greetings from the summit.

[Craig]

Team optibike is on the top of pikes peak, claiming first-7th places.
T.otal domination.

Introducing the new optibike 1100r. A 48V HILL CLIMBING MONSTER.

JOHN s. (Lowco2) was in first place at 1:07:00, 39 min. Faster than
last year.

Now, for the ride down. More to come.

[Nimbuzz]

Congrats!!
You're NOT rats
Maybe Stealth thinks you're brats
But we take off our hats!!

Was anyone else there (ebikes)?

[Craig]

I saw 3 other entries- no hub motors in sight. I guess they all
learned last year.

[Nimbuzz]

Did John race in PP last year--was the 1:45 time his?

2--If 1:45 was not John's time last year who's was it and what was
their time this year?

This of course will help us know how much the new 1100R helped.

[Craig]

Kyle and jim tied last year, both improved their times by about 30 min
or more

[Nimbuzz]

Now for the BIG question = Did Craig race and how did he do?

2--Did racers use only internal batteries?

3--Did racers have stock 1100Rs or mods?

4--What tires did racers use and PSI?

5--Isn't this fun?!?

[Craig]

You're killing me. :)

We used 48v internals and externals. They were "stock" 1100's
We used marathon touring tires at 65 psi.

I came in 4th. :/

Craig Taber
Optibike

[lowco2]

Greetings from the award ceremony. This was an amaing race, well done
and we had an amazing time

[lowco2]

Had to cut that one to get my award, fun to have first place. Thanks
so much to Jim, Craig, Kyle, Garrett and everyone at Optibike for
arranging all this and most importantly for building the BEST ELECTRIC
BIKE IN THE WORLD! That machine is a monster. I got to the top with
tons of battery left, which means I didn't start my sprint soon
enough. Weather was great and we kicked butt as Craig already noted.
I'll be doing a longer post later, and it will be after Monday when I
get the gps data downloaded and you can see my speed etc from that. I
also ran the helmet cam all the way up and will post that once it's
ready.
1:06:45 is the time to beat. I'll be back next year to defend. Anyone
want to try and topple me?
John

[Nimbuzz]

Craig, Fourth is GREAT!! If John, Jamie and one other young sprout
that rides a lot were all that beat you you did fantasticly. If Jim
beat you then we know you let him so as not to beat yer bossman.
Congrats on 4th!! For a partying vacationing old married guy that's
stupendous!!
hehe

John--Spectacular--I see you know how to ride a bike up a mountain
with nobody else's butt in view!!

[Nimbuzz]

John--by "tons of battery left" do you mean on an external pack? What
specs on internal and external?

[Paul_G]

Could you please post the bike specs.

Speed without assist, with assist.

Battery size

Price

pictures

prices

same motor noise?

lay it on us

Paul G

[Craig]

I will get you the specs tomorrow when I have my computer..

[remf]

WOW great time John, big congratulations to the Kings of the Mountain. You guys definitely own the race now. Where were all the big talkers???

[Craig]

Still gloating in california about "beating" an optibike up a 100yd
hill while the big kids were tackling a nearly 8000 vertical foot
ascent up a real mountain is my best guess remf

On Aug 28, 4:28 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> WOW great time John, big congratulations to the Kings of the Mountain. You guys definitely own the race now. Where were all the big talkers???
>

[Covert Rider10]

Well done team!

Covert Rider.

[Paul Daniel]

First off, congrats to the winners.
Just curious, is the 1100r  1.1kw continuous power? Is there anywhere where that is street legal?
-Paul

[USV]

legal? who cares, it's an off-roading machine = )

I need some specs...does this new motor have metal gears with an oil
bath for the planetary gearing to make it last longer like a car's/
motorcycles transmission?

a few pics please...cell phone pics are easy to post if u have a
twitpic account...& it's free ; )

> > > >> Paul G- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[remf]

Metal gears is the word, my guess is 1100W peak but then I heard that the power does not drop off progressively or as much, further into the SOC like the current bikes do...true or false?

[Bike_On]

Top 7, 1100W, 48V.... hooray for the Opti nation!

[lowco2]

I don't know about specs, but I can tell you it's a sublime experience
to be ripping at 36 mph past that last aid station on the way to the
summit, way above treeline and with that slightly intoxicating feeling
of hypoxia. Nothing in front of me but road and sky and just my
motorcycle escort keeping his distance off my left side. Can't wait to
do it again!
John

On Aug 28, 8:36 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Metal gears is the word, my guess is 1100W peak but then I heard that the power does not drop off progressively or as much, further into the SOC like the current bikes do...true or false?
>

[Craig]

The 1100w option is available starting tomorrow afternoon on the new R-
series bikes. The R-series bikes will replace the current 850R, and
850xli and will now include the 1100w option for off road use only. I
will have a new website this week to show it off and explain the
differences.

The 1100w bike looks the exact same on the outside as the 850, but
will require an off-road only waiver.

I am glad you mentioned continuous power- the new 1100 has the all new
Constant Power Technology, a brand new Optibike exclusive- the new
bike puts out the same exact power to the wheel for the duration of
the charge- as voltage drops, the bike compensates- so "voltage sag"
is a thing of the past- at least with Optibikes.

The 48v batteries also have Cool Carbon, and are guaranteed not to
overheat- even on the most burly hills- like Pikes Peak. More on this
new system this week.

The 1100w 48v option is $1195

Exciting times indeed- this bike is a really incredible machine, but
its certainly not for everyone- she is a real handful to ride,
especially on singletrack.

Craig Taber
Optibike

[Craig]

To be clear, the new R-series bikes will INCLUDE the 850R and 850xli,
these bikes are still available- after re-reading my post I thought it
might sound like they were being discontinued, which is NOT the case-
these popular bikes are not going anywhere- we are just adding options
for the power hungry off road only maniac :)


Craig

[remf]

1100W, Constant Power Technology, Cool Carbon and conquering the Peak. So impressive.

[USV]

a real handful + constant power = soil in ur pants on the dirty single
track = a good thing = )

On Aug 28, 9:29 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 1100W, Constant Power Technology, Cool Carbon and conquering the Peak. So impressive.
>

> > > Now, for the ride down. More to come.- Hide quoted text -

[Randi Sparkler]

WELL DONE GUYS!
Looking forward to the vids
RS

[Jim_Kirk]

Paul,
Post again in the new 1100R thread please.
Jim

[Bike_On]

John,

Did you ride a new Opti in the race or upgrade your Nevada1?

Dan

[Bike_On]

You covered it all, video, GPS. Well done. It will be tough to beat
your conditioning and light weight up a mountain on such a beast.

How did Jamie do?

[lowco2]

Dan: I rode a new 1100 R, which I think you can now buy, although at a
premium as "the bike that won Pike's Peak." kidding about that last
part.
Jamie was 2 min behind me, and given how hard I was working, he was
suffering too, that's a heck of an effort up there with limited
oxygen. He probably ripped that dirt section harder than I did as
well.
I'll b home in a few hours and download the gps. More to come.
John

[Bike_On]

"the bike that won Pike's Peak."

John,

I and others look forward to seeing the performance stats of your
ride. The constant 1100W is a game changer and maintaining the power/
cooling is more impressive. Cudos for Opti guys. Being a loyal
customer, you deserved the chance to show it off.

Not only did Opti win,
Optibike Riders 7
ES Riders 0 !!!

> > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -

[lowco2]

For your entertainment:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/110423332

Check out those speeds. I hit over 38 mph at 13,000'. My guess is the
air is so much less dense up there I could push through it even faster
as I went higher.
Rockin'
--John

[deerfencer]

Wow, amazing time John! I'm assuming you were on the new 1100r?

Kudos to the entire Opti team for blitzing this race!

LH

[Jim_Kirk]

John,
That is a very high sustained HR during the last 1/3 of the race is that close to your max HR?

-Jim

[lowco2]

Hi Jim,
I've recently seen a high of 182, so that's close, but not my max.
Max I can't hold very long, it's more a desperate sprint for the
finish number. That's up there for me, if I was at home (6,000') I'd
say I was pushing 280 watts at that heartrate. Not sure if that
translates to more than double that.

Larry, yes I was on a stock 1100R.
--John

[lowco2]

Just saw this:
http://www.ridepikespeak.com/Assault_2011.1/Complete_2011_Results.html
According to this, no other ebike made it up.
--John

[Stuart]

I see where your avg speed was a little less than 22. That was the avg
speed I chose to come up with a 1:10 guesstimate for Craig's poll of the
group before the race. Thanks for providing the Garmin specs of the event.
You are in great shape to keep that heart rate for 26 miles at that
altitude.

[remf]

John, that's high level twenty-something performance. Can't wait to see the video even if it's just from the POV of the tête de la course way out in front i.e. presumably no competitors in frame :) Also great ride Jaimie and everyone in the team. Sounds like a really grueling climb, even on 1100R's!

[Nimbuzz]

And another thing--I just got word that Garrett from Opti service
jumped on an 850R from the showroom with no fitting, regearing or
tuning and came in at 1:25 yesterday!! I think Jim & Craig kept him
on an 850 so he wouldn't beat them. Garrett had the new 36V Aux pack
and got to the top with internal dead and solid yellow on Aux.

Opti can use Garrett's ride to support those that might want an 850--
it is still a great bike--1:25--Opti rocks

On Aug 29, 6:20 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> John, that's high level twenty-something performance. Can't wait to see the video even if it's just from the POV of the tête de la course way out in front i.e. presumably no competitors in frame :) Also great ride Jaimie and everyone in the team. Sounds like a really grueling climb, even on 1100R's!
>

[lowco2]

Thanks, remf, I appreciate the props. Video is uploading to youtube
now. Going to be a bit. Just a teaser reel. And, yes, most of it is
with just road, rocks and sky in the frame.
--John

On Aug 29, 6:20 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:

> John, that's high level twenty-something performance. Can't wait to see the video even if it's just from the POV of the tête de la course way out in front i.e. presumably no competitors in frame :) Also great ride Jaimie and everyone in the team. Sounds like a really grueling climb, even on 1100R's!
>

[lowco2]

Ok, gotta shut down for the night first video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnvlAMAHMDU

Let me know what you think!
--John

[Randi Sparkler]

Thats truly motorvating John!

[remf]

Hilarious and awesome in equal measure, they definitely weren't expecting you so soon :)

Very nice video too.

[Nimbuzz]

Very Cool!!

On Aug 29, 10:45 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hilarious and awesome in equal measure, they definitely weren't expecting
> you so soon :)
>
> Very nice video too.
>

[USV]

like i was there myself...thanks for posting the vid... the downhill
run must have been a blast...only if this wasn't an event with cops
everywhere ; )

> > > > > > >> -Jim- Hide quoted text -

[cakey]

Awesome ride , i want to do it , what made me laugh most was the guys
at the last aid station .

[Jim_Kirk]

John,
That was an impressive ride and nicely documented in the video.  Very good job.
-Jim

[Jim_Kirk]

John,
    You video has me wondering if there was any wind during the ride shown in the video?  Tailwind or headwind or none?  How noticeable on speed and effort was wind if there was some?

-Jim

[lowco2]

USV,
I do have video on the down. It's scary fast. Later....
--John

[lowco2]

Jim,
There was some headwind at the beginning. More than we expected. It
dropped as we climbed and up high there were light winds, not
significant relative to my speed. I seriously have to calculate the
density difference at the top vs bottom because the one thing I think
a lot of people don't realize is how much air resistance can be at 35+
mph. That's why we were a paceline at the beginning. On these bikes,
at that speed, the paceline makes a HUGE difference. Get out of the
line, even by 1 foot) and you suddenly feel how effective it is. Jim
did an amazing job pacing us out. He was full power and pedaling hard,
I was tucked in behind and in eco mode. Not kidding. I was in eco up
to the point I took off. I was not going to run out of battery. You
can see the consequence of that in my HR file where early on I spiked
up pretty high. I knew I'd be able to put out more power from my legs
at 8 to 10K' than I could at 14K' so I wanted to use more of my
glycogen battery down low. Turns out I did well on that as my legs
were shaking when I was standing there talking with those guys.
So, bottom line, wind is noticeable and the speed of this thing makes
it's own wind.
--John

[deerfencer]

Sweet! Missing the dirt sections though--all I saw was perfect
pavement. Look forward to seeing more.

