The bicycle.

[conniption]

The Copenhagen Wheel official product release

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S10GMfG2NMY

[JackRiddler]

Now that is something. Pre-orders are $700, eventually should be costing a small fraction of that. Want to see how it fits in with gearbox, however.

[elfismiles]

That's really cool ... though I gotta wonder ... can it be hacked to cause a crash? And that wifi under yer ass likely aint healthy after prolonged exposure.

But still very very cool.

The Copenhagen Wheel official product release
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S10GMfG2NMY

[Iamwhomiam]

I'd prefer the older model that operates at either of three fixed top speeds depending upon it's wattage. I'd rather have a throttle that I could choose to apply rather than depending upon the wheel's memory to give me a boost when I'd rather be slowing down, like stopping for a light or traffic. I think top speed at the highest wattage is about 45mph and the top speed of the lowest wattage wheel/motor is about 15mph. 15, 30 and 45mph I believe.

[JackRiddler]

Yeh, the part where you're hooking a dynamo motor and battery on the back wheel of your bike up to a smart phone and an app then drives for you seems totally superfluous. But you know it's a selling point to make it high tech.

[Iamwhomiam]

Oh, I agree, Jack. I'm a forever cyclist, but the ride up my mile-long 40 degree inclined road to my house is a killer. I've looked into these before and see the sense and logic of the high-tech incorporated into this Copenhagen wheel. But unless I'm flying a plane, I don't want any auto-override device kicking in when I'm stopping for cross-traffic, boosting me into the intersection because it might 'think' I've tuckered-out.

I saw the first one maybe 5 or 6 years ago at a Gathering of the Vibes festival. Battery pack in a hand-built wooden box streamlined to fit the downtube, motor built into front and rear wheels. Zero to 45mph in a flash!

Gearing is another matter. When I was a kid I had a motor bike; an English Racer bicycle with a rotary lawn mower engine mounted between the downtube and the top bar. 23 inch frame with 20 inch wheels replacing the 27 inch it came with from the factory. I installed a three-speed Sturmey Archer rear hub and in 2nd I could go 65 at half throttle. Never had the guts to use 3rd gear! And soon thereafter when to a normal single speed hub, which could go about 60 wide-open.

Now I have a 1965 Honda Dream made like an old tin toy out of stamped metal. Its frame is not tubular, but a metal left and right side welded together. 305 engine, the motor that made Honda.

But it's not a moped! And I like pedaling.

[JackRiddler]

Had an epic bike experience today (as in, fun, caught in a big deluge after going up a mountain), so when I ran across this classic thread, had to bump.

I had never noticed this post before. Now there is a helmet I could wear.

[thrulookingglass]

There are all sorts of kits out there as to hybridize a bicycle with either a gas driven or electric engine and they're all pretty innovative. Society is organized horribly, as we have often noted here, with it built on the obtaining of money not on community. Boston streets are dangerous for cyclists as are many other cities as well. That Copenhagen wheel is sweet! I have to say we get too little exercise quite often and eat too much. The traditional gas or diesel automobile coupled with their private ownership has damaged the quality of life on earth. They always talk about shit you can see from space...paved paradise and put up a parking lot. How many trees were lost to the highways we've made? And how many pollution machines ride on them every day? I used to do triathlons and there were beautiful moments where I felt me and my sweet 18 gear fuji made a seamless machine together. Pedaling yourself up to 42mph is exhilarating and also about as fast as I could get my bike to go. We really need a mass transit system, some form of train most likely. Bikes are a wonderful invention though. Reminds me of the beginning of Seabiscuit where The Dude is 'trying to build a better horse." Here's a rule to live by: Treasure what you build. Build what you treasure.