Lightning Motorcycles makes first customer delivery of the LS-218 electric superbike

Last night Lightning Motorcycles fulfilled a long-held promise of selling the Lightning electric superbike to paying customers.  The company has raced with production-intent-prototype-bikes in events since 2010 setting a number of records.  After every one, Lightning CEO Richard Hatfield promised their bikes were now on sale - a promise that's now been fulfilled.

For more see Lightning Motorcycles delivers LS-218 electric superbike to first paying customer over on LongTailPipe.

Risking life and limb to electrify racing - is it worth it? PLEASE, do it safely!

Bobby Goodin, R.I.P.

A question in my mind since the 2014 TT ZERO (and TT) at the Isle of Man is the carnage happening in this kind of race.  The TT course, the Pikes Peak course, and some other races, are severe challenges between person, machine, and the elements.  The challenge is higher than at regular race tracks, and while track based racing see's a fair amount of injury and even death, courses like the Snaefell Mountain Course (Isle of Man) or Pikes Peak seem to have a higher rate of injury and death.

What I'm pondering is my role in this process.  By covering these events as news I'm contributing my little bit to the spectacle around the event, and contributing my little bit to encouraging other riders to participate.  Some of whom have wives and children at home who would be devastated if it was their husband whose face appears on TV thanks to a fatal accident.

I've covered the electric racing scene since 2009 - including Zero Motorcycles' "24 Hours of Electricross" event, and at the Vintage Motorcycle event in Ohio that year where the TTXGP made its first appearance in North America.  Following that was several years attending TTXGP, e-Power, eRoadRacing and REFUEL races, as well as remotely covering events like the TT ZERO and PPIHC.

Covering electric racing has been, for me, a matter of recognizing that in order to change the worlds transportation system, we have to go into and transform every field of transportation.  That includes racing.

For this project of electrifying all transportation to work, we have to convince the serious gear heads to begin racing with electric vehicles.  That means building, racing, and winning with electric vehicles that catch attention of the gear heads, breaking the haze of their gasoline addiction.  That also means entering the territory, getting into the same events, as regular racing - and obviously it'll take a "few" years to fulfill that destiny, but it must eventually happen.

Fortunately the electric race vehicles are improving rapidly - as evidenced by events like Mugen's win at the TT ZERO this year (117 miles/hr lap speed) and Lightning's win at Pikes Peak last year (10 minutes).  The 2014 Pikes Peak saw a smaller electric field, but the first sub-12 minute time by a production electric motorcycle ridden by Jeff Clark, and an excellent first showing Brutus Motorcycles with Jeremiah Johnson riding (I'll be getting to the details of this later - if I'm misrepresenting this somehow, bear with me, I haven't looked up the details yet).  All this is proof positive that electric motorcycle capabilities are moving forward rapidly.

At the 2014 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, motorsport.com reports that Bobby Goodin died shortly after finishing the race.  He's an experienced rider, had just finished 4th in his class ("Pikes Peak Middleweight", gas powered, with a 11:07 time), and unfortunately when he raised his arm in victory he lost control of his bikes, hit some boulders, destroying his bike, sending him flying, and he died on the spot.

The same report says deaths among racers and race officials at the Pikes Peak race is fairly infrequent.

The Isle of Man TT event has had enough deaths that there's a very long Wikipedia page to list deaths at that race.  There were two deaths this year, Bob Price and Karl Harris, and I know from having listened to lots of ManxRadio coverage during TT Week that several other "incidents" resulted in serious injury.  In 2009, the first year of electric racing during TT Week (when it was still run by the TTXGP), John Crellin died in the Senior TT race after completing the TTXGP.

To give a sense of conditions at Pikes Peak, consider this video shot as riders were returning down the mountain last week during practice.  All of a sudden a riderless motorcycle comes tumbling down from above, and fortunately the impacted rider was able to avoid a serious crash, performed a perfect roll on the ground, and didn't fall off the cliff himself.  But just look at the narrow margin these guys have, and how far they have to fall if they do go off the edge.


Obviously, racing on this sort of course comes at the risk of injury and death.  Some people enjoy taking that risk.

What is our role, as spectators and journalists, in this scene?  It's not far removed from something like the fights in the Roman Coliseum where people were literally fighting to the death.

Don't we, as the spectators and journalists, have on our hands the blood of every racing death?

Those of us who choose to participate in electrifying the racing scene - PLEASE PLEASE do so safely.

McGuinness scored an odometer moment - 115+ miles/hr in TT ZERO - what does it mean?

Earlier today Mugen Shinden's John McGuinness shattered the TT ZERO lap speed record - it now stands at 115.598 miles/hr.  His teammate, Bruce Anstey, also broke the previous record, which had been set by Anstey on Saturday, with a 113+ miles/hr lap speed.  These two are top riders in the TT, for example Anstey set the overall lap speed record just yesterday at over 132 miles/hr.  Setting a new record is an accomplishment for the riders, but in this case I feel called to take a step back and consider the broader context.

A year ago we were jumping for joy that MotoCzysz' Mike Rutter shattered the 2012 lap speed record (104 miles/hr) with a 109 miles/hr lap speed.  It's a year later and the lap speed record has jumped again, this time with a 6+ miles/hr gap.  The TT ZERO lap speed's have jumped by 5 or more miles/hr since the 2009 TTXGP.  (TT ZERO took over from TTXGP for the 2010 season)

In Motorsports, that's a very fast rate of improvement.  In gassers they might see a 1 or maybe 2 miles/hr improvement year-on-year, we're seeing 5+ miles/hr per year.  This has been true not just in the TT ZERO, but in other series.  We saw similar improvements at the Laguna Seca race - variously known as e-Power, e-Power/TTXGP or eRoadRacing.  While the 2011 lap speed record by Mission Motorcycles was not broken in 2012 or 2013, the rest of the field moved forward considerably at Laguna Seca.

There is a Mission Motors drive train inside those Mugen Shinden bikes, by the way. 

The gap between gassers (132 miles/hr lap speed) and electrics (115.598 miles/hr) on the TT course is closing rapidly. 

Electrics are gaining 5 miles/hr or so per year, the gassers gaining at a lower rate.  Does this mean the 17 miles/hr gap between the two will close within 3 or 4 years?  During the 2017 season will we be celebrating Yamaha Racing setting the outright the lap speed record on the TT Course with an electric bike?

A year ago we were celebrating Lightning Motorcycle's outright win in the Pikes Peak Hill Climb.  Carlin Dunne beat the whole field, top motorcycle racers sitting on 1200cc Ducati's, by over 20 seconds.  With an electric motorcycle.

Electric motorcycle racing on 3 continents - eFXC, eMotoRacing, M1GP, MotoERacing - but no eRoadRacing

I have some preliminary news on a new electric motorcycle racing season in Europe - MotoERacing.  I learned of this series last week thanks to a posting by the Danish team, Future Electric, who made a blog post seeking sponsorship.  Their reason for seeking sponsors?  Because they've been invited to participate in MotoE.  MotoWhat?  This was the first I'd heard of that, so what's on the MotoE website?  And does it have any relation to eMotoRacing in North America?  And this raises the unanswered question - where is the 2014 eRoadRacing season?