BTW how many miles were you guys drafting each other? Slowest speeds
you saw on steepest grades? Total Ahs packed? Used? Efficiency rate?

LH

[lowco2]

Thanks Larry. That pavement is not perfect. The Optibike just makes it
seem so.
Dirt is on the video, just jumpy as I had the suspension locked out --
I was running like a roadie, peak efficiency.
Let's see lowest speeds were 13 - 14 mph. One of those drops was where
I switched external to internal batteries (momentary loss of power)
Total AH, whatever the stock 1100R with the touring battery is. Craig
posted somewhere. Don't know exactly what I used, gas gauge is not
that accurate. Efficiency rate means what? AH/mile? AH/Vertical foot?
Parameters like that are hard to compare, you simply cannot compare
that kind of relentless climbing to rollers or flat terrain. Just
doesn't do.
--John

[deerfencer]

> Efficiency rate means what? AH/mile? AH/Vertical foot?
> Parameters like that are hard to compare, you simply cannot compare
> that kind of relentless climbing to rollers or flat terrain. Just
> doesn't do.

John,

Re efficiency, I'm just trying to get an idea of how many miles you
were getting per amp hour over the entire ride. I know my TF S750X
only gets about .8 miles/ah on steep climbs with full assist but it
sounds like you used the juice conservatively till the end. How far
were you from the top before you gave it full juice?

Nobody rode with a CycleAnalyst or similar meter? I'm a little
surprised a CA hasn't been integrated into the new model.


LH

[lowco2]

Hi Larry,
I wasn't running any kind of meter and I don't think anyone else was.
Kinda doesn't matter at a point. 7700 vertical is demo enough. Grades
up to 16%. I wonder what the longest sustained "steep" climb is that
you've been on? Do you think the draw would be the same for a much
longer climb as the motor and batteries heat up? I really don't know,
but that's a pretty extreme test. I basically held the throttle pegged
for 40 min going up steep hills, after 25 min of mixed climbing.
Pretty awesome anyway you slice it.
--John

[deerfencer]

>  I wasn't running any kind of meter and I don't think anyone else was.
> Kinda doesn't matter at a point. 7700 vertical is demo enough. Grades
> up to 16%. I wonder what the longest sustained "steep" climb is that
> you've been on? Do you think the draw would be the same for a much
> longer climb as the motor and batteries heat up?

John,

I'd argue it matters a lot--if only from a purely technical
standpoint, but I get your point that Opti proved itself big-time in
this race and am simply looking for technical (read nerdy) details.

Mt Greylock in MA (highest mtn in the state) is probably the steepest
sustained climb I've done but it's a pipsqueak (6-8 miles) compared to
Pikes Peak and Uma overheated half-way up. I watched the wattage fall
on my CA from full power to 3/4 to 1/2 fairly quickly and almost gave
up a couple miles from the top.

Being a stubborn guy I refused to dismount and eventually made it,
albeit with mucho huffing and puffing. At its lowest I think I saw
400-500W assist, very unusual for my ride. I'm absolutely sure Uma
could NOT do Pikes Peak, no matter the battery pack, unless you or
Lance were onboard ;) I've found it's all about motor heat/cutoffs,
and as brilliant as the Wavecrest motor/controller design is, the TF
wasn't made for extreme climbing, period, especially not extended
ones.

That said, I will say 13,000+ miles on the motor is proof enough of
its robustness and reliability, and I continue to be in awe of it for
the fast touring rides I favor.

Cheers,

Larry

P.S. Did you catch my post on the TF boards about e-bike touring in
the Swiss Alps? Check it out--sounds heavenly.

[remf]

I agree with Larry, it matters...though not only from a self-confessed bike geek's point of view. Having the ability to check your wh/mi allows you to extrapolate your remaining range very easily and accurately and having the ability to limit current and speed allows you to adjust for varying riding conditions or road regulations. These aren't geeky objectives but definitely very useful ones for anyone riding a 1100W machine. Of course I understand the challenge of implementing something like this into the production line but it is a worthy challenge IMO.

[deerfencer]

Good points remf--you're expressing my thoughts exactly.

