Would You Race?

How Much Would You Pay?

  • $0 - I don't race.

    Votes: 1 4.8%
  • $0 - I'll race if it's local and free.

    Votes: 5 23.8%
  • $20 - I'll race if it's local and $20 to enter.

    Votes: 10 47.6%
  • $100 - I'll race if it's local and $100 to enter.

    Votes: 3 14.3%
  • $220 - I'll race if it's $20 to enter and transportation would cost $200.

    Votes: 4 19.0%
  • $300 - I'll race if it's $100 to enter and transportation would cost $200.

    Votes: 2 9.5%
  • $420 - I'll race if it's $20 to enter and transportation would cost $400.

    Votes: 1 4.8%
  • $500 - I'll race if it's $100 to enter and transportation would cost $400.

    Votes: 5 23.8%

  • Total voters
    21

safe

1 GW
Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
5,681
Would You Race?

:arrow: If there was an opportunity to race your electric bike would you be interesting and actually go? (be honest)

:arrow: If you are willing to enter a race then would you pay an entry fee?

:arrow: If you are still interested would you pay the transportation costs to get to the race?
 
I'm cheap.
I'd pay like $10 to enter. Winner gets a cheap trophy or certificate.
Any more than that cuts into the beer money.

At some point in the future if there are enough EV's around, then racing could become more serious (and expensive).
 
People might want to factor in a vacation as part of their race schedule plans. If we did it at Sears Point people often will pay a lot of money just for the chance to tour the Wine Country above Sonoma and maybe to drive the Coastline of Highway One. It's a paradise if you can afford the housing over there.

:arrow: Hey that's another idea...

Highway One is a great motorcycle ride that the full sized bikes race on (illegally) all the time. If all else failed it might be fun for those people who now live in the Bay Area of California to simply meet up on Highway One and just see how we do against each other. No entry fee, no official race (no emergency ambulance to give any help either) but a beautiful ride and a great road.

So far it's looking like Electric Bicycle Road Racing isn't going to be easy to get started unless it's done on a local level first. (because it's too expensive otherwise)

I've got a trip planned for the Bay Area in the spring anyway to visit family so I could schedule something for then very easily. (I already have a place to stay, so it's just the airline ticket and getting the bike out there)
 
I'd be willing to spend 20 on a race, simply for the fun factor, i'm competitive but always enjoy a bike ride with friends. :twisted:

200 $ for fuel/food/beer i could make happen, but much more would require some planning..

Only 2 i know that are fairly close to me are Lesss and Weirdeh, how bout it guys ! :mrgreen:
 
Actually, I would not race, even though I said I would. I would travel and pay though. and be pit crew for my ebike.

That because my ebikes can race, but I would look for a much lighter rider. so I wanted to answer with "functional" accu "race" y.

dick
 
Well, I haven't given up on what I tried last year. My basic legal hurdle was the insurance. In my state, to do anything in the public (be it race, picnic, or even a speech) you have to come up with at minimum $1,000,000 insurance policy to cover the event if it's going to be via any public parks, property, etc. Last year, I tried to setup such an event on the Natchez Trace Parkway, because it has no stoplights, it has low speed limits (50MPH and under) and a good variety of scenery that in itself makes for a great ride. That and excellent road conditions. But, after spending half a year search, I couldn't find any insurance company that would cover it. I finally contacted the Parks Commission about this and said "hey, no one will insurance this, so how is everyone else doing it?" and they referred me to a insurance company in Illinois. I talked with the guy in charge and was about to get everything done when at the last week, somehow all the paperwork got lost. The parks people didn't have any proof of insurance and thus would not allow event. The insurance company lost the guy that was handling my case (as in he quit to go work somewhere else) and it came tumbling down, so I just had to cancel everything.

This year is different as I'm going to exploit a loophole. At the very end of Natchez Trace is a small area that has a gas station, restaurant and a fairly medium sized motel. (Called the famous Loveless Cafe & Motel) http://www.lovelesscafe.com/

I've been talking with the owner and he's up for an e-bike event. Basically, we can use his parking lot as the starting point, and then go on to the Natchez Trace (which is a easy "merge onto the trace" entry point, no delay, no stoplight, no needing to cross traffic, just merge right on the start of the Trace) at which the event can continue from there. If all goes well, not only can one stay at a cheap motel before the event, you'll be right there in the morning when it begins. But I didn't want to get all the cheer about this out until everything was truly final and I could present everyone a solid "it will happen on this date/time, to go ahead and plan for it" kind of announcement.

This gets me away from the "you gotta have $1M insurance and a mountain load of paperwork" if I did this directly on the Natchez Trace vs. starting it somewhere else and just having it continue on it from there.

Once I pass that hurdle, then it opens up many miles of roadway and "rest stop" areas every few miles that we can use for whatever our imaginations can think of that might make it an interesting e-bike convention of sorts. That's also why I've bookmarked the "racing" topic started in the general discussion area :mrgreen:
 
I'd race if I didn't have to pay anything. If I had a bike, anyway.

I'd pay if there was a prize.

Y'all can race my skateboard and lose :twisted:!
 
A ride or a race? Along the Natchez Trace a ride would seem appropriate while a race, which is definitely against the rules, could prove dangerous. Then again racing is dangerous wherever it's done.

At this point in the e-bike evolution both racing and rides seem like a good idea to help spread the word and garner community interest. I would definitely participate in a well organized local ride. Traveling to a distant location however is a different animal and could make for an interesting and exciting event. When I was a member of the Rolls Royce Owners Club in order to participate in a event you had to drive your car to the event, no trailering unless the car was manufactured prior to WWII and then you only had to drive the last one hundred miles. Most folks though still drove all the way. A little dirt on the undercarriage or wear on the tires was not a point deducting penalty. The motorcycle events in Daytona however have most vehicles trailered in as these guys seem mostly to want to party.

With an e-bike event I would imagine charging facilities would have to be either provided or readily available and several different classes set up. It would provide an excellent opportunity for vendors to sponsor and show/demonstrate their wares and to participate in the event itself. I would also think a chase vehicle would be necessary and it would need the ability to carry bikes that have broken down.

Another consideration is that the bicycle rider who chooses to ride any distance on the Natchez Trace may be considered, however loosely, an athlete. This may not be so with riders of electric machines as part of the allure is the lack of physical activity.

Good luck with the planning and I sincerely hope your plans come to fruition. It's probably >700 miles from here to the Loveless Cafe so I doubt seriously that would be in my range either riding or trailering, I'll wait for a Florida or Georgia event.

Mike
 
A lot of the race organization and class definition topics have been discussed in the thread in the General Discussion area.

The costs of trying to "reinvent the wheel" and create an event from scratch seems pretty high. I know that there's a natural tendency to want to do everything ourselves, but while that tendency got us into the electric bike area as "pioneers" it doesn't help us to make it grow.


:arrow: We are going to need to squeeze into something else that already exists... I don't think there is any other way.

The best targets of our efforts are existing race tracks because they have had all the crashes of machines that are far, far more dangerous than ours in the past. Since they haved survived as a business after tragedy they have figured it out already. No lawyer will claim:

"Oh, Johnny had no idea that racing at Sears Point (Infinion) might be dangerous."

...and this will be true of all the racetracks we might look at.


From a safety standpoint the tracks have all kinds of nice features that I personally would prefer to have. Riding on streets, parking lots and bike trials would expose us to a lot of dangers that if we want to be OFFICIAL need to be factored out. Riding on something like Highway One on the Coast of California is cheap and fun, but also potentially deadly because one mistake and you literally can fall off a cliff into the ocean.

Sears Point (Infineon) should be our first target because it's the best track for it and has the best local population to be interested. We should see if the AFM (amateur road racing) would let us sneak into one. We could squeeze in one lap in between their races.


http://www.afmracing.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

March 22 & 23 Buttonwillow
April 26 & 27 Infineon :!:
May 24 & 25 Infineon :!:
July 5 & 6 Thunderhill
August 16 & 17 Infineon :!:
September 6 & 7 Thunderhill
September 26/27 & 28** Infineon :!:
October 18 & 19 Buttonwillow


Other than that (which might not be easy to make happen) we should choose as our second target a go kart track. They have them all over the country and though the fans won't be there to watch a race it might be possible to set up a vendor area in their parking lot assuming they have one.
 
mvadventure said:
A ride or a race? Along the Natchez Trace a ride would seem appropriate while a race, which is definitely against the rules, could prove dangerous.
Another consideration is that the bicycle rider who chooses to ride any distance on the Natchez Trace may be considered, however loosely, an athlete. This may not be so with riders of electric machines as part of the allure is the lack of physical activity.

