It is front-wheel only, it comes with a digital display and an actual throttle - it can go with no pedaling at all. Evelo also offers in-house financing, FREE shipping, and a 7-day trial period. It is also not rare to catch the Omni Wheel on sale. (The Omni Wheel available now is the second-generation model - fewer early adopter kinks.) Evelo also sells complete e-bikes, but not one with the Omni Wheel.

 

Available soon (We Hope): Copenhagen Wheel, Daymak DDS, GeoOrbital

 

 

You can learn more about the Copenhagen Wheel at superpedestrian.com

 

Daymak Shadow

 

Daymak has an interesting place on this list as a once and future provider of powered wheels. Five years ago they offered up a bike with an integrated power wheel - the Shadow. It was a very interesting early approach, but it does not appear to be available now.

 

Daymak DDS (available soon)

 

For about a year now Daymak has been showing off the DDS, a powered wheel that has the novel approach of solar panel charging. They hope to offer it as a wheel or a complete bike. It's a rear wheel setup with a 250 watt motor. You can sign up for email updates on the site.

 

 (You may be more familiar with Daymak as the maker of the Beast.)

 

The GeoOrbital Website

The MH post about it from earlier this week

 

Last up, we have the GeoOrbital Wheel. I think I like this one a lot. It's a very different approach, and (as of today) we will have big news about it 31 days from now. The GeoOrbital idea is to keep the internals stationary while spinning only the rim. It also has the most powerful motor (500 watts!) of the bunch and the 36-volt battery can be upgraded for more range.  (This wheel seems to have more options for those who'd like to do some hot rodding upgrading. Sigh.

 

May the wheels in your head be spinning as you dream of these wheely appealing products! May you be safe and may you travel clean!

Where are they now? The GeoOrbital (Powered Bike) Wheel

It's getting close!

Back in November of 2014, two new powered-wheel protoypes appeared on these pages. One was the Daymak DDS, the other was the GeoOrbital Wheel. Both were pretty cool.

The prototype was much chunkier, but it had primary colors!

 

Occasionally, I like to go back to see how things are going on these projects, so today I popped back over to GeoOrbital's site to see how things are looking. In this case, things are looking good!

 

It takes 2 minutes to install on yer big honking scooter (or bicycle)

You know I love a good wheel pun! And I love to see a plan come together!

 

I am glad to see that GeoOrbital added a bigger motor (500 watts! Big enough for bigger people like me!) I am curious to see how far they have veered from their original goal of keeping it under $500. To be honest, I expect that number to double, but they may surprise me. I would also love to know how it rides on non-inflatable tires.

 

It is a cool approach to the powered wheel, and I like the fact that that it does not hide what it is. People are going to know that your wheel is something different. There's no mistaking the fact that this thing is powered. My armchair verdict? I want one! A 20mph and a 20-50 mile range with a 2 minute install time - that sounds great to me. What's not to like?

 

May your bike take you places easily, cleanly, and wheely quickly!



 

 

A few holiday e-bike deals showed up in my inbox, 2015

The emails are coming in, all of those holidays deals on this and that and whatever else. And I am a little torn. You see, I am no fan of all the holiday consumerism. I am especially not a fan of any company that tries to sell you something on Thanksgiving or wants you lining up at their door on midnight of the day after. I am really not a fan of Black Friday shopping.

On the other hand, I am a fan of electric vehicle adoption, and lower prices mean more EV adoption.

So let's talk EVELO Electric Bicycles and Rad Power Bikes.

EVELO has two things going on - a collection of mid-drive bikes and a pretty cool powered wheel conversion kit called the Omni Wheel. The mid-drives are their own design and they seem to have a pretty legit product line. The bikes start around $2100, the Omni Wheel starts around $1200. And their Black Friday sale starts (!@#$%) on Thanksgiving and will get you somewhere close to 20% off depending when you log in.

