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[Richard230]

I thought I would offer a few personal comments about why I like electric motorcycles. I imagine that my reasons are different than most other people in the EV field. I have two passions, motorcycles and history. After owning 40 IC motorcycles over the past 48 years, I have lost a lot of the excitement that I had when I was a kid riding around on a 1962 Vespa motor scooter and then two years later, on my first motorcycle, a 250cc (very smoky) two-stroke Yamaha YD3 touring bike (complete with leg shields). After spending my childhood riding around on a 50-pound Western Flier bicycle built during WW II, all I wanted was to ride on a couple of wheels that would propel me from here to there, without me having to do all the work.

It was a lot of fun. Especially since things kept breaking all the time. Oil on the points, fouled spark plugs, broken chains, flat tires, on and on. You were lucky to travel 50 miles at any one time without the vehicle coming to a halt by the side of the road and needing to be repaired. Of course, there were no motorcycle tow services, or anyone but your friends to help you in those days. The thrill was just getting somewhere under your own power. Now-a-days, motorcycles almost never break down and no one really worries about not getting somewhere. If your bike stops, grab the cell phone and the credit card, call a tow service and have the problem fixed by the local motorcycle shop. All anyone has to talk about now is speed and handling. Durability, maintenance and fuel mileage are hardly ever mentioned anymore.

However, with electric motorcycles I am back to my beginnings again. My knowledge is very limited. The technology is new and every year improvements are being made, performance is increasing and new things are being learned about battery electric power systems. I feel like I have been transported back 100 years into the past to when IC motorcycles were just being developed and very few people owned them or understood them. In those days just getting to the next town down the road was an accomplishment and road races were more about durability than speed.

When you ride an electric motorcycle you can't depend upon the local motorcycle shop to fix a problem, as they probably know less than you do and besides don't want your business due to "liability" issues. You have to ride while calculating in your head the best route to take to maximize your range, you have to ride smoothly to reduce power usage, you have to think about where your next recharge will be acquired and how long it will take to charge and you no longer have to look at gas stations price signs as you ride along. It is just a new experience for me that has brought back the excitement of riding a motorcycle again. Besides, in an urban area you can't really ride fast for very long without running into the vehicle ahead of you, or getting a speeding ticket from a cop worried about losing his job due to budget cuts.

I am fully aware that most people that visit this site are hobbyists who are interested in building an electric motorcycle from scratch, or racers looking to race something new that hasn't had the fun taken out of the race by the big manufacturers' teams. But I am different. I just want to get down the road quietly, while riding something new that is making history. I really believe that in another 50 or 100 years, motorcycle enthusiasts will be thinking of this time as the golden age of electric motorcycles - and I am here now.   

What about you? What attracted you to electric motorcycles?

[Marshm]

I suppose noise is the main reason for me, but also simplicity.  The gas engine can take in water thru the air intake, I filled my cylinder once.  No more air filter or oil changes. No more taking off the gas tank to remove the spark plug.  No more taking off the exhaust so I can remove the subframe so I can get to the carb.  No more riding up a cliff portion of a trail only to stall at the top, and then begin to slide backwards until you have nothing to put your foot on anymore except air. 

I sort of lost interest in riding, but the idea of an electric dirtbike has made me interested again.  The simplicity items I listed above are nice, but noise is still the big issue, the others are just side effects of electric propulsion.  Noise closes off road areas.  Another benefit is easy communication with the people you are riding with.  I think less noise will add a new level of fun.  Sure a gas engine can sound neat, but I don't think I will miss the sound of the engine.

I would really like to ride the single track trails, but the range is not quite there yet.  Between 30-50 miles is common for me.  Some of the gas bikes run out of fuel past 50 anyway.  I do not know how many miles an electric bike will go in the trails like I ride.  We average 12-17 miles per hour, and max of 35-45 depending on the particular trails.  I wish the manufacturers would have taken a different approach and targeted the trail rider.  Riding in these areas often comes close to housing and such, so that's a perfect application for low noise.  I think they are focused on performance in the early stages because people's impression is that they are more of a moped than a real dirt bike. 

Building a gas engine is a huge task.  Unless you sell a huge quantity, it will cost too much to make.  The engine is a huge part of the bike.  With electric, I wonder if it will level the playing field a bit and allow smaller companies to be able to compete with the larger companies.  If everyone is just buying the batteries and motors from a few places, this should allow a much larger number of manufacturers of electric motorcycles.  I can only hope. 

[Richard230]

Good points, Marshm.  Reduced maintenance costs should really be considered in the overall cost of running an EV. Most high-end motorcycles need to be serviced every 6 months or every 4 to 6 thousand miles and service costs at a dealership can run over $500 - closer to $1000 for some Ducati models. Also, electric motorcycles are a lot easier on tires and other parts, due to their lower power and weight and lack of vibration.

You have a really good point about the lack of noise when ridden in the dirt. Dirt riding is being closed all over the country and (no mater what environmentalists say) I believe that the noise of off-road riding disrupting the peace and quiet of the wilderness is the likely the major reason for public wilderness areas being closed to off-road vehicles (and therefore being closed to just about everyone except for hikers and equestrians).

[MostlyBonkers]

I just came across this. Well worth a bump! [emoji4]

[Cortezdtv]

The joy in someones eyes who has enjoyed warp speed for the first time....

Its like the first time you got a ride in a truely fast car or on a fast motorcycle when your a little kid


That and un rivialed acceleration, dirt, street, wherever you can ride electric

Shit grandma's can put down an 11.5 sec 1/4 mile by stabbing it (in the new teslas) pretty impressive!