The MotoE website describes a 2014 season of several motorcycle race events, all in Europe, starting in the middle of the summer.

There's some elements shown on the site that recall the TTXGP and eRoadRacing - such as referring to the IET for technical/rules support.  Oh, and there's many pictures on the site derived from the 2013 eRoadRacing season, and the teams mentioned match the TTXGP/eRoadRacing European roster. 

According to Rupal Patel (owner of the MotoERacing.com domain name - and one of the top people of the TTXGP/eRoadRacing), MotoE is extremely preliminary at this moment, and there nothing concrete to report, yet.

Basically, we must simply watch that space to see what develops.


Electric motorcycle racing teams in Australia, Europe and North America are responding to the lack of a 2014 eRoadRacing season.  If all had been right in the world, eRoadRacing would have announced a season lineup last fall, and we'd have already seen a couple races by now.  But they didn't, and and still haven't even though we're in May.  Currently the eRR website is down and has been for a month or more.  I have to do some more digging before I can report on the status of eRoadRacing.

To fill the void left by TTXGP/eRoadRacing, four electric motorcycle racing series are underway.

Australia:  eFXC was the Australian partner to TTXGP.  For the 2013 season the eFXC went its own way when eRoadRacing was unable to work with them.  I haven't been able to follow them in 2014, but I believe they are conducting a 2014 season.

North America:  eMotoRacing was organized by Arthur Kowitz, who'd ridden during 2013 in the eRoadRacing.  The M1GP in Southern California was organized by Hollywood Electrics, a Zero Motorcycles dealer in Hollywood, and is doing electric racing action at tracks near the LA area.  The AFM has allowed, since 2013, electric bikes to race for points in gas bike races.  Additionally, some teams are gearing up for another big showing at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.

Europe: as we said, MotoERacing is trying to start a series.  The TT ZERO is of course "on" for June and should be interesting.

A good thing is that the electric motorcycle racing field is showing resilience - the primary promoter, eRoadRacing, is missing from action but the racing teams are organizing replacement racing action.

That's what resilience is - the ability to bounce back in the face of survival threats.  Such as a motorcycle racer, leading the race in the last corner of the last lap, spinning out, then getting back up, finishing the race, and scoring a decent standing.  The loss of eRoadRacing could have been a death blow to the electric motorcycle racing sport, setting the field back by a decade while the FormulaE electric car racing series is getting all the limelight.  Instead the sport is organizing itself.

Here I am at the end of the posting, and I don't have answers to the questions raised at the top.  That's where the electric motorcycle racing sport is - clutching at answers to key questions - What about eRoadRacing?  How will electric motorcycles be established in the overall motorcycle racing field?

Yamaha steps toward electric superbikes with PES1 and PED1 production starting in 2016

Yamaha, in their 2013 Annual Report, announced production of the Yamaha PES1 and Yamaha PED1 electric motorcycles would begin in 2016.  While these aren't electric superbikes, this will make Yamaha the first major motorcycle manufacture to begin building electric bikes.  Further, it's a step towards a full-on electric superbike that Yamaha hinted a few years ago would be available in 2020.

Back in 2010 when Yamaha announced low scale (1000 units a year) production of a low end (26 miles/hr) electric scooter, the EC-03, the press release said the EC-03 was just the first step of what Yamaha expected would usher in a full line of electric motorcycles by 2020.  This line would include a "high output" model.  Given Yamaha's role in the motorcycle world, it's fair to assume Yamaha was hinting an electric superbike by 2020.

Most of what we know about the PES1 and PED1 comes from the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show, where these bikes were shown, along with and several other electric scooters and bicycles. 

Let's take a look at everything Yamaha showed last fall to get a sense of where they're going.

What I see is the company looking to reuse components on more than one bike.  That's a wise move letting them reuse engineering investments to fill out the model line.  But is it resulting in lower power?  Is the PES1 limited by a drive train meant for dirt bikes?

Some of these vehicles are underpowered, uninspiring, or even confusing.  The electric bicycle doesn't make sense to me with nearly 20 years of experience riding electric bicycles.   It looks like a high end race bike, with aerodynamic wheels and seat/handlebars set up for a serious racer.  Why would a serious racer want electric assist?

Yamaha PES1

The Yamaha PES1 is a street bike of the same ilk as the Zero S.  Except it has less useful functionality.  Where Zero puts a "tank" that can either hold cargo or additional battery pack, Yamaha put a swoopy piece of stuff that serves no function other than a resting place for riders in full tuck.   And where Zero put in a rear seat, the PES1 will only seat 1 rider.

• Length×Width×Height = 1,918 mm×640 mm×1,000 mm  
• Motor type = DC brushless motor  
• Battery type = Lithium-ion  
• Transmission = Switchable between manual and automatic  
• Vehicle weight = under 100 kg 

Yamaha PED1

The Yamaha PED1 is a dirt bike.  The design is very spare, which makes sense for a vehicle meant to romp around on muddy paths.

• Length×Width×Height = 1,900 mm×758 mm×1,205 mm 
• Motor type = DC brushless motor  
• Battery type = Lithium-ion  
• Transmission = Switchable between manual and automatic 
• Vehicle weight = under 85 kg

Both of these bikes have a transmission that's switchable betwen Automatic and Manual.  In last fall's announcement, Yamaha said these bikes "retain the same operational feeling that current motorcycle riders are used to".  Brammo said a similar thing when at the Brammo Empulse unveiling party in May 2012, that the Empulse has a transmission because it offers familiarity to current motorcycle riders.

I don't want to rathole into controversy, it's just interesting to see the same explanation from two companies.

The "power unit" (the Yamaha Smart Power Module) is common between the PES1 and PED1.  It has a rigid structure that's part of the motorcycle frame, rather than being carried inside the frame.

There's nothing about speed or range or charging time.

Yamaha eVino

Also shown last fall was the eVino, an electric version of the Yamaha Vino scooter that in turn is inspired by the Vespa. 

This is meant for urban commuting travel, meaning it has a modest speed and range.  There are already plenty of scooters like this on the market, with top speeds in the 30-40 miles/hr range and a 20ish mile range.  The eVino supports a removable battery pack.

• Length×Width×Height = 1,675 mm×645 mm×1,005 mm  
• Motor type = DC brushless motor  
• Battery type = Lithium-ion

Yamaha EKIDS

The EKIDS is a dirt bike for youngsters.  Several companies make similar products already.  In the picture I spy what looks like an electric bicycle battery pack - the sort that is a longish rectangular tube containing batteries, and meant to be easily removable for off-board charging.  The drive unit appears to be at the rear wheel.

The power unit is the same as on the eVino.

• Length×Width×Height = 1,245 mm×575 mm×715 mm  
• Motor type = DC brushless motor  
• Battery type = Lithium-ion

The YPJ-01 is an electric bicycle hearkening back to one Yamaha showed 20 years ago.  I don't understand the thinking to building what looks like a high end race bicycle, but with an electric motor.  To me (I've been riding electric bicycles since 1995) electric bicycles are about utility, not goosing up the speed of a race bike.  I would imagine serious race bike people aren't interested in an electric drive for anything other than occasional speed assist, such as hill climbing.