I would lean more towards a "rally" type race rather than speed only set-up. Touring good trails is lots of fun, and have a BBQ at the end is already good enough for me. With serious racing as part of the bigger picture but not the focal point. This, It seems, is what most poeple want by what i'm reading.
Although I would love to race my, off-the-shelf recumbent bike against "Safe's" racing machine :)
 
:?: Would someone travel long distances to do a "cruise ride" and then barbeque?

I think if there is to be a "big event" that does the same sort of thing like the "X Games" or the "Gravity Games" or something along those lines you need to think bigger than that. Imagine it being the year 2010 and you turn on your tv to watch a race where electric vehicles in different categories are doing their thing. It's not that far off... and while we might be participants in creating it we also might be simply distant bystanders to it happening because someone else will do it ahead of us.

You HAVE to be thinking that those that are looking for the "next big thing" are starting to salivate at the idea of "Going Green" and that in their minds the "Eco Green" is nothing compared to the "$$$ Green". (to quote the movie "Wall Street".... "Greed is Good" and so "Green Greed is the Best Greed of All")

:arrow: I'm just trying to wake everyone up here.

If you want to be part of something HUGE now is the time to realize that the entire world is headed this way.

Don't UNDERESTIMATE the rate once things get moving. These things tend to start slowly and are hard to see clearly, but once they explode it's hard to hang on for the ride.

:arrow: "Going Green" will be as big a surge as the computer age was...
 
safe said:

If you want to be part of something HUGE now is the time to realize that the entire world is headed this way.
Don't UNDERESTIMATE the rate once things get moving. These things tend to start slowly and are hard to see clearly, but once they explode it's hard to hang on for the ride.

:arrow: "Going Green" will be as big a surge as the computer age was...

I like your attitude, whenever my brother and friends do-up a concert for a couple days they hire police & one ambulance crew, which are a lot cheaper than you think, all the kiosks with fries and burgers pay towards the event.
Hey, i'm still for the "race" and hopefully more, I will definately be there if it's on the west coast, I've helped set-up two concerts to my credit, and would love to help break into a new scene.
 
We raced EV's at Infineon during bracket drags. They let the EV's run against each other. It was a standard 1/4 mile drag track. I forget how much it cost for each run, but it wasn't too bad. You have to pay to get into the facility too. This was sanctioned under NEDRA I think. There were lots of safety rules, ect.

It was fun other than having the noise from all the gassers there.

I liked it better at EV only events where the competition was much more informal with no entry fees or insurance. Just get together and ride. Race each other to the end of the block. I guess a somewhat more structured event would be good, but I don't like all the red tape and expense of a officially approved event.
 
Not to beat a dead horse and not to discourage racing which I have done my share of but if rider participation is the primary goal simply observe most races; lots of spectators to witness only a few racers. Most motorcycle riders going to Daytona know where the Speedway is but have no idea of where the dirt races are run. Even then most never go to a race. They go to party, socialize and ride. Rider participation is in poker runs, charity runs and loosely organized rides to local areas of interest.

Bicyclists are a different breed than motorcyclists, serious bicyclists are a rarer breed with e-bikers the rarest of all. When I see a group of serious bicyclists I see athletes wearing lycra and funny looking helmets riding expensive machines that weigh less than the tools I carry on a normal ride. They have dedicated magazines to their sport and participate in races all over the country and world.

E-bikers on the other hand don't wear lycra. They tend to sit upright and wear Wal-Mart helmets. From reading this forum I believe they are a group of diversified experimenters with totally different goals than the regular biking crowd.

Simply my opinion, and I'm blessed with them, but a regional/local/state rally featuring vendors, a organized ride and highlighted with some racing participants would likely stand a chance of drawing an e-biker crowd and maybe even a few wannabes. A potential venue could be in conjunction with State or County fair as there is frequently either a track or space available to race, sufficient facilities, space for vendors and potential crowd participation. Plus a fair advertises and properly presented the organizers may be happy to include an e-bike event in their advertising. One thing for sure, a great as this forum is, it won't generate a big enough crowd without help.

