Below is a link to a 48 minute google video of a City of Tucson AZ public meeting in 2006 where the city passed enabling legislation for gas and electric bicycles...

I post it here as it is a nice round-up of the usual cast of characters in these negotiations that have been going on across North America in recent years.

As usual there are commercial interests pushing for adoption and at least some of their interest is profit motivated. In this case (Tucson) the business was local bike shop Spooky Tooth Cycles, LLC.:
http://www.spookytoot...

...that had started selling kits to add tiny 48cc gas engines to pedal bikes... kits made by the China Gas Company of Changzhou in Jiangsu, China and imported into the USA by Gru-Bee inc. under the trade names Skyhawk and Starfire:
http://grubeeinc.com/...

...to this day Gru-Bee and China GAS only deal w/the little gas conversion kits but by 2006 in Tucson folks including Spookytooth were starting to acknowledge electric bikes as part of the powered bike mix with the opportunity for inexpensive and energy efficient transport.

But to this day Spookytooth and their loyal client base are still very much a gas culture.

The store selection of ebikes offered online is limited to some of the range of EZip product sold by Izip USA:
http://www.izipusa.co...

...and the Izip USA product is actually made by Currie Technologies, here:
http://www.currietech...

Currie has been in the ebike business for many, many years...starting out with motorized stand up scooters and then moving into power-assisted bicycles. My first scooter ten years ago was a Currie-made scooter branded for the Euro company Oxygen... and that scooter was a few years old already when I bought it!

So Currie has a reputation for reasonable quality at higher prices... In fact today it is the eCurrie bikes that are sold by Canadian Tire... so you know they are Canadian Tire quality... and you can take that however you like

In the meeting there are also the usual transportation "experts" seeking to limit and ban, citing bad laws already made in other jurisdictions...

City Councillors parroting naive concerns expressed by their constituents and the "experts"...

Young people and folks on limited incomes or with disabilities who recognize the potential for the technology to improve their lives and maybe do something for the environment...

Pedal bike advocates with their usual negative views and irrational fantasies about how the tech enables the irresponsible to break the laws by speeding etc.

ebike advocates promoting the tech while at the same time pushing for unfair restrictions on themselves to appease the pedal bike folks and others...

Here is the preamble posted for the video:
"Grassroots campaign to legalize alternative transportation, electric bicycles, gas powered bicycles, motorized bicycles in Tucson. Sponsored by the homegrown, presence of Spooky Tooth Cycles, this City Council meeting is the culmination of a long uphill battle to allow alternative transportation. Our struggles began on the streets with 'class'-ist cops handing out tickets of $1,500 which led up to successful lobbying that changed Arizona State law. The struggle in the City of Tucson was not against the police, but against the cultural differences of the spandex toting "roadie" bicycle brethren at the Tucson Bicycle Advisory Committee. Exciting testimonials by scientists, alt. transportation riders, and quirky politicians. www.SpookyToothCycles.com"

Sound familiar???

Anyway... show time (or not):



In 2005, Spooky Tooth held their first annual "Death Race" competition, as illegal road race for their local client base of gas powered bicycles...

2010 is now the sixth year for the Death Race, and things have been cleaned up with the races being held on a closed racetrack outside of Tucson. The promotional poster:



...and their video invitation:




...and their simple race rules now permit ebikes to enter:

Hello Race Fans:
The 6th annual Death Race is quickly approaching.

This is an annual outlaw desert event where riders will see their bikes disintegrate beneath them as they approach speeds of 50 mph.

To avoid the heat from coming down us, we have rented a race track for the day. Anyone and everyone is invited to participate. Death Race is open to all gas and electric motorized bicycles. Pedals and a motor, you're in.

Safety equipment, i.e. helmets, boots, knee and elbow pads, are highly recommended as well as mandatory. A helpful tip to racer's looking for first place on the podium, races are won by those who fall least.
***********************************


...but nobuddy has entered any ebikes in past years because the only ebikes around were pretty limited in power and range compared to the gas engines...

2010 promises to be different

This year there are plans afoot for some of the leading lights in the US ebike community to travel to this event with more powerful motors and lithium battery packs to "school" these gassers about what electrics can really do...

A lot of ebiker eyes will be following this event in Tucson AZ on Sunday April 18th...

Should be fun

Cheers
Lock

BUMP

In 2005, Spooky Tooth held their first annual "Death Race" competition, as illegal road race for their local client base of gas powered bicycles...

2010 is now the sixth year for the Death Race, and things have been cleaned up with the races being held on a closed racetrack outside of Tucson.

Finally! Sunday, April 16, 2011 at the seventh running of the annual Death Race in Tucson, the race of mixed gas and electric motorized bicycles was won by an electric for the first time!

The winner, "PaulD" and his electric Iron Horse: