Optibike does Gadget Show (UK)

[Papa Pro]

Hi All,

Team Hybrid had a wonderful day filming our Optibike 800Li for the Gadget Show which airs in two weeks time on channel five.

It was a real privilege to have Suzi Perry test ride our new bike and something we will remember for a long time.

Full report and photos on the TidalForce Forum
http://groups.google.com/group/Tidalforce/browse_thread/thread/83ff305b23f38851#

Btw, Big hello to Monster!

 

[monster]

i had the chance to ride the opti bike at the event too. i got yelled at for crunching the gears and i pulled a massive down hill, rear wheel, skip

nice bike. light as a feather, super breaks, and 30-60 miles range apparently. its the first time i have ridden a full suspension bike and i found pedaling it a bit weird. i think some one had fiddled with the spring tension, great for jumping off speed bumps at 30mph tho. the motor drives through the gears and makes a cool RC type sound. compared to my bike it felt more rugged and stable at high speeds. i would like to see a 72v version you could really set some speed records with this.

great to finally meet Richard from the team hybrid crew.

 

[Papa Pro]

Hi Matthew,

It was really great meeting you too. And I was extra thrilled to bits to see the other bikes on show.

It was a shame that Hydrogen Fuel Cell bike was only 200w. If they could have upped the power, it could have had a better impact. Still, the Jet bike made-up for all that! And I really wanted to see what was going on inside the university. No way in though

Anyway, hope your clocking up some massive smilage on your little monster (I assume that’s your bike?) and even better to meet one of our customers in the flesh.

Btw, we had to turn the power down by 40% as we were usuing a NIMH pack. The Lithium 20ah is being airfrieted and takes a week to arrive. The factory claim 50 mile range in eco mode and 30 mile range in turbo mode. I will test this before I have the bragging rights...

 

[Papa Pro]

Btw Matthew, that was Craig from Optibike shouting. We both are not bike mechanics and the gears needed a litle ajusting. And we forgot to tell you one gear at a time. Sorry about that. I was cool though.

And a wicked skid down the hill!!! Everyone turned a head (Hehe) just check this video! Scroll down and watch Keith then Jamie. I have NEVER seen anything like it. And this bike should soon have a 35mph top speed We will have to arange another test ride for you.

Will report back soon.

http://www.optibike.com (watch the videos!!!)

 

[Jozzer]

Slightly offtopic...but didn't you both meet last year at the New Forest EV meet? I'm sure I met you both there :wink:
Back on topic...how big is the optibike battery to manage 30-60 miles range? It would take 10 to 20KG of lifepo4 to manage that on my KMX at decent speeds..

 

[Papa Pro]

I have never met Mathew berore this?

The pack is a 15lb 20ah LiPO pack designed by a hi tech company exclusive to Jim Turner. They work together. The cells are used in space so very expensive.

But go watch the video on Keith. He has the old 15ah NiMH F cell pack and is getting 30 miles a day with more to spare.

But until I do it myself, I just will not believe it. The efficiency seems just too good to be true but all the Opti owners seem to back up the claims. Time will tell my friend. I have to wait for my LiPo to arrive some time next week. Then you all will know the truth!

 

[deecanio]

Hi Richard,

The report was first class, thanks for posting it - we are all looking forward to the show immensely!!!
i cannot wait to see your bike with the li and the tags - black was a superb choice by the way
I think shes a really nice looking ride and can go for ages, but enough about suzi the opti looks sweet
You guys should have given us a shout - maybe i would have had a drive up to look at opti myself - could have picked knoxie up on the way!!! Not to worry - i'm sure we could all meet up in the UK this summer?
Anyway great post - thanks for sharing!!!


Cheers


D

 

[Papa Pro]

Hi D,

You are very welcome my friend. I enjoy writing about this stuff so it’s my pleasure. I just wish I had told Knoxie now as you both could have helped on the day. And we need all the help we can get.

I realy wish an e-kmx had turned up as Suzi tried a non assist one a few weeks before. She was very interested in an e-version.

Anyway, I’m just blown over by this Optibike. I just had a race in the wet with my TidalForce and the Optibike left the TF! It’s pretty awesome and I’m only running on 60% power. We have a data cable to connect to the PC and can change the output depending on what pack you are using or if you want the bike road legal.

So thanks for taking the time and happy smilage.