"How heavy is a YikeBike? The YikeBike weighs less than 10kg with a full battery and air in the tyres" And how much does it weigh with a drained battery and flat tires? :)
Less, actually.
YikeBike
41–50 of 61 posts
Re: YikeBike
#42This shouldn't be compared to a regular bike but to Segway. A popular electic bicycle would also be cheap and allow pedalling.
and I believe its going to have the same problem: http://paulgraham.com/segway.html
Re: YikeBike
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
The perks of the Yike (I feel funny just saying that) are the weight (20lb vs 45lb) and size. I see lots of business people here (London) on those little fold up city bikes. The Yike seems more targetted at those customers than the traditional cyclist.
The Yike also allows you to avoid the legions of bicycle fundamentalists who will inevitably accost you over an electric bicycle choice.
How does it do that? At 20kmh I'll ride circles around this thing on my mountain bike with knobby tires wearing a 30 pound pack.
Re: YikeBike
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
From the FAQ (I swear I'm not from YikeBike PR): It is likely that you will jump off the front of a YikeBike in an emergency braking situation - this is very easy as there are no handle bars in the way.
At 20km/h it might not be so easy after all.
I'm guessing that sailing off the front gets progressively easier the faster you're going. It's the graceful landing that presents a problem.
Re: YikeBike
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another comparison: My shitty commuting bike: 50€ | Range: unlimited | Top speed: a bit more than 30kph depending on how fast you can spin
I'm sure it compares favourably to the Yike, but the range on your commuting bike is not unlimited. How far can you ride before you have to stop and eat?
I bet I can go farther on my bike before stopping and eating than the Yike can go without stopping and recharging.
Re: YikeBike
#46I can't imagine trying to bail out if you got into trouble with the handlebars around your legs like that.
From the FAQ (I swear I'm not from YikeBike PR): It is likely that you will jump off the front of a YikeBike in an emergency braking situation - this is very easy as there are no handle bars in the way.
In an emergency, the thing in front is generally what I'm trying to avoid.
Re: YikeBike
#47I can't imagine trying to bail out if you got into trouble with the handlebars around your legs like that.
From the FAQ (I swear I'm not from YikeBike PR): It is likely that you will jump off the front of a YikeBike in an emergency braking situation - this is very easy as there are no handle bars in the way.
I get what they're saying about not flipping over the bars, but personally, I'd rather be able to bail out to the back or sides. The way they are describing basically just throws you into an object, whereas with the back/sides you're able to avoid objects and roll on the ground. If you're going fast enough to flip over the handle bars: (a) you're probably not going to be able to brake in time anyway, and (b) it's probably not much better to just get launched straight into whatever you're trying to avoid.
Re: YikeBike
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
From the FAQ (I swear I'm not from YikeBike PR): It is likely that you will jump off the front of a YikeBike in an emergency braking situation - this is very easy as there are no handle bars in the way.
I think they actually meant to say "It is likely that you will be thrown off the front of a YikeBike in an emergency braking situation - this is very easy as there are no handle bars in the way." :P I really don't see how jumping off front of the bike is intuitive though. I mean, it's like trying to jump forward from the chair your sitting in. This in itself is an unnatural action, and to top it off the bike is gonna…
On a unicycle, it's actually very easy to fall off the front safely- it basically dumps you back onto your feet. The posture and balance of the yike look comparable to me.
Re: YikeBike
#49Yikes, that thing will not sell. The core demographic that would use it are the same people that want to look the coolest. And I can't imagine anyone cool sitting on something as dorky. Another good idea killed by poor design.
Sadly, I'm sure they spent a lot of time on the design. I think they're just solving the wrong problem. The lack of storage space limits this to joy riding. You can't buy groceries, commute with a laptop, etc. etc.
" The lack of storage space limits this to joy riding. You can't buy groceries, commute with a laptop"
People typically bike with laptops in backpacks and messenger bags.