 

Now, the one I am more excited about - you know me and my obsession with cargo bikes - is the Cyber Monday sale at Rad Power Bikes.You have possibly seen my ramblings about the RadWagon. Rad Power sent me an email about the Cyber Monday sale, but they did not give any price cut details, just a teaser. (Rad Power, thank you for waiting until Monday!)

 

 

The RadWagon costs $1700. The RadRover is $1500. Who knows what the sale will be? If it's a BOGO sale, give me a call!

 

May you find an e-bike or a powered wheel under your tree, and may it carry you on many petroleum-free adventures and commutes.

 

PS. I'll let you know if you I get any more cool emails.

Another Look at Daymak Electric Bikes and Scooters and Such

Once in a while I re-post desktop vacation videos. You may have caught one of the Danny Macaskill videos, the ones I sometimes head to for a ten-minute mindsweeper. Sometimes it's all the break I need to prepare me for another couple of hours of work.

Well, my next recommendation is not quite that, but for those of you who are interested in electric bikes and scooters, you might find this one intriguing.

Getting to the video: Just go to daymak.com and don't click on anything. Daymak has a random shuffle going with lots of video of their products. (People keep asking about my dream job, I think I'd like to shoot, edit, and produce Daymak videos for a living.) Enjoy the videos, but don't expect any Danny Macaskill stuff.

[Blogger note: I have never seen a Daymak product in person.]

You see, Daymak intrigues me. I had seen them in the past and discounted them as a distributor of some really mediocre looking Chinese e-bikes and scooters. Then their break-out product hit Kickstarter, and I started paying better attention. It was the Beast. They met their Kickstarter goal and delivered their product in a timely manner.  And people even seem to be happy with them.

So, I did a little more research and found that Daymak had previously created a predecessor to the powered wheels (Flykly, Copenhagen Wheel, Evelo, etc.) that are all the rage these days and put it in a bright yellow bike. And it's actually pretty cool when you check it out.

Daymak Shadow

 

On the heels of the Beast came the Daymak Drive System. Or maybe I used the wrong verb tense since it has still not made it to production. The DDS is very much like the Copenhagen wheel and such with the added bonus of built in solar panels for supplemental charging. And they've hoped to bring it in at considerably less money than those others. Still waiting, but I look forward to seeing what it turns into.

 

Daymak DDS

 

The most recent innovative product from Daymak? Well, it may not be that innovative, but it does look like a game-changer among e-bikes. At first glance it seems a pretty standard machine. A hardtail hybrid, twenty-one speed with a low-powered front hub motor and a removable lithium battery. What makes it exceptional is its really low weight and its really low price and its exotic material list. An e-bike under 35 (or even 28) pounds, under $2000, and made out of carbon fiber. And if you jump on the Kickstarter train, it can be had under $1000. And this from a company that has actually delivered on what seemed like a long-shot Kickstarter - the Beast. (And it's pretty sexy in black suede.)

 

Daymak EC1 Kickstarter

 

Yep, Daymak keeps surprising me, especially for a company that offers things that look like this:

 

 

May Daymak keep surprising us, and may we keep having new and better options for staying away from gasoline while having a very enjoyable ride.



Good News Everyone: Flykly, Copenhagen Wheel, and Fido

Emails from Fido and Superpedestrian came in this week, and Flykly has a new product and a new kickstarter to kick it off.

Simple and cool: the Fido

I will start with my favorite. Jeb Gast and crew (all of whom I hope to meet someday) are entrepreneurial scooter heroes to me. I have followed Jeb's story for years because I have followed electric scooters in the states, and he has been present throughout my searches. I first discovered him running a shop called Soundspeed Scooters in Seattle. He worked with gas and electric scooters there and even created a conversion kit for turning your old Earth-hating Vespa into a beautiful green machine. If you google "electric Vespa" you can still find lots of info about those Seattle days and scoots.

But Jeb (apparently) discovered the same thing I discovered when I converted an old Vespa to electric - they don't make the ideal electric scooter. I went looking for better candidates to convert; Jeb decided to create a better scooter. So, he designed such a beast and then set off on the daunting task of going from an idea and one machine to a full-fledged manufacturer of a high-quality, user-friendly scooters - the Fido.

And, if you know vintage scooters, you will probably recognize vintage design elements adapted for a modern machine: the simplicity of the old Cushmans, the simple maintenance of the Vespas with their easily removable wheels, and the strength and simplicity of the Lambretta's tubular frames. Did you notice that I used the world "simplicity" too many times? Well, that was part of Gast's plan. He wanted to build a machine that the end user could easily maintain and even repair if need be.  Good shops to service scooters are hard to find and afford, so he wanted to build a scooter for the common human being with simple tools.

I look at lots of electric two-wheeler plans and companies, and I admire this machine and company more than most anything I have seen. I hope they thrive, and I get excited each time I receive an email update from Fido. Which I did this week. There was news of lots of testing, a new employee, and updates to their really cool digs in Kalamazoo. They report that they are heading into pre-production. Yes, I am excited for the Fido team!

Check out the Fido blog here and enjoy the short video of the Fido in action.

Flykly Smart Ped: What a great idea!

Flykly has a new product out, and this one is a scooter, and it makes a lot of sense. I will readily admit that I am not a huge fan of kick-n-go scooters. If I were 37 years younger I would be a big fan, but being the oldfatguy that I am, they just don't hold that much appeal, but the new Flykly scooter might just get me past my oldfatguy prejudices.

Folded Flykly

It's a small, foldable machine that could help you with mid-distance or last-mile travel and replace a bike or electric bike for lots of tasks. It seems a perfect application of the powered wheel, possibly even a better application than the electric bicycle. (It feels a little sacrilegious to type that.) (And I have to say it - Flykly is putting out a second product while the oh-so-long-awaited Copenhagen Wheel is just starting to roll.) Check out the scooter and the kickstarter to learn more.

I hope you like red!

Superpedestrian (Copenhagen Wheel) sent out an email this week. The email communicates that things are heating up for them - they even feature a video of a person in the real world who has actually finally received one: video here. It looks like they may actually get a product out there. (I am still thankful that I did not ask my family to sacrifice the "deposit" money to pre-order a CW two years ago when the opportunity was first put out there. I would have had to do a lot of apologizing and regretting.)

The most exciting part of the email for me is that it also features a Copenhagen Wheel review from Electric Bike Review. It's a very comprehensive review and answers a lot of questions about the CW. Even the comments are worth a read. (If you like e-bikes and you don't yet know EBR, you are in for a treat. Enjoy!) It really should be an amazing product and good enough to get past the bitterness of vastly delayed delivery.

May your week bring lots of good news and may you find the wheels that reward you and and the planet.

Copenhagen vs. Flykly Follow-up (Sort of) and my e-bike

In case you ever wondered about the MH blog post stats, these are the all-time greatest hits.

The runaway post for this blog is unquestionably the Copenhagen Wheel vs. Fykly post. Almost a year after being published, it still gets multiple visits each day. I don't know if anyone is actually reading it, but readers all over the planet click on it every day. In the post I asked myself a series of questions, which I will now try to answer, even the rhetorical ones. (Bear with me, I do have a reason for doing this.)

Who can I call to pick me up?
My wife told me she would have happily done so.

How committed am I to this National Bike Challenge thing?
Apparently, pretty snagging committed - I am still at it.

Whose idea was this anyway?
Some stupid MH writer thought he could become leaner and greener by riding a bike to work.

When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
The Flykly apparently started shipping in January (2015) and Superpedestrian is still taking Copenhagen Wheel pre-orders and hoping to ship this spring (which is now).

Is this what fall and winter are going to be like?
They were pretty rough, snagit!

Does Cinnabon deliver to moving targets?
Believe it or not, they don't even deliver to non-moving targets.

Is it time to order an electric bike kit?
I thought it was. I sold the undependable electric motorcycle and used a tiny portion to order a kit.

When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
See answer above.

Should I look for a job closer to home?
Nope, I like my job and love the people!

Isn't "telecommute" a beautiful word?
It really is - four-syllables bookeneded by a "t" sound....

