The Silver Machine on Queen Street, 29/08/09

L'électrique, c'est chic

This blog endorses the Copenhagen Cycle Chic manifesto, with the following comments and caveats:

• if my clothes were going to cost more than my bike, then I'd have to get to work in Yves St Lauren or similar
• if my experiences yesterday mean anything, it will be difficult to not let the bike upstage me, for the first while at least - although I have the kind of personality which means that I can probably reverse that given a bit of effort;
• of course we don't have freedom of choice over helmets in this country.

I encourage you to read the rest of the blog. Those Danish ladies are style-tacular.

It has begun. You're in the hands of destiny.

Purchases today:

• one Wisper 705 eco e-bike, from Scooter é Motion, Eden Terrace, Auckland: $1699
• a serious business front light: $45
• a serious business lock: $20

And then we were ready for action.

Classy features of the 705 eco:

• Intelligent electrics. Basically, when you switch the motor on, you can control it via a handlebar throttle, like a motorbike. But that burns a lot of power. What's far more efficient is the Pedal Assist mode. Simply put: when you pedal harder, the motor switches on. Or, in other words, the motor switches on automatically when you go uphill, or otherwise make an effort. It basically flattens the landscape.
• Classy old-school accessories, like kickstand, bag carrier and little bell.
• The battery (about the size and weight of a 2.25 litre bottle of Coke) can be lifted out and taken inside for charging.
• Step-through frame, rendering it eminently practical for riding in a dress, as I was today.

First ride: from showroom up New North Road, through Symonds Street, down Wakefield / Mayoral Drive to Queen Street. Parked on Queen Street and hung out for about an hour. Virtually everyone who passed did a double take and asked what was up with the shiny wheels. I suppose I'll get bored with explaining the workings of it to everyone after a while, but still I'm kind of excited.

Getting home was of course the real test. Up Mayoral Drive, Greys Ave and Pitt St to K'Road - got to the top in 3rd gear (out of 7), with Pedal Assist on. A little bit of effort on the pedals, perhaps getting a bit warm and breathing deeply, but no real issues at all. At my level of fitness, doing that on a manual bike would have me puffing like steam engine and barely able to move by the top. A triumph.

Things to get used to:

• Make sure my bag is securely fasted to the carrier. It fell off a ways along K'Road and dragged for a few metres, embarrassingly. Eventually I'll want proper pannier bags.
• Locking bike and taking the keys out of the battery when going inside places.

But other than that... the test drive was a success.

Now, the serious business. Certain friendly folk on the Better Transport forums express scepticism that bike commuting (even e-bike commuting) is feasible for professional women who want to look good once they get to the office. Certainly I think the "lyrca brigades" are responsible for an idea that only serious-business fitness nuts take bicycling seriously. But through the month of September, I will bicycle (from Mt Albert to Grey Lynn, about 5 kms) every working day, wearing vaguely professional clothing, and let you know what happens.

Photos of today to come, insha'allah.

Electric-bike eases the effort of cycling

...on the second morning I decided to go for it a bit, and later that week gleefully received third-hand reports from car commuters who had noticed a "blonde girl hurtling along past all the traffic on bicycle with far too much ease".

One British woman's account of a summer of e-biking.

...and you know what I mean...

I live and work in Auckland, New Zealand, and in a few days I will take possession of an electric bicycle - a Wisper 705 eco. I aim to use it for my daily commute of about 5 kms, including one serious hill, and also to take it further afield with the help of my city's train system. The purpose of this blog will be:

- to identify any teething problems related to the regular use of e-biking;
- to prove that it is possible for young, professional women to use an e-bike and stay fashionable;
- to vaguely ramble about other matters concerning sustainable urban transport.

The blog title is from this bad-ass number by space-rock legends Hawkwind, and yes, the bike is silver.