First though a budget and revenue plan has to be initiated to cover expenses. From this it becomes a matter of setting up a business plan. Who knows, in the right marketplace it could be fun, informative and even profitable.

Mike
 
mvadventure said:
E-bikers on the other hand don't wear lycra. They tend to sit upright and wear Wal-Mart helmets. From reading this forum I believe they are a group of diversified experimenters with totally different goals than the regular biking crowd.

:arrow: Truth tends to be a backward looking thing.

We judge what is real based on previous experience. I agree that in the present state of affairs the "spark" just isn't really into the electric bike world yet. (if you can accept the pun while being hung over after New Years :wink: )

Eventually people will need to change transportation away from a "liquid fuel" based system to the electric charging system. I do believe we will flirt with alternative liquids such as alcohol for as long as the Government Subsidies last (until people realize it's a stupid idea) but then it will be all electric after that.

At some point human nature will take over and all the things that we normally do for fun and excitement (like racing) will get integrated into the new transportation medium. The first people in the electric bike world DON'T necessarily represent the coming "real world" any more than the first computer people represented the acceptance of computers into everyday life.

In the beginning in these major social movements there are many "false ideas" that get adopted by the first people and they end up being a drag on the growth of the movement. It's somewhat Machiavellian, but also true, that the people that are around at the beginning (of anything) are your worst problem as things move forward.

Human nature is the same today as in the past... so we will have to go through all the usual growing pains to move things forward.

One day we want electric bikes that you can go to WalMart and buy for $500 and be able to race around town and get some good performance out of it. Kids will race these things (just like they did with BMX) and as they grow up some will make a sport of it. TV coverage adds some excitement and pretty soon you have a whole new way of life.

:arrow: The "stinky gasoline" crowd will be the old folks that just can't accept change...
 
mvadventure said:
A ride or a race? Along the Natchez Trace a ride would seem appropriate while a race, which is definitely against the rules, could prove dangerous. Then again racing is dangerous wherever it's done.
Rally. It wouldn't be something were you have 5 e-bikes stretched across the road, all starting at once. While I would love to see an event like that, or even participate in one; the Trace is more about good road conditions and scenery. I'm hoping that it can start a tradition for the area and while it would be wonderful to have everyone at this forum be taken to the event with free transportation and hotel stay, with fanfare and news reporters trying to get some camera shots, I have to be realistic and plan for that. I don't plan for it to be the "end of all" of all e-bike events, but I think "more events" around the country is better than "one big event in this far region" of the world where only those within an hour drive will show up.
At this point in the e-bike evolution both racing and rides seem like a good idea to help spread the word and garner community interest. I would definitely participate in a well organized local ride. Traveling to a distant location however is a different animal and could make for an interesting and exciting event. When I was a member of the Rolls Royce Owners Club in order to participate in a event you had to drive your car to the event, no trailering unless the car was manufactured prior to WWII and then you only had to drive the last one hundred miles. Most folks though still drove all the way. A little dirt on the undercarriage or wear on the tires was not a point deducting penalty. The motorcycle events in Daytona however have most vehicles trailered in as these guys seem mostly to want to party.
Yeah, you have it to the point. I want people to be able to think up "hey, I want to go participate in an e-bike event" and look around on Google or where ever and find a local event. I know I've already read about events around the world that do exactly this, some in the UK, some here in the US. So, I want to add to the list of "local events" that people can come to.
With an e-bike event I would imagine charging facilities would have to be either provided or readily available and several different classes set up. It would provide an excellent opportunity for vendors to sponsor and show/demonstrate their wares and to participate in the event itself. I would also think a chase vehicle would be necessary and it would need the ability to carry bikes that have broken down.

Another consideration is that the bicycle rider who chooses to ride any distance on the Natchez Trace may be considered, however loosely, an athlete. This may not be so with riders of electric machines as part of the allure is the lack of physical activity.

