electric bikes at a car show

I went to a car show in Seattle this weekend - we took the bus there to avoid traffic and paying a lot to park.

I was amazed to see an electric bicycle company with a few on display including the A2B from Ultra Motor.





There was also another electric bicycle on display, a mountain bike (looked like a Montague, aka "Swiss Bike") that was just shy of $5K. (!!!!) Note: upon a quick internet search, I guess someone does make a Montague electric bike now.



Looks like both bikes have some sort of hub motor to drive the bicycles. I have not yet looked into it further. Also, I didn't study up on how weather-repellent the bikes are.

The staff at the booth were pretty busy and they didn't appear to be set-up for demos. It would have been interesting to see. I just wonder who their demographic is. I would think cyclists might not take them seriously - nor would the people who came to the show to look at cars, trucks, and SUVs. I think quite a few (non-cyclists) would laugh at the notion of paying close to $5K for a bicycle and others (the cyclists) would know exactly which other $5,000 bicycle (or just frame and fork) they'd spend their money on - which would likely weigh 1/5th of the A2B's 72 pounds.

Something tacky about the electric bicycle booth was the inclusion of two (of the same model) of a Segway knock-off, similar to this. These three-wheeled electric-powered "podiums with bike saddles" were quite a bit cheaper than a Segway or one of the electric bikes on display, however, I think they had more in common with an electric mobility chair (like the Rascal) than they did with the Segway or an electric bicycle. Maybe this was in the spirit of showing "green mobility options" - the e-bikes were at the end of a line of other pure electric vehicles.

the premium placed on vintage

I noticed this phenomenon a while back too.

There's a coolness factor associated with vintage rides, perhaps it's the closest thing to a time machine for many of us who had similar bicycles in our youth - in my case, a red Schwinn Stingray. The feel-good cherry on top that comes with saving something from a landfill, plus avoiding buying something new - which took energy and natural resources to produce - may also explain the trend which has pushed up prices of older bicycles.

That's my take on it.

King County Green Bike Program

I've signed up for the King County Green Bike Program. A program which offers bicycles and other incentives for changing your commutes to work from drive alone commutes to bicycling. I may be on a waiting list for a bicycle, so I might just make do with one of my project bikes even though, as you'll read, I've had my share of mechanical issues lately.