The CA monitor on my ride has made me very aware of all things voltage/
ah-wise, and I think/know I'd be a bit lost without it. I can and have
calculated my range down to the mile with it on many occasions, so
think that Opti is doing their customers a disservice not including
it, especially on the higher end models. And while I understand Opti's
need for proprietary knowledge, I think Dan has more than demonstrated
that this is a bogus (read illusory) conceit.

Bottom line: Give your customers open access to the power they're
burning. Flashlight monitors are bullshit IMO, and
not worthy of a ride as excellent as the new Optis.

LH

On Aug 30, 9:22 pm, remf <optibi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I agree with Larry, it matters...though not only from a self-confessed bike geek's point of view. Having the ability to check your wh/mi allows you to extrapolate your remaining range very easily and accurately and having the ability to limit current and speed allows you to adjust for varying riding conditions or road regulations. These aren't  geeky objectives but definitely very useful ones for anyone riding a 1100W machine. Of course I understand the challenge of implementing something like this into the production line but it is a worthy challenge IMO.
>

[mark textor]

Its the only thing I'd mark down my opti for. It is total CRAP not having a
decent display. Eben my 800 kit has a lcd display. NO EXCUSE AT ALL AT THIS
PRICE POINT!!

[deerfencer]

Nuff said.

LH

On Aug 31, 12:46 am, mark textor <covertride...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Its the only thing I'd mark down my opti for. It is total CRAP not having a
> decent display. Eben my 800 kit has a lcd display. NO EXCUSE AT ALL AT THIS
> PRICE POINT!!
>

[deerfencer]

Had to laugh when I checked the ES forum re the Pikes Peak race and
saw the nonsense there. I read one or two pages of bullshit; that was
enough:

http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=27328&hilit=Optibike


LH

[Nimbuzz]

Actually, did you read the last page Larry = P 19? Most ES guys are
giving Opti credit and kudos!!

On Aug 30, 10:01 pm, deerfencer <deerfenc...@aol.com> wrote:
> Had to laugh when I checked the ES forum re the Pikes Peak race and
> saw the nonsense there. I read one or two pages of bullshit; that was
> enough:
>

> http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=27328&hilit=Opti...

[lowco2]

Yes, but what kills me is that they even say "High altitude wouldn't
mean a thing, since I wouldn't be pedaling..."
Then you're not riding a bike. This is a bike race. Sorry.
John

[cakey]

The truth is Jim and Craig had discussed an off road bike for at least
2 years in 2009.
48v was the discussion , good things to those who wait.
What always amazes me is that people on Endless Drear state, i could
do that with 40 packs and water cooled engines . I could do it also
with a long power extention lead ( volt drop maybe an issue at 3
miles )
The trick is to do it as a standard reliable every day bike.
Take a bow Opti

PS we still want the CA :)

[Jim_Kirk]

PS2:  Yes, we still want the CA :)

[Craig]

Thank you all, we are listening to your feedback.

To be perfectly honest, the CA looks like an Atari era console, and
you will never see one on an Optibike from the factory. Its not at
all in line with the rest of the design, as its clunky and about a 1.5
our of 10 on the "cool factor." The 1st generation display we came
out with was a full color, touch screen display that was probably
ahead of its time.

You can rest assured that if we roll out a new display, it will not
look like it needs a punchcard to operate- its just not what we do
here. :)

Craig Taber
Optibike

[Jim_Kirk]

Craig,
    OK, no factory CA for the reasons stated.  But it would be nice if when you said this:
"You can rest assured that if we roll out a new display..."

    you would have said instead:
You can rest assured that when we roll out a new display...

-Jim

[Ken Cline]

I just got back from a visit to Opti world headquarters in Boulder, where I had a chance to hop on one of the race bikes. Wow! Smoother, faster, quieter, and somehow more solid feeling than my 800Li. At 37mph, the cruising speed is about 10mph faster than I've been used to. I was glad to see a huge refinement in low power (i.e. very low speed) throttle response - I've been thinking a lot about my old bucking bronco throttle which has caused a couple of incidents recently, including a lovely paisley bruise (the result of laying down my Optibike at a stoplight, oops).

