deVries, allow me to address your questions in order
Wh/mi:
I’d have to calculate the Wh/mi because I was not able to accurately measure the RShunt values before the trip despite the instruction provided by a few members. Instead, I relied upon the Voltage of the Pack and my commuting experience to guide me as to the true nature of my power usage and reserve. To that end, I never once ran out of power – and that my friend was
“By Design”. The best estimate for Wh/mi would have to come from charging:
The charger assembly pulled 900-1000 Watts per hour. It typically took 8 to 9 hours to recharge the pack; more if nearly drained, otherwise less. If I had to generalize the usage, let’s take 950W over 8.5 hours which equals 8075 Wh. The charging assembly is about 86% efficient, therefore the calculated power becomes 6944.5 Wh. Let’s divide by that figure by the farthest distance over one day on a single charge: 6944.5 / 165.3 = 42 Wh/mi. That’s pretty good for 2WD on a coastal road climbing hills, facing crosswinds, and pulling a trailer averaging 23.8 mph, which BTW took 11 hours to accomplish. I had many better days so we can probably use 42 Wh/mi as a worse-case figure.
Trailer weight:
I honestly do not have a good handle on what that was. The value did not change very much because the contents were pretty well static throughout the entire trip. We can however loosely calculate the minimum weight:
- Frame = 3.8 lbs.
Dual-Crown Steerer & hardware = 3 lb.s (est)
Wheel: Hookworm, DH Tube filled with Slime, Rim = 10 lb.s (est)
Batteries = 1.27 * 30 = 38.1 lb.s
CrMo Tubular strut = 5 lb.s
Steering Dampener = 4 lb.s
Hitch et al = 3 lb.s
Toolboxes = 3 x 2 = 6 lb.s
Meanwell Charging Assembly = 6.6 lb.s
Bag of Spare Tubes = 9 lb.s (est)
Bag of Tools = 10 lb.s (est)
Bags of Clothes = 5 x 2 = 10 lb.s (est)
Trailer wood base, polyethylene sides,
marine vinyl covering, copper cabling,
hardware and anything else I missed...
figure 10 lb.s more
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Estimate 118.5 lb.s.
Let’s work backwards from an observation: On August 20th I found an operational and yet unmanned Weigh Station in Oregon and I pulled myself with bike and trailer onto the scales. The resolution was crude, and it hovered for a moment at 400 lb.s before clicking over to 450 lb.s. I weighed about 150 lb.s, there were 48 batteries on the bike (not counting the trailer batteries) = 61 lb.s, and each motorized wheel weighs about 21 lb.s. That means the rest of my bike would have weighed 78.5 lb.s. Figure 35 lb.s is for bike frame, shocks, forks, brakes and yer left with 43.5 lb.s divvied up between farings, panniers, WATER & GATORADE & food & whatever – the numbers are within reason though on the
plus side.
Battery Capacity:
With exception to intentionally short trips, each day was meticulously planned, reviewed, charted, reworked, revised, cross-checked, slept-on, slept-lost, tossed out, tossed back in, and sometimes – changed at the last minute.
Essentially, I tried to maximize the available capacity of the pack for each challenge. Usually I could tell within the first hour or two if I was going to make the journey at the
present pace. If I was using up too much power then I would either drop-speed or find a place to charge. The first half of the trip relied on
opportunity-charging, although the second half did not: I discovered that if I dropped speed by 4-5 mph, I could get there without stopping just the same as if I stopped and charged for an hour – and then hightailed it.
Better to take it slow and have an enjoyable time, rather than hunting for a place to charge and then sit around bored.
Weight:
I probably carried too much water after the flat tire incident, but that is not a bad thing. I probably carried too many tools, but then you never know if you’ll need them if you break down. Out of three spare tubes, I only used one (and had to patch that before using it). I used nearly every bit of clothing except my windbreaker. Perhaps it would have been possible to shave up to 20 lb.s but that in my mind wouldn’t have made a large difference. The frames and fairings were about as light as they could get, wheels & batteries & cable are required: What’s left are tools, clothes, and food, the latter of which I tried to be sure I had enough for one night if stranded. Didn’t bother with bringing a tent or cook stuff.
Satisfied:
There is nothing equal on this planet to the feeling of grand personal celebration from achievement! And every single day
On The Road was a personal triumph that I shall never forget! No one day was better than any other: They were all remarkable, stressful, exhilarating, fan-fricken-tastic to the nth-degree fun, as were the people that I met along the way. I’d do it again, but not the same way…
Next time:
If I had a choice, if I had the bankroll, I’d do it again next summer though with a different ride, over a different route, with a different agenda, and I’d try to coax a pal or two to go with me. If wishes were horses that beggars could ride, I’d finish the Axial Flux motor design and build a 2WD eMotorcycle and ride coast to coast West to East and back again. But to do that I need garage space to build the bike, and my hidden urban bat cave doesn’t have that kind of room, so that adventure will have to wait until I can acquire shop-space, a true man-cave. In lieu of that – I’m not sure what is next on the agenda: I’ve completed my dream of biking down to California and back; maybe it’s time to go north or east or both: Redmond-Vancouver BC-Calgary-Glacier NP-Kalispell-Missoula-US12 West to Mt. Rainier-then back to Redmond ~ about 1800 miles on another epic dream ride into parts unknown.
But I have not answered your question of fast or slow: I would rather travel faster than slower. I would rather drive in the lane than in the margin. I don’t mind pedaling. But I do mind when jerks honk at me or try to drive me off the road. Beyond that - I love the genuine goodwill of honest people I meet, I get a kick out of breathing good air as my soul is replenished from drinking in the awe-inspiring vistas! Truly – these sorts of trips make it very difficult to go back to work when you have the world’s playground beneath your feet and sunshine to get from one horizon to the other, mountains notwithstanding.
‘Tis my pleasure to share,
KF
44.0 mph bombing down Hwy 88 towards Pioneer. Average Max-Speed was 40.4 mph!
:lol: fairing. :wink:
