MikeFairbanks
100 kW
Well, the tale was told how I wrecked my E-Trike by driving it straight into a tree at 60mph.
Okay, divide that number by 4 or 5 and you get a more accurate version, but it's still a pretty good story.
I was going down hill at about 15mph, maybe a tad more, when I had to veer to my left. Then, almost as suddenly, I had to veer to the right, but the hill sloped down and to the right, so my right rear wheel lifted off the ground. I quickly jerked lightly left to bring it down, and in one split second I realized that I either had to turn sharply and do the Superman (go flying off the trike), or hit the big, old pine tree in front of me. I knew I was heading straight for the tree, and I only had hope of two outcomes: 1. The tree would catch on to the situation quickly and be good enough to get out of my way or, 2. I hit the tree and hope that I don't get killed, hurt, or worse.
Option 2 happened, and the trike hit the tree.
What happened next is a Phamous Pheat of Physics. The entire impact of the crash (remember, it was probably 70-80mph) was taken on the front fork of the tricyle. Now, I realize it wasn't really 80-90mph, but it must have been hard, because the battery (held into place with fairly thick twine and electrical tape attached and tied to metal L-brackets) broke loose and tumbled to the ground. The L-brackets (made of steel) were bent. The front fork bent back 90 degrees.
I'm telling you, it was a miracle of mahem, a marvel of metal. I don't know how it is that I only scraped my knuckles. I'm surprised I didn't go through someone's roof or end up in a swimming pool.
All the people of the park looked, screamed, ran for dear life (well, they looked, at least).
Anyway, the trike was toast, so I called my wife and she came to pick me up. I decided to bring the trike home, even though it failed me and didn't deserve a second look. Here's what it looked like next to the murderer (er, tree) And notice the battery pack on the ground, torn from the STEEL braces on the back platform
And please take note that the trike is about two feet back and to the right of the tree. That was where it came to rest after the impact, so it somehow bounced back there. I have hardly any memory of it. I might have hit my head. I don't know:
When I got home I grabbed a beer, sat in the rocking chair on the front porch, and went into deep thought about what I should do. I was taking pictures of my daughter and dog, when I tried to photograph my wife. She resisted and said, "give me that camera and we'll see how you like getting your picture taken."
Well, I'm ugly, so it don't matter to me if someone takes my picture. There is no good side. So she snapped a shot of me as I gave a goofy faux-angry look, and leaned back.
Then the rocking chair broke, and I tumbled to the ground.
After that, I got out the tools and removed the front wheel and hub motor:
After taking off the entire kit, I threw it all in the garage and went to bed early. I woke up at 2:30 am, not knowing where I was (maybe I did hit my head on that stupid tree), and staggered to the kitchen for some Advil. I then went back to bed.
This morning my wife and youngest went out of town to visit a relative, so I set about doing what any responsible man does when left alone. I did the dishes, took out the trash, did some laundry.
No, wait...that must have been some other guy.
I plotted to get back on the horse, but had to decide how. Should I use my favorite bike, the Trek Pure? Hmmm. Nah, I like that bike a lot. Not going to throw a clunky SLA pack on it. I'll use that bike later when I can afford some real batteries.
Then, out of the corner of my eye is the 99-dollar, Chinese-made, piece o' crap Schwinn that died a long time ago and I somehow resurrected last summer by working hard on the gears. But it was missing a front wheel.
Wait a minute!!!
The trike can't hold a front wheel (bent forks) and the Schwinn from Wal-Mart has no front wheel.
I wonder......
So, I grabbed my kid, and went to Wal-Mart to get a rear rack for the bike. They didn't have any. They had a folding basket and some batteries for Barbie Jeeps, but no rear racks. Bastards! But they had zipties and electrical tape.
Next stop, Chili's. I had a hundred bucks in gift cards, so my oldest daughter and I pigged out on fried cheese, house salad, sirloin steak, potatoes, and mac n cheese. I had three or four cokes and she had a chocolate shake. It hurt to walk out of there.
Okay, on to the bike shop. I found a cheap rear rack: made in China (might as well....the rest of the bike was made there too).
I came home, installed the rear rack, attached the battery, attached the throttle, controller, other stuff, and then ziptied and taped it all together. I test drove it and it did alright, but the back tire had about ten pounds of air, so I only circled the block, came home, charged up the battery, and pumped up the tires. I went inside to cool off while letting the new ride charge and chill. I came back out about an hour later to a full charge (and tires full of air).
And here are the results: It rides true (the wheel wasn't bent. I don't know how the heck that happened...kudos to the guys at Eharmony.com.....er....Ebikekit.com for such a great kit).
The wheel spins true, the battery is still intact, everything works as it should, and now the trike has been magically transformed into a bike. It's pretty fun. I don't like the idea of SLA's back there, and the bike feels (not sure why
) about sixty pounds heavier than it used to, but it rides well and fast. Diggin' it.
So, a new beginning and a new adventure.
I just hope that this time the trees stay the heck out of my way.
Here's the new ride: Schwinn crappy steel bike from Wal-Mart. Steel forks, 36-volt SLA batteries (30 pounds of other stuff), 9-continent motor from Ebikekit.com and a bunch of other crap. It rides well. It's certainly not as nimble as my other bikes, but it goes good.
Note: Look at the torque arm. I drilled a hole in it and attached it to the fork with a strong bolt and locking nut. The fork had an extra hole, and the band that came with the torque arm couldn't fit around the fork, so I improvised, and it worked. Strong, steady, steeeeeeeeel!
Inertia is a property of matter.