Great job, guys!

[Jim_Kirk]

Ken,
    I'm interested in the 1100R for my street ride.  I think the bike you rode would have a 52T/16T with Rohloff after I talked with Craig today.
    Can you tell me a little more on the feel of the bike with light pedalling effort.  I'd like to ride at 30 mph with light effort and about 60-75 cadence and then get up higher speeds when I up my cadence to 85-90 or so.  I realize I can change the 16T to 15T or 13T to improve my speed but it would be helpful if you could comment on the feel with 52T/16T.
     Also, can you confirm that there is no boost on this bike.  Twist the throttle to go from 0 watts to full twist at 1,100 watts.
     Thanks.

-Jim

[Nicholas Turner]

The 1100R still has boost just like the previous bikes

[Paul_G]

Looks like there will be a glut of used bikes up for sale as many seem to be upgrading.....will Opti still offer top dollar on a trade?

Paul G 

[Jim_Kirk]

I still am trying to get an idea of how the 1100R will fit in with my riding.  I seek more speed and would like to cruise at 30 to 35 mph.  Let me simplify this a bit.  Can I cruise at 30-35 on flat ground with the 1100R if I don't pedal at all?

-Jim

[Ken Cline]

Hi Jim,

The model I rode was a race version and had no boost. Craig mentioned they still had some fine tuning to do to get the boost dialed in. Even without boost the 1100R is lively - certainly quick enough for commuting (though there is no such thing as too quick in my book). I can't make any promises, but based on my quick demo, 30mph @60rpm and light pedaling seems easily attainable, probably at a sacrifice of some efficiency compared to a faster cadence.

For what it's worth, I found the lack of boost on this bike refreshing. The unexpected kicking in of boost is one of my pet peeves with the Optibike controller, even though I love having it when I feel the need to be quick.

As for gearing, the 52/16 was just fine by me [grin]! I'm not even certain I was in the top gear at 37mph, and I definitely had plenty of spin left in my legs to go faster if needed. You could go with a smaller rear gear if downhill speed runs are your thing, but personally, I like the idea of the bigger 16T for better chain performance. Also note that with 52/16 gearing, the low gears are strictly for rock crawling. I think Craig said that 1-9 were not needed on Pikes Peak.

[Ken Cline]

He's not in the list of finishers, but Josh Kerson is back in town and tells me he made it to the summit on his non-Optibike entry. I don't have the full story yet, but his wheel was damaged when another rider crashed into him at the start, resulting in 8 flat tires that he repaired during the ascent. Josh was riding a Yuba cargo bike sporting a chain puller drive by RonZ ebikes in MA.

On Aug 29, 2011, at 6:57 PM, lowco2 wrote:

> Just saw this:
> http://www.ridepikespeak.com/Assault_2011.1/Complete_2011_Results.html
> According to this, no other ebike made it up.
> --John

[lowco2]

We saw Josh at the start and then along the way down. Glad to know he
made it. My initial comment was based only on what I saw online.
Do you know his time, ride time if possible, not counting flat
repairs, etc.
John

[Randi Sparkler]

I agree with Craig, the "Atari era console" of the CA is not the most
attractive item. Although IMO the Grace does an OK job of
incorporating it into their aesthetics - even then I can imagine it
might be a bit hard to read.
Are there other options?
While I am not a fan of a clunky smart phone hanging off the handle
bars, maybe this is the way to go - is there any opportunity for Opti
to incorporate some sort of wireless output of mutiple raw data which
could be read and interpreted by thrid party apps on our phones?
RS

[lowco2]

Um, forgive me for saying this, but they did that, and no one bought
it.
My bike has their Bluetooth chip and can wirelessly output about a
half dozen parameters. That's too much to look at. What I think would
be more useful would be to record this and look at it later, much like
you all can see my heartrate after the climb.
Yes, there is no app, but that might change.
John

[deerfencer]

8 flats!?!?

I met Josh at the 2006 Tour de Sol in Saratoga Springs where his team
fried a couple motors. Good guy but he seems to be the Charlie Brown
of e-bikes with a perpetual cloud over his head. Not sure what's going
on with that but his heart seems in the right place, and I wish him
the best of luck in Ft Collins.

