Electric Bikes -N- Scooters Blog

Archive for November, 2008

This picture was taken of avid biker in Arizona as he sits atop of one of the most advanced electric scooter imports to the US, the Vectrix.   Actually this is the latest incarnation of the Vectrix called the VX-1.  Apparently, American motorcycle show roomsare starting to showcase the Vectrix along with their other cycles and scooters.

To me the Vectrix looks like something right out of the popular japanese animae film, Akira.  It has a real sleek futuristic style and delivers on performance. Even though the Vectrix has a 125 volt nickle metal hydride battery pack that can deliver high power to the vehicles advanced electric motor, ( The Vectrix can go from 0 to 50 in just 6.5 seconds and it is just about noiseless.) it only has about a 55 mile range before it needs to power up again.

This last point is what makes many buyers and cycle enthusiasts a bit queasy along with its high end price tag. A new Vectrix can run you between $8,000 and $9,000 dollars which has many scooter and cyclists scratching their heads wondering if the range fits the price.  As for gas savings, we all know that the Vectrix is probably a good way to go and with newer battery technology arriving each day perhaps we’ll see the day when an Easyrider can ride into the sunset without having to worry about a place to it plug in at.

One of the most popular inquiries into electric bikes that I usually get is about electric bike batteries where to find them and which ones to buy. I personally think that one of the first things you should check out before actually committing to purchasing an electric bike is the type of battery the ebike is going to use, its cost and haw available it is to purchase.

The last thing that you will want to do is purchase an electric bike and then have a difficult time outfitting it with a battery. If you buy a very common type of electric bicycle, like a Schwinn ebike, then you will probably not have a very difficult time finding a battery for it.

However, if you purchase an more exotic model from a company like Day 5 Bikes, then you may have to purchase one from the distributor. At any rate, one of the best resources an electric bike owner can have is a website that they can refer to when they need to consult a resource.

One of the sites that I have found has been NYCE Wheels . This site has a wide variety of electric bike batteries and it even has them categorized.  You can look up the ebike that you own on their menu and find the type of electric battery that you need.

Actually, this site has evolved over the last couple of years and the interface has a menu on it that has expanded.  So,  if you are in the market for an electric bicycle battery then NYCE Wheels may be the place for you!

For those of you that want to see what’s being shelled out around the country as far as gas prices go, you can go to this site: Gas Buddy According to this map, the entire state of New York and most of California are paying way more than their fair share of the loot. They seem to have the highest prices in the whole country!

It really doesn’t make much sense to me seeing how those states are the one’s that get all of the top drawer legislators. However, if you are a company that wants to make a profit then you hit the people that have the money to spend and apparently NY and CA have more money than anybody because they spend more per capita on elections than anybody.

Oh, well those places have the highest taxes and the highest gas prices and yet they keep electing the same people over and over again to run their state’s affairs. I guess that is their business (or at least the Oil industry’s business!)

Anyway, if you want to see what the rest of the country is paying go to : www.gasbuddy.com at least you’ll feel a little better when you pull up to the pump knowing that some states are paying quite a bit more than you.

Sometimes people change things that you already thought were perfect to begin with.  However, there is a electric bicycle company that has just done that.  The Rayos Electric bike is one of those bikes that has been revised. This bike was formerly called the Elec-Tech bike and it has undergone many more changes than just revising the name.

The Rayos Electric Bicycle is imported by the American company at : Electric-Bikes.com where they extensively review and publish material about this electric bicycle.

Among the newer modifications to this bike are:

An improved front suspension system, easy to take on some rough terrain should the need arise.
A direct-drive freewheeling propulsion system. This is a newer system that allows the bike to conserve the energy as you utilize the electric part of the bike’s system which also comes with over sized bearings for more reliability on the system.

However despite these updates, the most important improvements that you can look forward to is the 14 amp-hour 24-volt battery system for extended range. In the world of electric bikes batteries and range are everything. Thjis bikes system allows for a good solid range while offering a quicker charge time.

Check it out HERE

Happy Halloween to all you electric bikes and scooters fans out there!  In case many of you don’t know it, I am a teacher and we have actually renamed Halloween to “Neewolah Oz Fest.”  (It’s a long story as to how we got that name…)  Anyway, as I sit here and hand out candy to the few trick or treaters that we have out there, I thought I’d sit down and do a quick review of a really beautiful and cool electric bike called “The Optibike”.

I think that having an Optibike would be a real treat, because it is a beautiful, modern electric bicycle that offers beauty, speed and performance o a very modern level.  One of the main features of  is that it is very similar to a fitness bike while giving you the power of an electric bike.  Many people, like myself, can ride a bicycle for fitness while we aren’t fit enough to get up many hills that may be too long or extreme.  The Optibike is one of those inventions that easilybe ridden like a trail bike while giving you plenty of electric bike power !

The folks at Optibike are using a different type of marketing strategy that many other companies may have over looked.  For instance, they are taking the fitness issue pretty seriously by  publishing statistics about your health that may sway you in favor of their product, such as:

•46% reduction in cardiovascular disease

•30% reduction in the risk of cancer

•30% reduction in stress

•26% risk reduction of type 2 diabetes

*Based on results of 1 hour of exercise per day CDC

However, if you are like me an somehow sadistically enjoy avoiding exercise, then you will probably be interested in the fact that  the Optibike series has loads of power for electric bike riding.  However, don’t expect to get one of these first class rides cheap, because they are a little spendy.  Their top of the line electric bicycle can run you $12,000 dollars or more!(Heck that’s just about the price I paid for my Master’s degree.)

But with most things that are worth while in life, sometimes you have to pay for quality. Optibikes seem to be all about quality.  To see their four outrageously wonderful bikes go to: The Optibike Site