Why is that woman in the Tahoe laughing at me?
I don't know, but they are still laughing.

Does this mountain bike tire make my butt look bigger?
It did. I finally invested in a skinnier tire, and the old caboose looks much more petite now.

When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
See answer above again.

Which one should I buy?
These days, I would probably lean toward the GeoOrbital wheel, but it's not shipping yet either.

Will I spend the whole winter waiting for a wheel that ships "this fall"?
Indeed, I would have.

Should I just spend the money on a lesser bike kit that is currently available?
I did that. I built a really cool bike, but it was not easy and required a fair amount of trial and error. Learn more below.

Which of them should I buy????!!!!!
Probably neither.

So, let's talk about the one I did buy. I went to Green Bike Kit and ordered their 36 volt 250-350W rear geared hub motor kit on a 26" wheel. By the time it made it from China to my house, I had about $550 tied up in the conversion kit.

Ain't she pretty?

 

It took a while to install it, and I eventually figured out that the PAS system was incompatible with the bottom bracket on my fairly standard mountain bike, and the LED meter really needed the PAS sytem in order to work effectively. And 250-350W really means 250W and that's really not enough power to get a fat boy like me around. So, I ordered this controller, did away with the PAS setup and LED meter, and now I have a very usable electric bicycle that is capable of hauling me and my petite-looking caboose, but I have to pedal a lot to make any impressive progress.

(FYI, the only other physical problem I have encountered is that the connector between the charger and the bottle battery is very poor and needs to wedged into place in order to charge the battery.)

Overall, I am (mostly) happy with the quality of the components, but I do not think it is suitable for a novice installer or anyone without a fairly strong knowledge of bikes, e-bikes, or electronics. (I overestimated my own knowledge and skills on this choice.) The installation instructions are terrible, generic, and incomplete, and the company representatives tried hard to answer all questions, but the language barrier proved to be a substantial one. (I wish I had spent a few hundred more at a place that could answer questions and offer advice on the initial purchase.)

The sad part is that I almost never ride it. After participating in the National Bike Challenge last year, I found myself a lot stronger and more capable of riding in adverse conditions. (And, the NBC has no category for e-bike miles.) Also, I really like not having to charge the non-electric bike. I also like being less worried about weather and theft with the standard bike.

The true beauty of a standard bicycle is the simplicity. I am healthy enough to ride a regular bike and my commute is not overwhelmingly long (10 miles round trip), so I built an e-bike I do not really need. And it gathers dust as I get stronger.

E-bikes encourage more cycling, research says

E-bikes have a definite list of virtues, but not everyone needs one. (I blame it all on the National Bike Challenge!) And I am really glad that I did not pre-order a Copenhagen Wheel way back when I first started drooling over them.

May you find the green transportation that serves you best - I will endeavor to keep making mistakes on your behalf.

Electric Bike Minipost: Kickstarter for yet another Copenhagen Wheel Competitor

Another one!

Okay, they are getting hard to keep up with. The Centinel Wheel is $899 on the Kickstarter campaign, but it does not inspire much confidence when the poster bike has the front forks mounted backwards. (To be fair, in the video the fork keeps reversing. It's very disconcerting.) It does have two electric motors, 360W, and a 24 volt battery. They plan to ship in April. ;-)

You can learn more in this Gizmag article:

Centinel Wheel makes bikes into e-bikes

May we all end up with the powered wheel we deserve, or something like that.

Flykly wins the race - at least to shipping

Tired of waiting for your autonomous powered rear wheel? Well, if you're a fan of the Flykly Smart Wheel and you have $1100 lying around, you are in luck!  I won't bore you with details - here is the link:

The FlyKly Smart Wheel for Bicycles is Now Available and First to Hit the Market in the Movement to Usher in a New Era in Urban Transportation

May you enjoy your roll!

Copenhagen Wheel / MH Greatest Hits

 

In the brief history of this blog, there have been two runaway posts. The most viewed post (but not for long) is the Mad Max Prius post. The second-most-viewed post is the Flykly vs. Copenhagen Wheel post, and that one still has lots of momentum. So, I thought I would collect all of the driven wheel posts for you in one entry.