LH

[Ken Cline]

On Aug 31, 2011, at 11:05 PM, deerfencer wrote:

> 8 flats!?!?

I don't have details, but the flats were somehow related to the potato chip shaped wheel. Maybe a broken spoke? I'll stop by his shop tomorrow and get the full story, if my schedule allows.

> I met Josh at the 2006 Tour de Sol in Saratoga Springs where his team
> fried a couple motors. Good guy but he seems to be the Charlie Brown
> of e-bikes with a perpetual cloud over his head. Not sure what's going
> on with that but his heart seems in the right place, and I wish him
> the best of luck in Ft Collins.

He's a capable bike builder to be sure, and is getting a little traction with his custom e-trikes this year. The Charlie Brown thing makes sense until you spend some time him: After a while little things like his career as a mountain bike racer and the crazy skiing stories emerge. You realize you have to actually pay attention to keep up on the trail even though you are riding an Optibike and he's pedaling a old Iacocca Ebike. Then you learn he's working on an advanced diesel ignition system at the CSU Engines lab and start to wonder what else he has up his sleeves. My respect for for his abilities continue to grow.

[Randi Sparkler]

John, you are forgiven ;)

From memory, that bluetooth option had been deleted by the time I came
to place my order - and I also thought I read something recently that
suggested the configured PDA was no longer available which was major
part of the reason for that options' demise.
For what its worth, when they were available that the choice of pda
was not compatible with my own pda which for me was off putting.

My thought was; now that smart phones are so widely entrenched (more
than PDAs ever were), and apps are so popular it might be feasible to
output raw data in some standard way (that is common to other e-
vehicles) so that some third party apps might be able to read it.
That way there would be greater protection against obsolescence for
Opti and more choice for the user. Or am I dreaming?

The great thing about the Garmin (500 anyway) is that the user can
programme it to display their choice of data over several different
screens. It would be great if an app could do that.

RS

[Charles Duffy]

Howdy --

I have a proof-of-concept Android app that works with their old
OptiLink protocol for recording. If anyone wanted to develop that
into, say, an extension to Google's "My Tracks" app for Android (which
wasn't open source at the time but is now), that would give you a
recording including GPS and heartrate (through Zephyr's HRM strap,
which My Tracks supports) as well.

Would need Opti's support/ok, as the tools I have were developed under
an NDA.

[Nimbuzz]

Uncle Craig--Please make sure you are looking at the new model CA =
Direct Plug-in with Speedo (CA-DPS) Scroll down to see it;
http://www.ebikes.ca/drainbrain.shtml
For some reason they still post the pics of the old model at the top
of their page. The company is very cool--it was invented and is made
by young people in Canada.

[Nimbuzz]

Ken, What caused the "laydown?"

[Nicholas Turner]

Ken-

The bikes used on pikes peak had the boost toggled to the 'low' setting since it wasn't needed on the climb

The 1100R still has boost just as the other optibikes do, but you don't feel it as much since the roll-off from boost to cruising power is a smaller change than the 850's had.

[Ken Cline]

Nicholas, that's great news. Low boost mode in these new models is very smooth indeed, certainly much better than the early versin of low boost mode in m 800Li. Is there a firmware upgrade to further tame mine?

Ken

[Ken Cline]

On Sep 1, 2011, at 9:42 AM, Nimbuzz wrote:

> Ken, What caused the "laydown?"

Stupidity.

I was stopped at a red light, on the left side of the right lane after letting a deliver van pass me to turn right on red (sharing the right lane on this road is not practicable, so I did not want to move right to let the van pass). I was facing straight ahead, but my Optibike was steeply angled to the right. The light turned green ... I hit the throttle ... and splat! The bike heaved ahead, curving to the left and pulling me off balance. All of sudden I found myself on my hands and knees with the handlebar poking me in the chest and egg on my face. The bruise was sizable, but superficial, and nothing compared to the damage to my ego!

I attempted to play this up and get sympathy with the ladies, but they tended to recoiled in horror and run away when I lifted my shirt ;-) If you want my advice, stay in control of your Optibike. Even when stopped.

Cheers!