The YPJ-01 has a mid-drive system, meaning the motor drives into the rear wheel gearing and therefore the rider gets lots of flexibility in power/effect ratios.  Even though it has a 250 watt motor, it will still be pretty speedy because of this.

The battery pack looks pretty small, so don't expect much from the range.  Maybe Yamaha does mean this to be solely for little speed boosts now and then?

• Length×Width×Height = 1,700 mm×430 mm×1,050 mm  
• Motor type = Center-mounted 250W motor (pedal-crank direct assist)  
• Battery type = Lithium-ion  
• Transmission = Externally-attached 22-speed (Front: 2-speed, Rear: 11-speed)

Since I'm going over the known electric bikes from Yamaha, here's the EC-03 from their announcement in 2010. 

This vehicle has a top speed around 26 miles per hour, and is (or was) in very low production, about 1000/year.

There are several similar low end scooters on the market from other makers.

Electric racing at the threshold of competing directly against gas powered racing - Brammo and Darvill Racing at the Southern 100

For years we've had electric powered racing, whether it's drag racing (NEDRA and the like), go-karts, motorcycles (TTXGP and the like) or cars (Formula E, Formula Lightning, etc).  Electrically powered racers ran in separate classes, and often separate events, because while electric race vehicles might be fast enough they didn't have the range to participate in regular gasoline powered races.  Many in the field dream of doing so, however, and have been working for years to reach the point of competing directly against the gassers.

With my post last night going over Darvill Racing's announcement that they're entering the Southern 100 with an electric bike, the electric motorcycle racing field reached that threshold.

What Darvill (and Brammo) have achieved is an agreement to enter an internationally sanctioned race which traditionally had only gasoline powered bikes.  The Southern 100 will be the worlds first internationally sanctioned motorcycle race with a mix of gasoline and electrically powered bikes.

In last nights post, I named off some other events where electrically powered motorcycles raced against gas bikes.  While none of that happened at an internationally sanctioned motorcycle race, all were important stepping stones to reaching this threshold.  The biggest was Lightning Motorcycles overall win last summer at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, by a big margin, racing against top riders and bikes from around the world.  Surely that caught the attention of officials in high places.

It's another ball-o-wax however to have official FIM sanctioning lined up.  It means electric racing is beginning to enter a phase of running in the regular races.   Eventually it will become routine for electric bikes to be present in what had been a gasoline powered race.

Darvill Racing: the first to race electric motorcycles against gassers, at the Southern 100 Road Races this summer

Darvill Racing has announced (on Friday) a historic agreement in which they will be the first electrically powered motorcycle racing team to compete directly against gasoline powered bikes in a regular road race.  They'll be competing in the "Southern 100 Road Races" which is an ACU/FIM sanctioned event held on the south end of the Isle of Man, in July every year.  The TT Week, which includes the TT ZERO, is held on the northern end of the island, in June.

They claim this is a first for any electric motorcycle team to compete directly against gas bikes in their own turf.  This is a big claim, and I'll go over the details in a minute.  The key is that the Southern 100 is sanctioned by the ACU, which in turned is sanctioned by the FIM, making this the first appearance of electric bikes at an FIM sanctioned gas bike event.  Or, as team Principal Alex Aitchison wrote to me, "What we have been able to secure for the first time is a sanctioned (international) mixed race on a pure road racing circuit (Billown)."

The agreement was reached between Darvill, the ACU (Great Britain's motorcycle racing association), and the Southern 100.

Additionally, Darvill will be competing in an aggressive schedule of racing: "Competing in the Pre-TT, TT, Southern 100, Classic TT, Manx Grand Prix, ThundersportGB and Andreas Championships. We have committed to a number of international races and have some individual and diverse one-off events planned."

In December, an agreement between Brammo and Darvill was announced where Darvill would be a "Factory Supported Team" racing in the FIM eRoadRacing series using a pair of Empulse TTX's.  One will be a stock Empulse TTX, and the other will have some modifications.  At the time they hinted at other racing events in addition to the eRoadRacing series.

To understand all these racing events, we have to turn to iomguide.com:

• Pre-TT is held in late May, on the Billown circuit. -- conventional gas bike
• TT is the main enchilada, and is held in early June on the Snaefell Mountain Course.  THEY PLAN TO ENTER THE TT ZERO
• Southern 100 is held in early July on the Billown circuit -- Electric in one class, gas in another class
• Classic TT is held in late August on the Snaefell course -- conventional gas bike
• Manx Grand Prix is held in mid-August, apparently on the Snaefell course -- conventional gas bike
• ThundersportGB is a series of races around England -- Electric in the Streetfighter class
• Andreas Championships - unable to find a link -- conventional gas bike

UPDATE Darvill's press release didn't make it crystal clear which of these were electric or gas - I've updated it after getting clarification.

Let's get back to this claim that Darvill Racing will be "the first team to complete in a pure road race alongside conventional ICE (Internal Combustion Engines) anywhere in the world."  An astute reader might remember - Chip Yates - Team Moto-Electra - Lightning Motorcycle - Brammo in the AFM during 2013 - and start scratching their head, and questioning whether Darvill is telling the truth.

What this boils down to is race length. and FIM sanctioning.  The club racing that Chip Yates, Team Electra and Brammo have done in earlier years meant for short races - about 6 laps, or much less than 20 miles race length.  The Pikes Peak event is, if I recall right, 12 miles long, but it's all uphill (of course).  The TTXGP and eRoadRacing events have been 20-25 mile length events.  The TT ZERO is a 37.33 mile racing event. Typical professional level gas bike races are about 60 miles length, or more.

The Southern 100 event is somewhere in-between.  Going over the 2013 Southern 100 race results, I see the races cover 6, 7 and even 8 laps, at 4.25 miles per lap.  Hence, it's a nearly 35 mile race, which is longer than the typical TTXGP/eRoadRacing event, but shorter than the pro level gas bike races I've seen (AMA Superbike).

Darvill worded this very carefully, distinguishing the Southern 100 event from earlier instances of electric bikes racing against gas bikes.  The club races that Chip Yates, Team Electra and Brammo entered previously aren't in the same league, nor race length.  I wonder how they're drawing the distinction in the case of Lightning Motorcycle's win at Pikes Peak last summer.  Lightning was entered in the electric class, but did come away with the overall win, by a big margin.

The real differentiation is that the Southern 100 is sanctioned by the FIM, which is not true for any of those other events.

Here's a few statements from Darvill and others from their press release:

Alex Aitchison – Darvill Racing Team Principal: “We are extremely pleased to be given the opportunity to be the first team to compete with ICE machines in a pure road race event anywhere in the world. We are looking forward to working with the ACU and Southern 100 club. Spending time with Gary (Thompson) and his team it is evident that the ACU are committed to being the leading light in the field.

Derek Nicholson – President of the Southern 100 Club: “Since the first Southern 100 was run in 1955, the club has always been progressive in its thinking and this year is no exception as we will witness the very first motorcycle race which will see ‘conventional’ racing machines competing with and against electric powered machines at the 2014 Southern 100 International Road Races. A first for Billown and the Isle of Man, in fact for the world.”

