Home Power Magazine Loves Electric Motorcycles

Home Power Magazine - Brammofan Approves

UPDATED!!  Five Easy  Four FREE Steps to Electric Enlightenment

Step One: go to http://homepower.com/current/ http://homepower.com/article/?file=HP144_pg48_Berman

Step Two:  Click on “View Complete Issue”  ”View Article.”

Step Three: Click on “Become a Digital Subscriber to view issue”

Step Four: Shell out $9.95 for a year’s subscription.

Step Five THREE: Read the article by Brad Berman titled “Kick Started – Electric Motorcycles Gain Traction.”

Step Six FOUR: Read the article by Ted Dillard titled “Personal Electric Vehicles Get More Personal.”

Why should you do this?

Because you want to keep up-to-date with all the happenings and developments in the world of electric motorcycles.  Berman does a great job summarizing the various offerings available today, and there’s some insightful information  about Dillard’s efforts converting worn out gas bikes into like-new electric ones from Dillard about electric two wheelers ranging in size from small (like bicycles and scooters ) to large (motorcycles and Segways).

I’m not sure that’s worth $10. What else?

Here’s the kicker: Berman’s article includes an interview with me.  I don’t want to give away the farm, but here’s some excerpts:

Mallin says that his motorcycle, which was delivered to him in a crate in June 2010, has exceeded his expectations. Not only is it a greener transportation option, but most of all, it’s a daily thrill. “It’s fun to ride, that’s for sure,” Mallin says. “How often do you wake up looking forward to your morning commute?”

* * *

“The only thing I hear when I ride my motorcycle is the wind inside my helmet, a little bit of chain noise, and the tires on the road,” Mallin says. “It’s much more of a visceral experience and closer to nature, compared to the rumble, rumble, rumble of a gas bike. On an electric bike, you can hear the crickets in the summer.”

Berman has also included quotes by Brian Wismann, Director of Product Development at Brammo; John Adamo, editor of Plugbike.com (and co-moderator of the Brammo Owners Forum); Harlan Flagg, owner of Hollywood Electrics; and Azhar Hussain, CEO of the TTXGP electric motorcycle racing series.

And yes, he even includes some pictures and information about bikes other than Brammo, including Zero Motorcycles, Mission Motors, Quantya, and Roehr Motorcycles.  So don’t waste your $10 on ice cream and donuts – spend it wisely on a subscription to Home Power and come away lighter, healthier, and better informed.

Thanks to Brammo and Brammo Fans

Mine.

It’s been a very Happy Enertia Day in Kansas City.

If you’ve been following this post, then you know that my Brammo Enertia has arrived.  Ride reports, videos, and pictures will follow, but first I want to emphasize that amazing days like this don’t happen by accident.  I wouldn’t be able to caption that photo the way I did without some hard working people, some luck, some friends, and some major patience by my family.

My biggest thank you goes to the people who made this possible: all the folks at Brammo in Ashland, Oregon.  Craig Bramscher, Brian Wismann, Adrian Stewart, Aaron Bland, Bruce Gilpin, Ron Hom, Dave Lawson, Laura Frantz and a bunch of others I’m too addle-brained to recall right now.  You have built a fantastic machine, a well-executed dream on wheels, and THANK GOODNESS for the fact that it doesn’t have an unlimited range, or I might never see Ms.Brammofan and the Brammokidz again.

There’s a host of others who have helped me reach this point, and I’m not going to be able to remember all of them, either, but if you follow me on twitter (and curses to you if you don’t), then you know the great folks on there among the “Brammofan mutual admiration society.”  Top thanks to John Adamo, a/k/a @skadamo a/k/a Plugbike.com who helped me figure out that my dear wife was wrong, and that Twitter was not a “complete waste of time” (this would be one of the only times Ms.Brammofan was even marginally wrong, by the way.)  Without him, I might have given up long ago, and certainly, there would be no Brammo Owners Forum.

And yes, humongous thanks to Ms.Brammofan and my kids, who have had to endure my obsession for many months and who I’ve probably ignored a few times while searching for more Brammo photos or reTweeting the latest news.  It’s not easy to be the Brammo Evangelist of the Year, but it’s really a challenge to be related to him.  They were more patient with me than I deserved, and more loving than I could wish for.  This Enertia’s for you, family!… except no, you may not ride it or touch it.

Brammofan and Skadamo on EVCast Tomorrow

The number of personalities in the virtual studio of EVCast tomorrow at noon (Central time) is going to be vast. The host, Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield is also known as @aminorjourney on Twitter.

My co-guest is John Adamo, also known as @skadamo on Twitter.  He also can be found at Plugbike.com, his blog on the subject of electric motorcycles and bicycles; at ElectricMotorcycleForum.com; and at about 20 other forums he’s created. Additionally, he is a frequent contributor to Asphalt&Rubber, usually on the subject of electric motorcycles.

Me, I’m Harry Mallin, also known as @Brammofan on Twitter, and I tend to focus on all things Brammo on this blog.  I am also @eMotoRules on Twitter and have a blog that can be found at www.emotorules.com that focuses on my other role as the moderator on the TTXGP Technical Rules Wiki.

That’s a lot of identities in the (virtual) room at once.

I am still waiting on Nikki to send the show notes, but hope to talk about Brammo, TTXGP, electric motorcycles in general, crowdsourcing, and Chelsea Sexton.

Tune in live at evcast.com or grab the podcast.  Attendance for brammofans is MANDATORY.

Google Trends: Brammo Enertia — On Fire!

As of 6:00 A.M. today, Brammo Enertia shot up like a missile to the #3 Google Trend word.

Oh… Looky here:

Brammofan and Plugbike make the “related blogs” page.  John – doesn’t this mean we get valet parking next trip to Ashland?

What IS that thing? Enertia Mystery Bracket.

I was going through some pics from the Brammo Boys’ visit to the Pearl District of Portland from a couple weeks ago:

Reserved Parking

and this:

Attracting a crowd

. . . when I came across this image:

Enertias at Public Charging Station

I saw something a bit odd:

Hmmmm.

. . . and zoomed in:

What IS that?

To me, that appears to be some sort of bracket, maybe for an iPod.  The only reason for what some might call an obsessive examination of photos, is because I suspect it is related to the post on Plugbike.com last week regarding why Brian Wismann, Lead Designer at Brammo, might have visited Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon. Is this a sign of iPod integration?

My requests to @brammodesigner (Wismann) on twitter for some closeup pictures of the handlebars of his white Enertia have been ignored.  Oh sure, he’ll probably say he was too busy to reply due to the whirlwind trip from Beaverton to Bologna, Italy, where he joined Brammo CEO Craig Bramscher for dinner at the Ferrari Ristorante.

We’ll have to wait and see what the eventual response from Brammo about the mystery bracket might be.  Until then, join me in assuming it’s evidence of the soon-to-be-released killer app that will allow each rider to customize his or her power settings.

Today’s Pedantic Musings:  Bologna, Italy, is the location of Marzocchi, the manufacturer of the suspension system used in the Enertia’s forks.  A 2.5 hour drive from Bologna to Bergamo, Italy, will take you to the  home of Brembo, the manufacturer of the brakes used on the Enertia.  After a rousing day at Brembo, perhaps Craig and Brian will return to Bologna and enjoy the culinary delight that takes its name from this picturesque town.

It has a first name: O-S-C-A-R . . .