THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 22, 1996 TAG: 9604200054
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: Tech Track: Gadgets and Gizmos for the Next Century
SOURCE: BY JAMES SCHULTZ, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
WIND IN YOUR HAIR, fresh air through your lungs, but maybe leg cramps from too much pedaling over hill and dale. If a bicycle ride leaves you stretched out flat on the family sofa, maybe a Warrior can roust you back to your feet.
The Electric Bicycle Co. of Burbank, Calif., is rolling out what it calls the EV Warrior, a contraption that's a cross between a multi-speed, geared bike and an electric scooter. A handlebar-mounted throttle controls a sleek, battery-driven power pod mounted over the bike's rear tire, goosing the Warrior to speeds up to 20 mph.
On battery power alone, the electric bike's range is anywhere from 15 to 20 miles. Otherwise, the six-speed Warrior moves along the old-fashioned way, under human power, at least until thigh and calf muscles give out.
The bike comes with a fuel-like gauge that indicates real-time electrical consumption, as well as the amount of energy left in its two lead-acid batteries.
The Warrior can be recharged overnight or, with the purchase of a specialized recharger, boosted back to full capacity in just a few hours.
Avowed cyclists may shudder at the thought of any kind of motorized assistance, but the Warrior could be a boon to workers with short commutes, urban dwellers on errands, or casual riders who wouldn't mind some extra pedal juice at the end of a long trek some weekend afternoon.
As a clean, ``green'' alternative to smog-belching two- or four-wheelers, the Warrior is appropriately eco-friendly. But the starting price tag of $1,400 isn't kind to thin wallets.
The bikes will be carried only by car dealerships. Company spokesman Robert Rooney explains that Electric Bicycle wants the flashy Warriors to have decent display space, potent advertising and be easily available for test rides.
Two Hampton Roads dealers currently stock EV Warriors. One is Charles Barker Toyota Volkswagen on Laskin Road in Virginia Beach, at 437-4000. The other is Oyster Point Dodge, in Newport News, at (804) 249-0000. MEMO: ``Tech Track'' appears Mondays in the Daily Break. Readers with ideas
for future columns are invited to contact staff science and technology
writer James Schultz at (804) 229-3380, or via e-mail at
schultz(AT)infi.net
Visit Tech Track on Pilot Online's Fun page at
http://www.pilotonline.com/ ILLUSTRATION: Color photo of ad for the EV Warrior electric bike
by CNB