Gary Thompson – ACU General Secretary and Clerk of the Course for the Isle of Man TT: “We are extremely pleased to be working with Darvill Racing – a brand that is synonymous with success, passion for racing, and the development of innovative and cutting edge machinery. Electric Vehicles are now at an advanced enough stage that they can compete with conventional technologies and we are proud to be in a position to support the inclusion of the first mixed race on Roads anywhere in the world. It is truly an exciting time for motorcycle racing.

Official eMotoRacing series announcement, first race in February 2014

Arthur Kowitz - 2013 eRoadRacing @ Laguna Seca

As I reported earlier, Arthur Kowitz, a long-time AMA Pro Racer who is a convert to electric motorcycle racing, is organizing an electric motorcycle racing series for North America.  What we have now is an official press release as well as further discussion in the Electric Racing group on Facebook.

BTW - anybody interested in Electric Racing should join that group, pronto.

What does Arthur have on his mind? The press release (below) says quite a bit.

He wants to race electric.  What Arthur explained to me last summer is that, after his retirement from AMA racing, he kept racing within the AHRMA.  But it struck him that while he was advancing the state of the art in 2-stroke motorcycle racing, that's really a throwback to an ancient bygone era of motorcycling.  Two-stroke bikes have been banned from regular racing for ages.

The future is electric, the handwriting is on the wall.  Arthur wanted to be part of the future, rather than part of preserving the past.  That's why he raced with the eRoadRacing series this year, riding a Brammo TTX.

As he notes below, the ready availability of high quality manufactured bikes from Zero and Brammo now make it cheap for someone to race electric.  Their speed is on par with 250+ cc gas bikes, and could mean some interesting racing action if there's a full grid of such bikes on the track.  Where the 2012 TTXGP and 2013 eRoadRacing seasons proved this, the 2014 season will see the Zero SR as a race-ready bike, and will likely see an upgrade to the Empulse from Brammo.

The press release describes two classes - eGrandPrix for the no-holds-barred bikes, and eSuperSport for the production bikes.  It's not clear where this would place the University teams (Virginia Tech, Ohio State, etc) or the DIY constructors.  We haven't seen the precise definitions, so the next paragraph is a bit of guesswork.

A little fly in the ointment might come from either Lightning or Mission, both of whom claim to be in "production" of their ultra-high-end electric motorcycles.  Both have shown bikes which beat the snot out of the Zero S/SR or Empulse R/TTX.  Depending on how Arthur wants to define eSuperSport - would he use the eSuperStock definition from the 2012 TTXGP season?  Manufacturing and sales of over 25 bikes per year?  Mission claims to have sold (but not yet delivered) 40 bikes, and it's plausible that Lightning could do so as well.  Would that undermine this eSuperSport class?

Arthur - it's better to define the classes based on power and performance, right?  Wink, Wink, Nudge Nudge.  I thought at the time that the TTXGP was stupid to have defined eSuperStock that way.  One hopes the same mistake will not be repeated for this new series.

Arthur did say on the Electric Racing group - "The 2014 series will not be TTXGP over again, but an AHRMA stand alone class. Their policy is that a new class can have its autonomy, points standings, and awards...but maintain exhibition status for the first season at least to assure interest and viability."

This means eMotoRacing will exist at the AHRMA events while operating somewhat on its own.

Jeremiah Johnson is also working on setting up a 3-person team for this series.  Anybody interested should contact him.  

When I posted this question "If eRoadRacing is foundering where does the top electric motorcycle racing series go?" - Arthur answered "It goes to the new 10 race eMotoRacing Series...which will be affordable for racers and have a full schedule tied down well before the season starts."

AHRMA has posted a tentative schedule for the 2014 season - the eMotoRacing dates will be the same.  The first date is approaching fast, meaning the teams need to be organized right away.

Feb 28 – March 2 -Roebling Road Raceway - Savannah GA

March 28-30 - NOLA Motorsports Park - New Orleans

April 25-27 - Willow Springs Int’l Raceway - Lancaster CA

May 1-2  - Sonoma(Sears Point) - Sonoma County CA

June 6-8 - Road America - Sheboygan Wisconsin

June 13-15 - Grattan Raceway - Grand Rapids Michigan

July 11-13  - New Jersey Motorsports Park - Vineland NJ

August 29-31  - Miller Motorsports Park - Salt Lake City

October 9-12 - Barber Motorsports Park - Birmingham, AL

October 17-19  - Daytona Int’l Speedway - Daytona Beach, FL

Cutting-edge Electric Motorcycle Roadracing Series Hits the U.S.

National electric motorcycle roadracing championship kicks-off in 2014 as the zero-emission U.S. eMotoRacing Series, running in conjunction with the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association (AHRMA) CPL Systems Historic Cup National Roadrace Series.

Races will be held at many of the nation’s finest racetracks — Barber Motorsports Park , Daytona International Speedway, Grattan Raceway, Miller Motorsports Park , New Jersey Motorsports Park, NOLA Motorsports Park , Road America , Roebling Road Raceway, Sonoma Raceway and Willow Springs International Raceway.

Race-ready electric motorcycles are available from Brammo and Zero Motorcycles, making it simple to participate in this series.

Electric racebikes’ fastest speeds are similar to race-prepared 600cc gasoline-powered bikes. These electric motorcycles have similar powertrains to electric cars like the Nissan Leaf, the Tesla Model S, and the electric portion of the Chevy Volt.

Riders and teams are invited to participate in the elite eGrandPrix class for full-on prototype machines, or in eSuperSport, aimed at production racers and race-prepped, electric-powered street bikes. Both classes give participants the opportunity to showcase and develop new technologies, while enjoying an affordable racebike with pure chassis feedback and very low maintenance.

Become a leader who is easy on the environment – the sky’s the limit in this high-performance, exciting new racing series! With trophies at each event and year-end awards, don’t miss your chance to become the country’s very first eMotoRacing champion!

Sponsored by Arthur Kowitz Realty of Daytona Beach, Florida, the U.S. eMotoRacing Series will run as an exhibition class at all 10 rounds of the AHRMA Historic Cup Series; for event information and a full series schedule, visit www.ahrma.org. For technical details on the U.S. eMotoRacing Series, email Kowitz at eMotoRacing@akr1.com.

Mission Motors re-entering electric motorcycle field, how will they stack up?

Mission Motors appears to be coming back into the business of building high performance electric motorcycles.  They of course started out in that business, but backed away from it when the company nearly died a few years ago.  There was a change of CEO at the time, and a change of strategy. 

The new strategy was to focus on making EV drive train components to sell to OEM's.  Along the way they developed software to help with designing electric vehicles, and EV dynamics, that tracked performance plotting it on a 3D map. 

The other day the company tweeted a link to a website containing solely the above image.  This is clearly teasing us with a new electric motorcycle that will be launched on June 3.

All the while they we working on drive train components to sell to others, the engineers were using an electric motorcycle (the Mission R) as a test bed.  The purpose they explained to me several times is that electric motorcycles have strong constraints on power and weight and size.  Therefore, to successfully build a motorcycle with near-MotoGP performance (which they did) the components had to have a very high power to weight ratio.

Their claims are interesting - however.  To build the highest performing street legal electric vehicle ever made means beating out some strong contenders.  Some of whom are in production already, and could plausibly have higher performance than whatever it is Mission will be launching in June.

In my writeup elsewhere I focused on Lightning Motorcycles as the primary contender, but let's run down the list of possibilities, and why I settled on Lightning.

Tesla Model S: Let's dispense with this one right away.  Carefully reading the statement they make, "street legal electric vehicle" includes 4-wheelers, right?  The Model S has a top speed of 130 miles/hr and 0-60 mph in 4.2 seconds.  That's very impressive, but it'll be easy for Mission to beat that.  The Mission R beat that in 2011, I believe.

Rimac Concept One: This is probably not a production car so shouldn't be considered?  The specifications page doesn't list a top speed, but says 0-60 mph in 2.8 seconds.

Lightning Motorcycles: Lightning is in production right now, I haven't checked lately but the sales volume so far is probably still under 5 bikes.  For some people that's enough to say it's a production electric motorcycle.  The bike that's in production is the race bike.  We saw it in race conditions last year, and for example at the Laguna Seca TTXGP/e-Power event last July they nearly beat the laptime record held by Mission Motors.  At the 2011 Laguna Seca event Steve Rapp rode the Mission R, setting a fantastic lap speed record, while beating both Lightning and MotoCzysz pretty badly.  For the 2012 event Lightning showed a strong improvement, but did not beat Rapps lap speed from 2011.

Brammo Empulse RR: This bike is definitely not in production so shouldn't be considered in relation to the claims Mission is making about their upcoming bike.  The RR instead is Brammo's prototype bike.  With that bike Steve Atlas and Eric Bostrom were hitting 170 miles/hr at Daytona last fall, and they showed massive improvements over the 2012 season.  I didn't get to see them at the Sonoma Raceway event last weekend but I hear they made a respectable showing within the pack of 600cc gas powered superbikes.

2013 MotoCzysz e1pc: Ditto what I just said about the Empulse RR.  Not in production, and showing lots of improvements, including hitting the 100 miles/hr lap speed on the Isle of Man in 2012.

As I see it - the way to validate Mission's claim is to get their bike into a race against these other bikes.  Yes, in 2011 the Mission R with Steve Rapp riding beat Lightning and MotoCzysz.  But both them and Brammo have moved a long long ways forward since then.  Has Mission also moved forward?  We won't know until the bikes can be put into a race against each other, eh?

Jeremiah Johnson to race in 2013 TTXGP and 2013 Pikes Peak on a 2013 Zero S

Jeremiah Johnson
TTXGP 2012 World Championship
Daytona International Raceway

Jeremiah Johnson (Be-EV.com) announced on Wednesday that he would be racing a 2013 Zero S in the as-yet-unnamed electric motorcycle racing series that's due to supplant the TTXGP and e-Power series for 2013. I'm sorry that the situation of the TTXGP/e-Power is overshadowing Johnson's plan to race in that series, but that's how it is, and I'll focus on him for the rest of this.  Johnson ran with loaned 2012 Zero S's in two TTXGP events during 2012, including the World Championship race at Daytona where he took 4th place. For the 2013 season he has purchased a 2013 Zero S, and teamed up with Hollywood Electrics for race customization.

Jeremiah stated, “I was a guest of Zero at their 2013 product launch party in Long Beach, and I am really looking forward to racing the ’13 Zero S this year. It has more than double the HP over the ’12 model that I raced last year, and that was a fun bike, so I’m eager to see what the ’13 is like on the track. Also, both Zeros I raced last year were bikes that I borrowed at the last minute to enter the races with. I’m really stoked to have a Team Be-Ev.Com Racing owned Zero Motorcycle that I can modify with Hollywood Electrics to fit my personal riding style. I got a chance to test a couple of the Hollywood Electrics modified streetbikes last year, and I can’t wait to start testing with them at the race track and see what we come up with for a serious race bike. I am very thankful to Harlan Flagg of Hollywood Electrics for making this deal come through.”

Hollywood Electric does more than just sell the bikes, they can do a wide range of customizations.  They've done racing setup for other Zero S owners, such as land-speed-record-holder Brandon Nozaki-Miller, and recently launched an electric-only race series through the M1GP racing club in Southern California.  Johnson says he will participate in a few of these races as well.

In addition to racing in the series-which-replaces-TTXGP-e-Power, Johnson will also run in the 2013 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb as part of the first all-electric motorcycle class in the history of that event.  “I’ve been a big fan of the Pike’s Peak Hill Climb race for a long time now, and I’m really stoked to get the opportunity to actually compete in the event myself,” said Jeremiah. “Being able to do it on an Electric motorcycle during the first year of the new class is even more exciting. I’m really happy to be able to help promote Electric Vehicles to a wider audience.”

Jeremiah Johnson is an AMA Pro racer who has a long history of interest with electric motorcycle racing.  As I noted a year ago when he announced his participation in the 2012 TTXGP season, he was one of the participants in the 2009 TTXGP event held during the Vintage Motorcycle Days at the Mid-Ohio Raceway, the first presence of the TTXGP in North America.

I shot this video at Daytona with Terry Hershner and Jeremiah Johnson going over the modifications they made to prepare Hershner's Zero S for the 2012 TTXGP World Final.

Waiting patiently for schedules etc on series replacing the TTXGP/e-Power

Last week I was able to disclose news of a merger between the TTXGP and FIM e-Power electric motorcycle racing series.  While the news itself was exciting and promising to heal the schism between those two series, it left out some important details.  These details are important ones that race teams must know to plan their year, line up sponsorships, and more.

For example -

• Rules & classes (we only know rules will be very similar to 2012's rules)
• Name of the series (we only know it will neither be called TTXGP nor e-Power)
• Fees to participate
• Event schedule (we only know it'll be alongside MotoGP races)

In previous years the schedule for both TTXGP and e-Power was published in January or earlier, giving the teams time to prepare and schedule themselves.  Likewise the rules and series name were already known quantities.

The press releases were sent over a week ago.  Time is ticking and the teams need to know the plan.

AFM approves Brammo electric motorcycles for racing in gas bike races

Brammo announced on Tuesday a historic agreement with the AFM allowing Brammo's Empulse R, Empulse TTX and Empulse RR electric motorcycles to compete directly in AFM races.  For the first time electric motorcycle racers will be able to compete for points and championship position in regular gas bike racing.  The agreement not only covers Brammo's own team, Team ICON Brammo, but any owner of qualifying Brammo motorcycles who qualifies to be an AFM competitor.

The motorcycles must meet AFM's technical requirements, and the organization has adopted TTXGP's rules.  Electric bike teams must also follow other TTXGP safety rules including a cool-down area in the pit, fire safety blankets, and the corner workers will have insulated gloves.  The important rule is that riders must meet a lap time threshold in order to compete in a given race.

The Brammo Empulse TTX and Empulse R bikes will be allowed in these classes:

• 250 Superbike
• 500 Twins
• 450 Superbike
• Clubman Lightweight
• Formula 40 Lightweight
• Formula AFemme
• Formual 50

The Empulse RR bikes will be allowed in these classes:

• Formula 1
• Formula Pacific
• Clubman Middleweight
• Formula 40 Middleweight
• Formula AFemme
• Formula 50 
• 750 Superbike

The AFM doesn't expect a given rider will enter in all those classes, and typically riders only enter 2-4 races per weekend.

According to Jon Forman, AFM SF Chapter Director, owners of electric bikes from other manufacturers will also be allowed to compete. What AFM has done is pre-determine which classes Brammo's motorcycles can race in.  For the other electric motorcycles, the AFM will have to determine on a case-by-case basis which class the bike can race in.  Interested racers should contact the AFM ahead of time to discuss technical requirements, class eligibility, and permission to run their bike.

Electric motorcycles have run in gas bike races, won, and gotten points previously.  The two occasions I know of are when Team Electra ran in an AHRMA event at Barber Motorsports Park in October 2010, and won, convincingly (see Team Electra in history-making win of electric motorcycles against gas bikes), and in early 2011 when Chip Yates participated in WERA racing and also won (see Chip Yates electric motorcycle takes podium finishes in WERA gas bike racing).  In both cases the respective team owners, while they won points in the respective championships, withdrew their win and gave up the points in order to avoid perturbing the results between the gas bike racers.

What is different in this case is that AFM has opened the door to full participation in gas bike racing by electric bike owners.

The Empulse R can be bought today from Brammo's dealership network.  The Empulse TTX will involve an aftermarket kit to ensure the Empulse R conforms with TTXGP regulations.  The Empulse RR is Brammo's non-production prototyping platform.  While the R and TTX can be bought and raced by teams other than Brammo's, the Empulse RR will only be raced by Team ICON Brammo.

Team ICON Brammo
TTXGP 2012 World Championship at Daytona International Raceway

Brian Wismann, Director of Product Development for Brammo, said: “This announcement is a true milestone in the history of electric motorcycle racing as an opportunity for our bikes to compete amongst their gas powered counterparts on even terms rather than just as an exhibition or in a single race. It’s going to be a challenge to be competitive as the gas bikes have about 100 years of development time on us, but we’re excited about the chance to pit the Brammo Empulse against the best efforts from Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha.”

Berto Wooldridge, President of AFM Racing said; “What caught AFM's attention about Brammo's approach was that they were not asking for a separate class, but were instead looking to have a chance for their bikes to compete within the existing class structure and go head to head with gas-powered bikes of similar performance and power-to-weight. We believe this to be a historic moment in motorcycle racing and are happy to have made it possible.”
 

New joint FIM/TTXGP series to replace both TTXGP and e-Power electric motorcycle racing series

The TTXGP and FIM announced today a historic change in the face of electric motorcycle racing.  The two organizations have announced an agreement under which both the TTXGP and e-Power racing series will be replaced by a new series.  The announcement resolves several years of schism which split electric motorcycle racing into these two camps, and may help to accelerate the "growth and higher profile" for this sport.

Matthias Himmelman, Muench Racing

This is a ten year deal under which the TTXGP will transition to the role of "Race Promoter" and the FIM will be positioned as the sanctioning body for electric motorcycle racing.  Prior to this the TTXGP tried to fill multiple sets of shoes, racing promoter, technical standards, and race sanctioning.  This announcement puts electric motorcycle racing in the same pattern as other motorcycle racing series, where the FIM handles technical and sanctioning work, and a race promoter organization handling the marketing.  For example the MotoGP's race promoter is Dorna.

The new series (whose name was not been revealed) will (in 2013-14) be run as a "World Cup" and as a support class to other FIM events, such as the MotoGP.  For 2013 there will be two championship series, one in Europe, the other in North America, with the World Final in Asia.  The dates and locations of these events were not yet disclosed.

An astute reader will notice that Australia is missing from this list.  As we noted the other day, the partnership between the eFXC and TTXGP has ended, with the eFXC choosing to go its own way.

Steve Atlas, Brammo

The rules for 2013 have not been announced, but the TTXGP says to expect those shortly, and that for 2013 they'll be as close as possible to the 2012 rules.

For 2014 the configuration will change again with the electric motorcycle racing series operating under a global championship calendar, with at least six events spread over three continents.  Teams will accumulate points over the season, and there will not be a World Final race.   In that year it will still operate as a support class to other events.

Starting in 2015 the organizations expect the electric motorcycle racing series to be "a headline event in its own right with a global calendar."  What this means is that the series will stop being a support class for other racing events, but instead stage its own events.  It will also be the "world’s first all-electric World Championship" and consist of racing weekends across three continents.  The details of, for example, the racing classes have not been nailed down and the TTXGP says "will be announcing deals with new partners over the course of the next 18 months."

Lightning Motorcycles,
almost certainly Michael Barnes

FIM President Vito Ippolito said of the groundbreaking new series: “Through this agreement, we are taking another important step towards the growth and promotion of clean electric road racing. The FIM is committed to furthering sports events for electric motorcycles which will certainly be a major component of the motor sport of the future”.

TTXGP founder Azhar Hussain considers the agreement a milestone in the development of electric motor sport: “This partnership with the FIM clears the way for a single destination for all the world’s innovators to drive the next generation of technologies for competitive motor sport beyond the grid. We look forward to working with the FIM on this exciting project”.

There are many more details remaining to be announced:

• The name of the series
• The schedule for 2013 in Europe and North America
• The vehicle classes allowed to participate

Source:

The FIM Teams Up With TTXGP For Promotion of New e-Road Racing Series
 
TTXGP/FIM - the roadmap for the electric FIM World Championship

Electric motorcycle racing poised for blastoff with ever-improving production bikes from Zero and Brammo

The 2012 TTXGP season demonstrated one thing really well - that production electric motorcycles are now good enough for credible racing.  The electric car field doesn't have anything equivalent.  First, there isn't an electric car racing series with any history, well other than NEDRA electric drag racing.  Second, there isn't a production electric car on the market to which you can make a few simple modifications and have a credible racing vehicle, well, other than the Tesla Model S.  Among the 2013 production electric motorcycle's are not just one, but two, models, available from two manufacturers, that can be easily modified for electric motorcycle racing.

Jeremiah Johnson at
2012 TTXGP World Championship
Daytona

The watershed for this was the 2012 TTXGP season in North America which included the eSuperStock award group, made up of 2012 Zero S's provided by Zero Motorcycles.  They raced the full North American season, performing admirably and reliably.  At the 2012 TTXGP World Championship in Daytona, while Zero themselves did not show up there was a Zero S in the race.  That was one prepared by Terry Hershner and Jeremiah Johnson.

Theirs was a most interesting story in which Terry rode his bike from Tampa to Daytona, and then he and Jeremiah set about converting the bike to fit the TTXGP rules.  I shot the following video interview with them following the race.  The goal of the video was to talk through the simple modifications required to take a stock Zero S and run it in a TTXGP race.

Before the video I want to make something clear.  In my reports during the 2012 season I kept returning to a complaint about the slow bikes and fast bikes.  Because of practicalities, the TTXGP organizers grid slow bikes and fast bikes together creating a condition in which bikes like the 2012 Zero S are getting passed by bikes going 60-70 miles/hr faster.  Flat out the stock 2012 Zero S would do 90 miles/hr, and the modified bike shown in the following video was hitting speeds around 100 miles/hr.  These are decent speeds and a full race grid of 32 Zero S's would be very exciting.  However both the Brammo guys were hitting 170 miles/hr top speeds, making the Zero's look bad by comparison.

This is not to diminish the advances represented by the Zero S's.  It is amazing, in fact, that starting with the 2012 Zero S it was now possible to just buy an electric motorcycle, make a few simple modifications, and take it racing.  The 2012 Zero S was proved to perform slightly slower than 250cc gas bikes, but the improvements in the 2013 Zero S should make it slightly faster than 250cc gas bikes.  And then there is the Brammo Empulse R which is now being delivered to customers, and which is probably a bit faster than that.

What I would prefer is for these 100ish miles/hr production bikes to be in their own race grid, and for the top bikes to be in their own race grid. The video below demonstrates just how close we are to being able to field a grid of 32 production electric motorcycles in one race.  These sorts of modifications are expected to be made into a kit, produced by the manufacturer, so that electric motorcycle owners could quickly and easily get into racing.

eFXC electric motorcycle racing in Australia parts ways with TTXGP for 2013

In 2011 and 2012 the TTXGP had a presence in Australia thanks to a partnership with the Australian electric motorcycle racing series, eFXC.  The partnership made for two seasons of electric motorcycle racing that primarily saw Catavolt and Ripperton in competition.   However, the partnership between TTXGP and eFXC has ended and the eFXC is now running on its own separately from the TTXGP.  It remains under the umbrella of the Australian FX-Superbike Championship.

Catavolt at 2012 TTXGP World Final, Daytona

According to an announcement on the FX-Superbike website, the 2013 series will include two classes.  One will support the existing "development" bikes - that is, home built experimental bikes that Ripperton and Catavolt have been racing with so far.  The other class is for Production bikes.  The 2013 eFXC series has four dates, listed below.  According to a comment on the website, they currently have commitments from five teams.

One thing the 2012 North American season proved is that the 2012 Zero S is a solid bike that can easily be modified for racing under TTXGP rules.  At the Portland event it was proved the 2012 Zero S is slightly slower than the 250cc gas bikes.  The 2013 Zero S is a notch faster and should be able to beat 250cc gas bikes now.  Additionally Brammo is finally beginning to deliver Empulse and Empulse R bikes to customers, either of which should be convertible into a credible race bike. 

This is no doubt what the Aussie's (eFXC) are aiming for with a new Production racing class.  Owners of 2013 Zero S's or 2013 Empulse R's should be able to make a few simple modifications and go racing at a performance level similar to 250cc gas bikes.

This is a solid demonstration of how far electric motorcycles have come over the last 4 years.  This is no longer the realm of experimental bike builders.  It's becoming a sport where you can just buy a bike and go racing.

Why did eFXC and TTXGP part ways for 2013?  I tried contacting one of the people in charge but did not receive an answer.  However I have talked with Azhar Hussain (TTXGP) about this, but am not yet free to give full details.  There is a pending announcement which will give a better appreciation of the larger context within which eFXC and TTXGP parted ways.  

2011 announcement coverage: TTXGP expands again in partnership with Australian FX-Superbike Championship

2012 announcement coverage: TTXGP/eFXC Australia is on again for 2012


Source: eFXC Electric Motorcycle Racing Championship 2013

eFXC 2013 Rounds:
Rnd 1, 3rd – 5th May, Wakefield Park Raceway NSW eFXC 2 Races (FX Rnd 3)
Rnd 2, 23rd – 25th August, Queensland Raceway Queensland, eFXC 2 Races (FX Rnd 4)
Rnd 3, 4th – 6th October, Sydney Motorsport Park NSW eFXC 2 Races (FX Rnd 5)
Rnd 4, 15th – 16th November, Sydney Motorsport Park NSW eFXC 1 Race (FX Rnd 6)

Historic new electric motorcycle racing series launched by Hollywood Electrics and M1GP

Electric motorcycle dealer, Hollywood Electrics, and the M1GP, is making history by bringing the first electric motorcycle racing class to club-level racing.  Anybody with a qualifying electric motorcycle can run in M1GP races, and win points within the electric motorcycle class over the season.  It sounds like the requirements are laid back and the organizers are open to anyone with an electric motorcycle who wants to race.

The M1GP is a club racing series in Southern California, operating at race tracks in Santa Maria, CA, Rosamond, CA, and Apple Valley, CA.  You can learn more about them at http://www.m1-grandprix.com/

Harlan Flagg likened the M1GP to me as a series that's marketed for beginners in motorcycle racing, or "as the little league of motorcycle racing."  It apparently doesn't even require a motorcycle racing license to participate.  A rider can get their feet wet in the M1GP and if they desire move on to the WERA or even AMA racing series.

This is a great opportunity for electric motorcycle owners to see what they and their bikes can do.

It's also an opportunity to build electric motorcycle racing interest from the ground up, at the grass roots of motorcycle racing. 

By contrast Flagg described the TTXGP as attempting to build electric motorcycle racing interest from the top down. 

This partnership with the M1GP is not seen as putting Hollywood Electrics in competition with the TTXGP, but to place them in a complementary role.  If it works out as expected, the series may serve as a venue for grooming future electric motorcycle racers that will go on to the TTXGP.

"Hollywood Electrics is excited to partner with M1GP to establish an accessible outlet for electric motorcycle owners who are interested in road racing," said Harlan Flagg, owner of Hollywood Electrics and Zero Motorcycles' top dealer. “Production electric motorcycles have reached a performance level similar to that of the smaller displacement bikes the riders of M1GP have always relied on. By introducing an electric motorcycle class, electric riders can have confidence knowing that there is a safe and welcoming venue for aspiring racers. It is our belief that having more bikes on the track, whether gas or electric, will benefit the sport and continue to breed safer and confident riders.”

“I think electric bikes are attractive to a group of riders which may not have considered racing conventional race bikes for a variety of reasons, but can appreciate competitive and spirited riding & racing. We're excited about electric bike racers to come mix it up and being part of the M1GP community. I got to ride an electric bike during the time trials at the kart track with Brandon Miller and there was some concern that the size of the bike on the tight kart track wouldn’t be much fun, but it was a blast! With some of the other circuits we're racing (Streets of Willow and Horse Thief Mile), the 2013 M1GP season is going to make for a wide variety of courses & some great racing”, said Young Lee, owner of M1GP.  “I'm thrilled that Harlan and Hollywood Electrics are joining the M1GP season and racing community”

MIST Suzuki Stop Smoking to join the TTXGP World Championship 2012

Hot on the heels of the 2011 TTXGP World Championship race, the following announcement was sent out naming a new team joining the race series for 2012.  MIST Suzuki Stop Smoking is expected to compete in the European series.

Going by their blog post they're planning to build their own electric superbike.

They appear to have been duly impressed by the Laguna Seca race during which the top bike (Mission Motors) turned in lap times within shouting distance of the MotoGP bikes.  Team owner Mike Edwards said “We’ve long been converts to the benefits of electric motorcycle racing. 2011 was a landmark season with the fastest electric bike qualifying just ten seconds off Jorge Lorenzo’s pole position time in the MotoGP race at Laguna Seca. That’s a huge step and I can’t imagine any electric cars getting that close to F1 cars anytime soon. With technology progressing at the current rate we are confident that gap will start to close even further and look forward to building a competitive bike that will help set new benchmarks in electric motorcycle racing. It is tremendously exciting as there are few opportunities outside of the MotoGP race paddock where can you design and build a complete machine from a clean sheet of paper.”

 

http://www.mistsuzuki.com/

http://www.mistsuzuki.com/2011/10/18/stop-smoking-for-2012/

MIST Suzuki Stop Smoking to join the TTXGP World Championship 2012

MIST Suzuki Racing are pleased to announce the team has reached agreement with Azhar Hussain MBE, founder of the TTXGP electric motorcycle championship, to build an electric motorcycle in time for the 2012 championship and to compete in the European, and hopefully the World, championships. Making the switch from the long established fossil fuel powered racing to the emerging world of renewable green energy is a big step but one the team are looking forward to making.

Team owner Mike Edwards said "We've long been converts to the benefits of electric motorcycle racing. 2011 was a landmark season with the fastest electric bike qualifying just ten seconds off Jorge Lorenzo's pole position time in the MotoGP race at Laguna Seca. That's a huge step and I can't imagine any electric cars getting that close to F1 cars anytime soon. With technology progressing at the current rate we are confident that gap will start to close even further and look forward to building a competitive bike that will help set new benchmarks in electric motorcycle racing. It is tremendously exciting as there are few opportunities outside of the MotoGP race paddock where can you design and build a complete machine from a clean sheet of paper.".

TTXGP founder Azhar Hussain was equally enthusiastic: "We are incredibly pleased to welcome the MIST Suzuki team to the TTXGP family. They bring with them world class motorsport experience from WSBK and BSB. We believe MIST are a fantastic example of what can be achieved when TTXGP integrates it's technical support with the passion and motorsport heritage that Mike and his team bring to the next generation of motor sports. Their involvement brings us closer to our goal to have the most competitive and thrilling grid anywhere in the world for clean emission zero carbon racing.".

MIST bring with them a number of highly experienced technical partners, ranging from chassis design and build expertise to the MotoGP and World SuperBike race paddock, class leading electronics firms looking to develop their top SuperBike products for the electric bike market plus a number of battery and controller experts from other highly experienced electric vehicle manufacturers.

Mike added: "We are holding talks with a production company about making a documentary on the design and development process, showing the project from it's inception through the build and testing to the first race of the season. We have some world leading electric motor and battery expertise in this country and, when combined with some of the extremely talented motorcycle chassis designers, the goal has to be to use the combined talent of our team and our partners to fly the flag for British engineering and technology on the world stage."

"We also plan to continue the development of the World Superbike spec. Suzuki we have been building this season and will use it as the benchmark for both the electronics and handling targets for the new project. We may even complete a WSB wild card or two to help publicise the TTXGP entry.".

For further details please get in touch with the team via the website at www.mistsuzuki.com or email at 'info@mistsuzuki.com'.

About MIST Suzuki Racing

Team owner Mike Edwards, one of the original founders of the MiniTwins race series, set up MIST Suzuki Racing to provide a path for young riders to reach the top levels of international racing. The path led from points scoring finishes against factory supported teams during their three year tenure as one of the largest British teams in the World SuperBike paddock, to podium finishes, race wins and multiple lap records in the British SuperBike Evo class. The team was accepted to compete in a number of wild card races at World SuperBikes in 2011 but had to postpone their plans until the following year due to issues obtaining the necessary parts in time. 

About TTXGP

TTXGP, the eGrandPrix is an international race series providing a high profile platform for the development of electric vehicles.  Using motorcycles as a resource effective development platform, TTXGP enables the futuristic technology behind them to be tested in an exciting and challenging way. TTXGP aims to drive low carbon technological innovation forward, to demonstrate that clean-emission transport technologies have matured and can be fun, fast and exciting.

Ohio State Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team sets ECTA speed record

The Ohio State Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team competed a couple weekends ago in a land speed record event held in Maxton NC by the East Coast Timing Association.   They achieved a speed of 112.349 miles/hr setting a record, within the ECTA, for electric motorcycles.

The results show a second team from James Madison University participated.  JMU has not issued a press release.

 

Press Release

The Ohio State Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team has set an East Coast Timing Association (ECTA) record for electric motorcycles. The certified record is 112.349mph (180.79kph).

After only 11 months at work, the newly formed team of undergraduate and graduate students built an all-electric motorcycle to compete in ECTA’s Omega class, known as the altered partial streamlined class. Students used real-world engineering process to design, build, re-modify, and test the motorcycle, with the goal of achieving maximum high speeds.

“We’re very happy with our record of 112mph. And with further tuning, our motorcycle can reach even higher speeds with its current load of lithium polymer battery cells,” says Sean Ewing, team captain and fourth year electrical engineering student.

ECTA, located in Maxton, North Carolina, holds five meets per year, at which public, private, and student teams compete with various vehicles in an attempt to break speed records. Vehicles must pass inspections, then are given time on the track.

After this first experience the team is headed back to Ohio State to continue work on the motorcycle. “The ECTA record is an outstanding result, especially considering that the Electric Motorcycle Race Team has barely one year of life. The result obtained at Maxton represents a reward for the hard work and the commitment shown by the team members through the year, but also a great starting point to launch the team into an exciting new season,” says Marcello Canova, faculty advisor and mechanical engineering professor. The team plans to continue work on the motorcycle, improving battery management function and maximizing torque for next season.

Other competition results included James Madison University, which achieved 92mph on an all-electric motorcycle in the same class.

“Although we started as a small team, we have built a solid base of dedicated students,” said Ewing, noting that the team gets its cohesiveness from its diversity of majors, which include engineering, business, and photography. “With this record, we’ve set a benchmark for next year; we have a lot of momentum and a lot of talent.”

About the Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team

The Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team is a student-led team at the Ohio State University, based out of the Center for Automotive Research.

Specifications for the 2011 vehicle:

• Vehicle name: RW1
• Frame: 2007 MV AGusta F4
• Motor: Remy HVH250
• Motor Controller: Tritium WaveSculptor 200
• Batteries: 460VDC (peak charge), 35Ah battery pack consisting of 784 Lithium Polymer Cells
• Battery Monitoring System: custom, student-designed, on-board with SD card storage
• Battery Management System: custom, student-designed, off-board
• Data Acquisition System: Starlane Stealth GPS-3

About the East Coast Timing Association

The East Coast Timing Association located in Maxton, North Carolina was formed by two Bonneville racers, with the idea of providing its members a place to run speed trials in the eastern half of the United States. Originally a World War II air base runway, it is now an event race course. The one mile long race course has a hard concrete surface with an elevation of 210 feet above sea. The organization will be moving to Wilmington, Ohio for the 2012 season, with details released at a later date.

 

 

Source:

Ohio State Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team sets ECTA speed record

http://www.ecta-lsr.com/RecordsMoto3.php