[Ken Cline]

Josh just told me the whole story of his epic ride. Rather than retell it, I'll point you to his version on ES, [http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=31490&sid=a9a45f64b57b63896f96144226ea3a76].

Six flats in a row at the start caused him to miss the cutoff time at a checkpoint, but he rode on ignoring protests from ride officials and topped out with the pack of human powered bikes after 2 3/4 hours of riding. His time would have been faster, but technical difficulties with the controller prevented him from drawing more than 600W of power. And last, but not least, he had exciting two flats on the steep descent with no rear brake! Yikes.

The motor ran smoothly and cool and could clearly be driven a lot harder (3x wouldn't surprise me) with properly working electronics. This drive system looks no less promising to me despite Josh's troubled ascent.

[deerfencer]

Great post.

As I said, Josh is the Charlie Brown of e-bikes. Gotta love him.

LH

On Sep 1, 8:44 pm, Ken Cline <cl...@frii.com> wrote:
> Josh just told me the whole story of his epic ride.  Rather than retell it, I'll point you to his version on ES, [http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=31490&sid=a9a45f...].

[Elect Bike]

I can't find the link to the new optibike 1100 options on the web
site ??? Craig, is the link up ?
Also, does the new 1100 have the option of coming with the new 26A
battery?
Are there any photos of this new bike anywhere, maybe pikes peak
photo ?
Come on... we have waited a long time for this : )


On Aug 28, 8:49 am, Craig <optibikecr...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Team optibike is on the top of pikes peak, claiming first-7th places.
> T.otal domination.
>
> Introducing the new optibike 1100r.  A 48V HILL CLIMBING MONSTER.
>
> JOHN s. (Lowco2) was in first place at 1:07:00, 39 min. Faster than
> last year.
>
> Now, for the ride down. More to come.

[Elect Bike]

I'm confused

according to optibike's website watthours is calculated by multiplying
voltage by amp hour of the battery

http://www.optibike.com/the-simple-truth-about-electric-bike-range.html

if that is the case

48w X 22ah = 1056 watt hours

48w x 26ah = 1248 wat hours

I can't find the post right now, but I seem to recall Craig mentioning
the new 1100 having something like 850 watt hours. So does it have an
even smaller battery? ( less than 22 ah) or am I just not
understanding something correctly?


On Sep 7, 7:48 pm, Nimbuzz <mary...@aol.com> wrote:
> Me thinks the 1100 comes with the 26 ah pack but wired for 48 V and
> expressed in watt hrs.

[lowco2]

This is from Craig's post in the 1100R discussion:

The 48v battery system is as follows:
Internal: 875wh
Touring Battery: 749wh

As one of the real engineers here what that means at 48 V. I just call
it fast.
--John

[Bike_On]

Just to keep on topic: The new 1100R Optibike

That is 1100W continuous watts, GEARED (ie. efficient thru all gears
and speeds)

and 60 lbs.

COmpared to the Stealth Fighter:
also 48V
specified at 32 mph
3000W peak, cont is ???
1.1 kwhr
2 speed
75 lbs

[Elect Bike]

thank you, I believe it's fast I am just curious about range without
the touring battery. 875wh/48V equals aprox 18 AH battery ?? I'm just
trying to decide if I will have to buy the touring battery. But I
wanted to make sure i understood everything, I thought they built it
off the same platform as the 850 R, so I'm scratching my head to
wonder if it's an 18 AH battery.

[lowco2]

I don't know exactly, but it's plainly obvious that the same battery
capacity (watt-hours) at a greater power consumption (watts) equals
less time running. So assuming that the watt-hours are roughly the
same (26 ah @ 36 V = 936 Ah), then this sounds about right. At 1100 W
you'll burn through that quicker, but might get where you are going
quicker too. The quoted 875 Wh 48 v internal = 0.79 hr at 1100 w, or
47 min. Sound right?
--John

[Elect Bike]

thanks John

from reading posts, you won, Can I ask how many miles ( or minutes)
into the race you got on the internal battery. Thanks

[Craig]

The 48v system has ~19ah. The run time in fast mode is approx 45
minutes.

The 48v bike looks exactly like the 850R, all the changes are on the
inside. :)

Craig