Hairy

Just checking again, but the DH and XCO is only available for viewing via a paid platform?

Good Friday Morning Coffee Ride All

Little wet and windy in CT today

It is "fresh" out on the bike in CT boys and girls ... might I suggest an ADV Harley on the current roads

You also need a big screen and decent speakers connected to that PC, will make working in the garage more entertaining.

I can see many a rider looking to 3D print a "clip on tandem" to take their "loved ones" for a ride, with no tethers attached.

McGuyver, and subject that should be taught in schools.

Dude ... I am talking realistic goals here

How long till it becomes standard to have a 3D printer in every household .... not too long I don't think.

Just how long have you been "mountain biking"?

If you are looking for a commuter for those distances I would not recommend a high end MTB. Either a SS or a old 9spd MTB

Unless you need motorised transport, commute to work and back if you are able to and take an uber on really bad weather days as a back up support system. The cash you save by doing this will help you out after your gap year. Let your friends spend all their cash (edit) on all the toys and flask kit they want ... but do your best to get a good bit of yours saved up, invest in an education with this, or use this to supplement your expenses while studying and then keep moving a head in life. It will suck at times, but the long term benefits will make it all worth it.

Al I remember was being able to rent the new movies on VHS, and then the poor old Beta section was old and lonely with little to no action ever seen.

come clean .... you did not do VHS tapes, your age surley puts you into the Beta tape category

So on the bike this morning I was giving your thread a little more thought. You are clearly now finished, or finishing school based on me assuming you are 18years old, or thereabouts. This then started the process in my head (a) is he going to study further (b) is he going to be working, and if so how far is work from his house (e) is budget and issue and (f) what are his short to mid term life goals. OP?

Out of interest, where do you live please? The RE your bike selection, there are many very experience motorbike riders on the following thread that will help you out with information....they certainly assisted me.

2 stroke is certainly nasty RE pollution Honda NC 750 will blow your mind for a commuter bike, it also has programable modes, so you can ride in the rain mode till you build confidence on the bike. It is also light and nimble to ride. My daily is a 1584cc Harley. Solar benefits you measure over the year, not a month. Div. that by 12 = monthly gains. Once your solar is installed, it is done and dusted, petrol, oil and service materials with labour will keep going up. A delivery model works best in a denser environment. If based in a more rural / open area, then the loss of density / profit to the delivery company will be carried over to you the client. I worked as a cycle courier in CT. Predominantly in the CB and surrounds, but had the odd delivery that took me out on a 100-150km loop. The client carried the extra over cost for this. At the same time, in a urban or city environment, you would be a miss to measure the efficiency of a bicycle or e-bike against a km/h rule. These bicycles slip through traffic, over pavements, through green belts, or whatever shortcut can be found, and they certainly are quicker than motorbikes in these environments. This from experience. A motorbike vs std bicycle can lug around bigger loads, but the e-bicycles are fitted with the same volume carriers as per the motorbikes. Daily power. I have spoken to the e-bike guys, and they get tons of mileage out of their batteries, but they also have spare batteries left on charge at certain stores that deal with them, so their downtime is not an issue as they do not sit around waiting for the battery to charge again. So while your motorbike is at the petrol station waiting to fill up, the e-bike guy just swaps out a battery when he/she picks up a delivery. High end EV's. So I refer to my neighbour, who has spent some serious money on his two EV's. It is more about planning and your lifestyle. They travel mostly around the CT metropole and have more than enough range for a days fun. Then most shopping centers also have charging stations, some of them even free. He also sometimes just wants to get away from his office, so goes to work in a coffee shop while leaving the car charging. Long distance trips, this is not a common thing for them, but they then just embrace the fact, and plan a lunch along the way to charge again, or find a nice place to stay over at. It becomes a mindset thing.

You looking at the wrong bikes for an efficient commuter .... you better looking at the Honda NC750 range. Many homeowners are moving to setting up solar, at least I am seeing this in my hood. My one neighbour has 2 x EV cars, and he has set up both his house and office with a decent solar solution .... there are also more than enough places to recharge along the way too at either solar based, or solar supplemented recharging stations, and then pure Eskom based stations. Even if you are using Eskom power, this is certainly still more eco friendly vs the whole cycle that 1l of petrol takes to get into your tank? ICE engines are reliable, no probs with that, but they rely on a proper and regular maintenance routine to achieve this. ICE's also use batteries, smaller, but this still use them as consumable devices. Biggest issue with EV is cost to entry and then reliable power supply. Hoping the cost to entry comes down as tech advances, and people start buying in, and then in SA it is a foregone conclusion that people will largely move to solar, or rely on some other form of renewable energy source.

Over the lifespan of a conventional e-engine, and ICE will see so many service intervals where oil is changed, spark plugs, air and oil filters, etc....and if the e-engine is primarily recharged off solar, then it surely has a head start. When the e-motor dies, it is prob a simple solution to refurb it too, and if not the materials are recyclable again.

We have swarms of e-delivery bicycles in our area, literally hundreds of them

Does your collar bone set of detectors at the airport?

😍

Cool pic of your bike ... but why is there some dodgy looking old guy posing next to it?

This machining reminds me of the POLE bikes