Premature optimism:
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2013/12/woohoo-its-real-electric-bike-news.html

The Flykly: (A good one for those of you trying to justify the investment in a e-bike)
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-very-simple-e-bike-conversion.html

Daymak DDS Wheel:
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/07/kickstarter-followup-daymak-beast-with.html

The Really popular post:
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-copenhagen-wheel-vs-flykly-versus.html

Daymak and GeoOrbital
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/11/two-more-copenhagen-wheel-and-flykly.html

Copenhagen Update:
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/12/copenhagen-wheel-update-plus-fun-with.html

Evelo:
http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/12/copenhagen-wheel-flykly-daymak.html

May your chosen wheel carry you into a happy new year and all that.

Copenhagen Wheel, Flykly, Daymak, GeoOrbital - Add the Evelo Omni to the list!

So none of those other powered bike wheels tickle your fancy? Check out the Evelo Omni Wheel. This one is a front-only, 36 volt, 350 watt, pedal assist - no throttle, guaranteed to ship in March 2015, 26" or 700c, powered bicycle wheel. It has a few different battery options, ranges from $999-1499, and it comes in Apple's favorite color - white.

Want to know more? They have a slick and informative website.

Evelo Omni Wheel

I learned from the website that I am too big for their wheel -  if you and your bike together weigh more than 250 pounds, you too are out of its range, but Evelo will sell you a complete bike that's well suited to persons of our size for a little over $2000.

May you enjoy the ride, regardless of which wheel you choose.

Copenhagen Wheel Update, Plus Fun with Captioning

"It's a robot, but it's also a vehicle."

"We are building in more testing time to ensure the best possible product."

 

Let's hear it for the (Green?) Motor City!

 

Video here: Fall 2014 Copenhagen Wheel Update

Now go back and watch it again with the Closed Caption option - it's much more fun! Here is my favorite sequence:

"... riders pedaling very naturally. We've redesigned the housing of the wheel using exotic...

...alloys instead of aluminum."

 

"...production will ramp up in the spring."

 

May you find humor while waiting...and waiting...and waiting.

 

I am sure it will be worth the wait, but I have real sympathy for those who sent in their money back in 2013. May their spring be glorious!

Two More Copenhagen Wheel and FlyKly Competitors: Daymak DDS and GeoOrbital

Snagit, it is a great time to watch North American e-bike innovation!

Daymak is Canadian, eh?

Daymak makes its way back onto the Mesquite Hugger e-bike radar with the DDS. A cool idea - a complete wheel system that includes a 15W/hr solar charging system. The motor is a geared 250W and the battery is a 36V 12Ah lithium polymer. Another distinguishing factor for this one is that it uses a handlebar mounted wireless throttle/transmitter, which has its own solar panel and can be used to charge your smartphone, which can be used to monitor functions via Bluetooth connection. This Canadian marvel is set to come in at $699 - $100 cheaper than the Copenhagen Wheel.

Daymak DDS Promo Video

Never Fear - I like his t-shirt!

BikemanforU DDS Interview (BikemanforU is my new favorite bike reviewer)



And now for something completely different:

The GeoOrbital - an electric wheel with a Boston Accent

 

In other developmental motorwheel news, Electric Bike Report featured a very different approach to the same idea. This idea was birthed at Cambridge, so it has a pedigree similar to the Copenhagen Wheel. The differentiating factor for this one is that the center of the wheel stays stationary while the outer rim and tire do the turning. Details are a little scarce, but this setup uses a 350W motor with a wired throttle, and the company, GeoOrbital, hopes to sell their wheel for less than $500.

Here is the link to the article with a short video on BetaBoston.com.

May the wheel on your bike go round and round (under its own power).

The Copenhagen Wheel vs. FlyKly (The versus week continues!)

The Battle of the Self-Contained, Electric-Assist Bicycle Wheels!

Riding the bike to work this morning was tough. I have come to learn that the bike is an amplifier. If it's hot outside, the bike makes it hotter. If there is a gradual incline, the bike makes it a hill. A hill becomes a mountain.

This morning, a breeze became a wind. Each time I turned south or rode into an open area, the wind started pushing back. There was no coasting to be done. The twenty-five-minute ride became a thirty-two-minute ride. And the trip up the stairs to my office...

Those extra seven minutes gave me extra time to think. Lots of questions pedaled around my brain:

Who can I call to pick me up?
How committed am I to this National Bike Challenge thing?
Whose idea was this anyway?
When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
Is this what fall and winter are going to be like?
Does Cinnabon deliver to moving targets?
Is it time to order an electric bike kit?
When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
Should I look for a job closer to home?
Isn't "telecommute" a beautiful word?
Why is that woman in the Tahoe laughing at me?
Does this mountain bike tire make my butt look bigger?
When are the FlyKly and the Copenhagen Wheel shipping?
Which one should I buy?
Will I spend the whole winter waiting for a wheel that ships "this fall"?
Should I just spend the money on a lesser bike kit that is currently available?
Which of them should I buy????!!!!!

Obviously, I came up with no answers while riding. All the oxygen was going to my muscles, and the brain is a little iffy even when there is plenty of oxygen.

Much later, after catching my breath, I typed "flykly versus copenhagen wheel" in the Google box. (I never use caps in the Google box.)

And an article popped up.

I had already been leaning toward the Copenhagen Wheel. It had four advantages for me:
Like Howard Wallowitz, it graduated from MIT.
I heard about it first.
It is 48V/350W instead of 36V/250W - refer back to the "classified as obese" blog entry.
I can sell more advertising space for West Crust Pizza on the Copenhagen Wheel.

Then I read the article. The writer of the 3-part article turned out to be a much bigger fan of the Copenhagen Wheel, the company's approach to building, testing, and customer service, and to their chances of continuing to evolve and improve their product.

If you always wanted to learn more about these two competing products, check out the article on solidsmack.com for more details.

May the challenges of your commute not be amplified.

Kickstarter Followup: The Daymak Beast (with a FlyKly / Copenhagen Wheel Tie-In)

I have been really intrigued with the Beast. And I think it's mostly because I am cheap and want to be green.

Here are its attributes:
It is cheaper than most electric bikes (in any form) - if it were priced at $3000, I would not even consider it.
It re-charges itself if you leave it in the sun.
It has lithium batteries.
It has that pseudo-Ruckus appeal.
No fossil fuels are required for its operation.
Its parent company is located in North America.
It is classified as a bicycle - no license/registration/insurance.
My wife still loves me no matter how dorky I would look riding it.
It is named after Dr. Hank McCoy.

So, I decided to check out the parent company a little more. You can too at www.daymak.com.

And I was a little less excited. But only a little less. They are dealers of lots of generic Chinese electric vehicles that look a little sketchy in many cases. And their on-line reputation was pretty poor a few years ago, but that seems to have improved over the last two years. And strangely, most of their electric bicycles have higher price tags than the Beast.

While I was on their site, however, I did run across something very interesting - the Shadow ebike. I have been waiting to see when we would start seeing this - another product like the Copenhagen Wheel. Notice that the Shadow has no external signs of being an electric bike: no cables, no wires, no battery pack, no controller, no brakes. (Actually, if you look very closely, it does have a coaster brake and a thumb throttle.) Most everything that makes this thing an ebike is located in the front wheel.

With apologies to the poor Canadian guy in the photo - but those big yellow wheels are just crying out to be smileyed!

To be honest, I would much rather have a Copenhagen Wheel or a FlyKly to convert my exisiting bike to electric, but neither is scheduled to ship until the fall, and I am spoilt enough to want it now while the weather is really hot and the traffic is light. So, I guess I'll keep pedaling without assistance a little longer. Sigh.

But snagit! It's an exciting time to see electric vehicles evolving!

May no one cover your face with a smiley today.