Finally, a slob well-done (er, a JOB well-done).
Rides great:
Okay, divide that number by 4 or 5 and you get a more accurate version, but it's still a pretty good story.
I was going down hill at about 15mph, maybe a tad more, when I had to veer to my left. Then, almost as suddenly, I had to veer to the right, but the hill sloped down and to the right, so my right rear wheel lifted off the ground. I quickly jerked lightly left to bring it down, and in one split second I realized that I either had to turn sharply and do the Superman (go flying off the trike), or hit the big, old pine tree in front of me. I knew I was heading straight for the tree, and I only had hope of two outcomes: 1. The tree would catch on to the situation quickly and be good enough to get out of my way or, 2. I hit the tree and hope that I don't get killed, hurt, or worse.
Option 2 happened, and the trike hit the tree.
What happened next is a Phamous Pheat of Physics. The entire impact of the crash (remember, it was probably 70-80mph) was taken on the front fork of the tricyle. Now, I realize it wasn't really 80-90mph, but it must have been hard, because the battery (held into place with fairly thick twine and electrical tape attached and tied to metal L-brackets) broke loose and tumbled to the ground. The L-brackets (made of steel) were bent. The front fork bent back 90 degrees.
I'm telling you, it was a miracle of mahem, a marvel of metal. I don't know how it is that I only scraped my knuckles. I'm surprised I didn't go through someone's roof or end up in a swimming pool.
All the people of the park looked, screamed, ran for dear life (well, they looked, at least).
Anyway, the trike was toast, so I called my wife and she came to pick me up. I decided to bring the trike home, even though it failed me and didn't deserve a second look. Here's what it looked like next to the murderer (er, tree) And notice the battery pack on the ground, torn from the STEEL braces on the back platform
And please take note that the trike is about two feet back and to the right of the tree. That was where it came to rest after the impact, so it somehow bounced back there. I have hardly any memory of it. I might have hit my head. I don't know:
When I got home I grabbed a beer, sat in the rocking chair on the front porch, and went into deep thought about what I should do. I was taking pictures of my daughter and dog, when I tried to photograph my wife. She resisted and said, "give me that camera and we'll see how you like getting your picture taken."
Well, I'm ugly, so it don't matter to me if someone takes my picture. There is no good side. So she snapped a shot of me as I gave a goofy faux-angry look, and leaned back.
Then the rocking chair broke, and I tumbled to the ground.
After that, I got out the tools and removed the front wheel and hub motor:
After taking off the entire kit, I threw it all in the garage and went to bed early. I woke up at 2:30 am, not knowing where I was (maybe I did hit my head on that stupid tree), and staggered to the kitchen for some Advil. I then went back to bed.
This morning my wife and youngest went out of town to visit a relative, so I set about doing what any responsible man does when left alone. I did the dishes, took out the trash, did some laundry.
No, wait...that must have been some other guy.
I plotted to get back on the horse, but had to decide how. Should I use my favorite bike, the Trek Pure? Hmmm. Nah, I like that bike a lot. Not going to throw a clunky SLA pack on it. I'll use that bike later when I can afford some real batteries.
Then, out of the corner of my eye is the 99-dollar, Chinese-made, piece o' crap Schwinn that died a long time ago and I somehow resurrected last summer by working hard on the gears. But it was missing a front wheel.
Wait a minute!!!
The trike can't hold a front wheel (bent forks) and the Schwinn from Wal-Mart has no front wheel.
I wonder......
So, I grabbed my kid, and went to Wal-Mart to get a rear rack for the bike. They didn't have any. They had a folding basket and some batteries for Barbie Jeeps, but no rear racks. Bastards! But they had zipties and electrical tape.
Next stop, Chili's. I had a hundred bucks in gift cards, so my oldest daughter and I pigged out on fried cheese, house salad, sirloin steak, potatoes, and mac n cheese. I had three or four cokes and she had a chocolate shake. It hurt to walk out of there.
Okay, on to the bike shop. I found a cheap rear rack: made in China (might as well....the rest of the bike was made there too).
I came home, installed the rear rack, attached the battery, attached the throttle, controller, other stuff, and then ziptied and taped it all together. I test drove it and it did alright, but the back tire had about ten pounds of air, so I only circled the block, came home, charged up the battery, and pumped up the tires. I went inside to cool off while letting the new ride charge and chill. I came back out about an hour later to a full charge (and tires full of air).
And here are the results: It rides true (the wheel wasn't bent. I don't know how the heck that happened...kudos to the guys at Eharmony.com.....er....Ebikekit.com for such a great kit).
The wheel spins true, the battery is still intact, everything works as it should, and now the trike has been magically transformed into a bike. It's pretty fun. I don't like the idea of SLA's back there, and the bike feels (not sure why
) about sixty pounds heavier than it used to, but it rides well and fast. Diggin' it.So, a new beginning and a new adventure.
I just hope that this time the trees stay the heck out of my way.
Here's the new ride: Schwinn crappy steel bike from Wal-Mart. Steel forks, 36-volt SLA batteries (30 pounds of other stuff), 9-continent motor from Ebikekit.com and a bunch of other crap. It rides well. It's certainly not as nimble as my other bikes, but it goes good.
Note: Look at the torque arm. I drilled a hole in it and attached it to the fork with a strong bolt and locking nut. The fork had an extra hole, and the band that came with the torque arm couldn't fit around the fork, so I improvised, and it worked. Strong, steady, steeeeeeeeel!
Inertia is a property of matter.
Finally, a slob well-done (er, a JOB well-done).
Rides great:
:wink: 