Good luck with the planning and I sincerely hope your plans come to fruition. It's probably >700 miles from here to the Loveless Cafe so I doubt seriously that would be in my range either riding or trailering, I'll wait for a Florida or Georgia event.

Mike
Thanks so much, yeah you are on the money. I want people to be able to bring their $200 wal-mart e-bike and have fun, just as much as the guy who has a custom machine doing 40+ MPH down the trace. If anything, the match could simply be distance based on power and design. Who's e-bike can make it 15 miles out and 15 miles back without dieing. Who's e-bike can do an ultra distance of say 30 miles out and 30 miles back. So instead of being just "who can spend the most money" on their e-bike, it will help level things out a little. More exposure to the media, to the public, to the world. That's more of my goal than "who has the fastest e-bike on the planet".

My favorite thing to watch would be a nice camera show of hundreds of e-bikes all cruising down the Trace. Some going fast, others just going about their business, but in the end, everyone is having fun. :mrgreen:

I would rather people remember the event as "fun, friends, and e-bikes" more than "he had the fastest e-bike because he bought $15K super capacitors with his experimental lithium-ion car batteries :p "

So if all goes well, that's what it will be advertised as, more than "race of the century" 8)
 
I would race even if I had to get there on a train plain in a car or even had to push my bike all the way there.....
No one races EV's on the east coast and well it dont look good untill people open ther eys and shut ther mouths about EV's.....many just diss them and dont even know why most EV's suck(OEM Stock). If you ask me, there are too many companies that sell old school tech in there new bikes for stupid over priced rates for the kinda watts you get for your bike( Look at Xtream scooters) once people can feel the power of EV's then more would race...

If I could get my ass on "Pinks" that car racing show on "Speed" then use a $10,000-15,000 goal for what was in my car, I would smack the shit out of all the gass cars on that show! 10second cars! who cares EV's are wickid faster then that! most people that make EV race cars make a base model when they get into the drag racing part of out "Sport" and only have like 9-10grand into ther cars and they pull some great numbers for what little HP they even have!

If a 200hp Electric can smoke a 500hp gasser then you see my point! but Pinks has yet to have the Balls to get an EV on that show :x
 
I might go to an event if it was close and did not interfere with my car race schedule. neither of the scooters I have are race bred stuff. top speed of about 20k would not be much of a crowd pleaser.
 
weirdeh said:
I might go to an event if it was close and did not interfere with my car race schedule. neither of the scooters I have are race bred stuff. top speed of about 20k would not be much of a crowd pleaser.

But your scooters are fun and unusual, that's a crowd pleaser...

If there was a tight, twisty course requiring some riding skill, they could be competetive.
 
fechter said:
weirdeh said:
I might go to an event if it was close and did not interfere with my car race schedule. neither of the scooters I have are race bred stuff. top speed of about 20k would not be much of a crowd pleaser.

But your scooters are fun and unusual, that's a crowd pleaser...

If there was a tight, twisty course requiring some riding skill, they could be competetive.


NOW your talking my language! this is the type of racing I do. parking lots and pylons. ( I mean I race a mini after all) so if close I will be there.
 
For starters how about agreeing on a tight and twisty course set out with cones or some such in a parking lot, any parking lot anywhere. Then the contestants set up the course on their local lot and do time trials and video them and post them on the web. I'd love to see who's gonna win something like that, Mr. Exon, Jay64, weirdeh, deafscooter or whoever. Just my 2 cents.
 
:arrow: That's not any fun for me.

My bike needs to be going at least 25-30 mph before it gets to be any fun. Tight little postage stamp race tracks just don't allow you to demonstrate riding skill as much as the faster sweeper corners (getting light tire drifting and chatter) and subtle body english needed for higher speed riding.

The small tracks end up with lot's of "point and shoot" riding which is pretty elementary.

Good for the beginners I guess... :roll:
 
flip_normal said:
For starters how about agreeing on a tight and twisty course set out with cones or some such in a parking lot, any parking lot anywhere. Then the contestants set up the course on their local lot and do time trials and video them and post them on the web. I'd love to see who's gonna win something like that, Mr. Exon, Jay64, weirdeh, deafscooter or whoever. Just my 2 cents.

