A last post from oop North!
Well here we are, almost at the end of my current visit back 'ome to Yorkshire.
Friday was to be a bit weird as i headed across the city to my friends house to see his widow and sort out some of his stuff. It was awkward and a bit sad to say the least as we went through his cycling gear and talked about what to do with this and that, i'm sure he'd think we were being a bit daft but i think he'd approve of the decisions made. The long and short is that i came away with a few bits of clothing and at his widows insistence, custodianship of his E-bike which i'll collect when i return north next month. My biggest issue now is working out how to get it down to Brizzle, some 300km away. Answers to that conundrum on a postcard please!
Back at chez Dad i was a bit drained emotionally but managed to put together a spag bol for everyone, my first 'proper' meal of the week!
Today was to be a happier one, a meeting with my kids, for convenience at the local IKEA. A thirty minute walk with pater on his mobility scooter and we arrived all of ten minutes ahead of the latest two generations of the family. We didn't do much beyond eat, drink, talk and play with Lego, the time flew past and all too soon we went our separate ways, the youngsters back on the train to Leeds and the oldies making the return journey to fathers abode. I think everyone enjoyed the visit, the gaps between them are far too big for my liking but they are all the sweeter for that.
So one more sleep in GOC then its the return to foreign climes for another month tomorrow. I would've preferred not to have needed to make this trip, i guess i didn't have to do it but i know if the boot had been on the other foot so to speak, John would've been there for me so it was more than reasonable to hold up my end of the friendship. Its been a very emotional week, one i'm not keen on repeating anytime soon.
I'll be back to normal service on Wednesday but for now,
Wiedersehn,
Madeline Anafrid
Comments
How to get the bike back to Brizzle?
Doh! Charge it up and ride it. Don't those things have a range of about a 100 miles? One overnight stay and you might just make it in two days especially if you avoid roads like the A38. I don't like riding my motorcycle from Derby towards Brum on it.
Otherwise, it looks like you may have to stump up for a train ticket. With split ticketing and a rail pass, it might just be affordable. I recommend the TrainPal app. They don't charge commission on tickets.
I'm going by train to the NEC on Monday. £41 return.
Samantha
Public transport is out
There's been a recent change which means you can't take e-bikes (or e-scooters) on buses or trains. I don't even think they let you bring them into station premises any more.
Its all on account of the explody batteries. The only way down is to ride it, natch, though if you'd be able to bring it into overnight accom to charge it is debatable. Apparently they're getting 10 fires a week just in the Greater London area from defective batteries being charged.
Penny
That's where removable batteries
come in.
Some of the older battery chemistries are indeed prone to burst into flames. Modern battery Chemistries such as LIPO are much much safer. You can hammer a nail through a LIPO cell and it will not suffer from a thermal runaway. Both my car and home battery storage use LIPO cells.
I have seen an older 2168 cell burst into flames with overcharging (under controlled conditions)
I had forgotten about the ban on trains. I don't think that it is sustainable in the long term as more and more bikes become e-bikes.
Samantha
LiIon/LiPolymer vs LiFePO4
I think you are confusing the battery types a little.
Lithium Polymer (often abbreviated as LiPo or LiPO) are a subclass of Lithium Ion batteries and prone to thermal runaway.
The safer category (with slightly different chemistry) are LiFePO4 batteries which do not suffer from thermal runaway risks like LiIon or LiPolymer.
its
not defective batteries but rather poor quality batteries and chargers that are the issue. cheap ebikes/conversions/scooters are available direct from source and there are no checks on quality or legality. To the best of my knowledge there have been no fires attributed to ebikes produced by 'western' bike brands who almost all use Bosch or Shimano hardware.
Madeline Anafrid Bell
the issues with riding are
that the charge range is only maybe 40 miles on this machine, maybe 50 if its flatter but that still means charging is required en route, so i'd be looking at possibly 4 days and there is no luggage capacity on the bike. Train could be doable or maybe a hybrid train/ride but Cross Country are the least bike friendly operator and they run pretty much everything on the right corridor.
Its not so much the time involved for riding, rather its the cost of accomodation, a conservative estimate would be @ £200 (plus meals of course).
A well intentioned gift starts to look a costly affair.
Madeline Anafrid Bell
Alternative
Rent a van for a day? Sorry, haven't had mine for a while now or I'd offer.
i know
its a bit weird, but i don't drive! If i did it wouldn't be any kind of issue!
Madeline Anafrid Bell