Seattle Press on Line - A Bike With a Kick

A Bike With a Kick

By Sara DeBell

Sara DeBell with E-bike.

Jan 11, 2001 -- Seattle commuters get it coming and going. Gas is expensive, the roads are congested, the buses run too slow and as for bicycles...well, maybe we just want to get where we're going without breaking a sweat. But consider the electric bike.

A 42-year-old woman who hasn't ridden a bike in 10 years--me--took a test drive on the Currie E-Folder, a spunky teal electric bike that folds up to fit in your car trunk. The E-Folder took a moment to get used to: with its 18-pound battery, it's heavier than conventional bikes, and the compact 20" wheels are unusual. I pedaled with ease--the Currie has 7 gears, and you can actually use it as a conventional bicycle or even remove the battery. Then, with a press of the thumb, I turned on the juice! On congested neighborhood streets I got a quiet, controlled ride, then pushed it up to about 14 mph on the open road (non-folding e-bikes get closer to 20 mph).

You can't test an electric bike without braving one of Seattle's dozen or so "heartbreak hills," so I headed up Fremont Avenue toward Phinney Ridge. I tried a little pedaling and quickly remembered why I don't own a bicycle. But then I turned on the juice! I glided up the formidable hill with ease, and just as easily resumed pedaling when the road leveled out.

The Currie E-Folder is one of several electric bikes, trikes and scooters available at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont. This model sells for $765, and the battery takes you up to 20 miles on a charge. Charge the Currie by plugging it into any wall socket for about 12 hours--and each charge costs, literally, pennies (even if our electric rates go the way of California's). How energy efficient are these bikes? Imagine a car that gets 1,000 miles per gallon.

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hobo	Mar 11, 2004	here	trash
Like a lot of others yoursite makes the price some kind of a secret, Im so out of here Im a secret allso.