I already have over 100 cones my self and a 150ft tape mesure for cone placement
if any one needs supplies for a closed corse race, contact me....as long as your repuable I will send them out and wait for them to be sent back...I had 2 EV pocket bikes and cones and enuff gear for 2 riders always in my trunk(car) for the last 1.5 years waiting for any one to challange me or the occassianal trash talker that walk up to me in a parking lot and makes fun of me on a tight corse only doing 20mph as I practice and train my self better(the bikes are 76pounds and in a 8ft turn at 20mph the physics are crazy)! I took out my spare bike once for some onle like that and he high sided harder then I would ever want to my self....LoL then when he got up, I said "so, you think it is easy still?" he just gave me my bike back and walked away a broken man...... :roll:

people dont realize "the smaller the wheel the harder to stear"
:mrgreen:
 
Yesterday, Sunday January 6, 2008, the bride and I had a couple/three errands to run in Daytona right on International Speedway Boulevard. Home Depot, Barnes and Noble and Circuit City were on our list. We planned on, after completing our errands, to have lunch nearby and then make the brief and beautiful journey up A1A home.

The sounds emanating from the Speedway however precluded the lunch opportunity and made shopping for plants at Home Depot quite uncomfortable. With Circuit City and Barnes and Noble it wasn't so bad as the noise abated in the stores but the garden department at Home Depot is in the open. It's also quite a ways, probably a half mile or better, from the race track. One of the young ladies who work in the garden center commented she was looking for ways to set up a rocket launcher to fire into the track in the hopes it would shut it down if for just a few minutes.

Bear in mind there was no race. This was simply practicing or time trials or some other excuse to pollute the atmosphere with a ungodly amount of noise on a Sunday morning. Had they been running electric vehicle races, practices or time trials all that would be heard would be the sound of chargers, tires and the hum of electric motors which would not have carried past the pits. I've been at the Daytona Mall during a race and it's not even possible to sit in the food court for a cup of coffee as the noise is so loud. How the attendees stand it is beyond my imagination, almost. Perhaps the desire to witness a crash live and in person overcomes the pain the central nervous system experiences from the noise. (this from guy who uses a Dale Ernhardt cooler bag to conceal his batteries) (of course if the right sized cooler advertised anything else I would have bought it instead)

When I was still working my company provided ambulance protection for several race tracks and getting EMS crews to work them was a piece of cake. Lots of crews would volunteer to work for free (which never happened) simply for the opportunity to see the race and work the wrecks. (EMT's and Paramedics love to work wrecks, it's what we live for) but I declined the opportunity whenever possible and wore high end ear protection when there. It's probably part of the allure of racing and who knows, could possibly keep electric vehicle racing from being as exciting.

But, IMHO, the challenges presented by actually racing electric vehicles would outweigh any perceived loss of excitement from the lack of deafening decibels emanating from the rear end of the vehicle. I do believe I would attend.

In the meantime I understand lots of folks like the noise and Daytona is full during motorcycle "speed week" and Octoberfest and I've been known to go there myself and even participate a long time ago when I still had all my hearing and less of my sense. To each his own and I'll end this rant.

Mike
 
mvadventure said:
In the meantime I understand lots of folks like the noise...

I'm one who really likes the noise up to a point... however it's the quality of the noise that I like and not the volume. The crisp clean sound of a high rpm motor that whines all the way up to 12,000 rpm is better than the low grunt of the torquey motors.

Also... in the older days many of the motorcycles were two strokes and they ran a pre-mix based on Castor Bean Oil that produced this really wonderful smell. Any time I smell that it's like a perfume to me. I used to ride a two stroke myself and ran the same oil and it just reminds me of so many wonderful days riding the bike. A good memory related to smell.

Electric bikes lack noise... and that's a NEGATIVE in the entertainment sense. However, if the speeds can get up high enough and the RACING itself gets good enough then it might still be good to watch. It's a little like going to a bar after they banned smoking... at first you say to yourself:

"Hey, what happened... something is different?"

...but eventually you get over the fact that the smoke isn't there and you realize that it's just fine without it. I suspect it will be the same kind of thing, at first people will feel that things aren't right, but if the racing is good and exciting, then like with the cigarette smoke you can go home with clean clothes and ears that still work.
 
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