Author Topic: Our Demographics  (Read 52696 times)

CliC

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #30 on: April 30, 2012, 11:07:26 AM »
46, Electrical engineer in the process industries, single.

Owned a Harley Road King and a Suzuki GN400 in the past. Wanted a bike again 6 months after I sold the Harley, because I wasn't getting the chance to ride it often :)

Maybe being a EE is the reason I'm interested in EVs, despite being generally conservative/libertarian. Then again, I'd like to reduce our dependence on oil (foreign or domestic, doesn't matter, it's going to the highest bidder anyway).

Intrigued by the Empulse, but didn't know when it would actually be available, so got a Zero DS and am really enjoying it. I probably wouldn't frequent the Brammo forum, even though I like their products and wish them well, but for the fact that my lame ride log got mentioned in a thread here :)

frodus

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #31 on: January 21, 2013, 04:31:06 PM »
32 year old Electrical Engineer
I work in the Energy Management sector (mostly lighting controls and sub-metering). I converted a 1986 VFR700 to electric, and has been in perpetual upgrade. During that time I started a side business Electro Motive Force, LLC selling motors/controllers/batteries/bms/chargers etc as well as doing consulting for other OEMs/customers on the side (battery testing, system design). Finally decided to call it quits on my conversion and am parting things out and considering a Brammo or Zero. Shopping around right now.

[edit]
Parted out my eVFR project and decided to buy a Brammo. Got Brammo Empulse R #24 in white. Love it!
« Last Edit: March 18, 2014, 09:44:34 PM by frodus »

travel4nutin

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #32 on: January 28, 2013, 12:07:10 AM »
41 year old with a BSEE
I work as a Test Engineer for a company that provides internet connectivity to airplanes.  While going to college in Florida, during the last two years, I commuted with a Suzuki Katana 600.  I liked the bike a lot.  After I graduated I got a job with a telecom company in Chicago; however, I was so broke at the time I had to sell the bike in order to get a plane ticket and show up for the first day of work.  Funny I never had an interest in getting another one until Brammo announced the Empulse.  Its a good thing I kept my license.   
93 Suzuki Katana
Empulse #613 #45

Bushyrider

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #33 on: August 25, 2013, 07:49:49 PM »
I am a 50 year old EV enthusiast and a motorcycle enthusiast.  I owned an electric Ford Ranger, a Zero S, and now the Empulse R. I teach Kindergaraten. I live in the San Francisco bay area.

Brammofan

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #34 on: August 27, 2013, 01:45:56 PM »
Hi Bushy - Any thoughts about the Empulse vs. the Zero S?
The Brammoforum Wiki is still active: http://www.brammoforum.com/wiki

benswing

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #35 on: September 20, 2013, 07:20:33 AM »
36 yr old Physics teacher near NYC (in Northern NJ).  I rode across the country on my 2012 Zero S with the Ride the Future Tour.  I also drive a 2012 Mitsubishi iMiEV (electric car) or take the train into the city.  I perform, teach and compete in swing dancing with a specialization in aerials (throwing a girl over my head).  Love to hike, camp and be outdoors in general.  Also serve as Sustainability Coordinator where I work (ie - helping our community and buildings go green). 

Have attached 4.5kW of chargers to my Zero S and plan to take some road trips down to DC and up to Boston on it soon!

Rode a Brammo Empulse R while attending the EV Summit at Google Headquarters in Mountain View and had a great time hanging out with the Brammo guys all day.
« Last Edit: August 20, 2014, 04:37:10 PM by benswing »

racerfozzy

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #36 on: December 05, 2013, 08:11:27 AM »
42 yr old
Scientific Engineer in Pharmaceuticals
Motorcycle racer/TT racer/develoment rider
North West UK
Co-habiting
4 kids
Rock climbing, Mountain biking, Motox/Enduro
Laverda (Zane)650, Kawasaki ZX7R, Empluse TTX, Darvill Suzuki SV650 , Darvill 1979 CB1000R RSC Factory Honda/Spondon Endurance. And pretty-much anything anybody asks me to! :)


vegasracer

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #37 on: March 18, 2014, 08:31:38 PM »
61 YO
Chemist/Scientist in environmental field (retiring in 3 months)  ;D
Las Vegas, Nevada
Divorced
2 grown sons, two grandchildren
Photography, hiking, bicycling, collecting various and sundry stuff
Nissan Xterra, BMW K1200GT, Suzuki M109R, 2010 Brammo Enertia, 2002 Bike-E recumbent bicycle

 ;)

barboo

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #38 on: April 01, 2014, 03:50:38 AM »
44, married 20 years, no children

Healthcare administrator/leader - was in IT for awhile, have a Master's in Computer Science.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Been riding motos for 26 years, started on a 75 Honda CB200T. I've enjoyed cars, but find motos more engaging. I commute daily on my motos during all seasons...snow/ice is the only thing that keeps me off them. Throughout the years I've gone through a number of bikes. About 5 years ago I got my first sport bike and fell in love with its capabilities - started tracking. Wife started riding and tracking about  years ago.

Current hobbies include moto tracking/racing, working out, traveling abroad, and bicycle riding.

Vehicles include what is in my siggy below + R53 Mini Cooper S, R56 Mini Cooper S, and Honda S2000.
1973 Honda CL350 (For Fun)
1999 BMW K1200RS (Daily ride)
2007 Aprilia Tuono R (Street)
2005 Suzuki GSXR 600 (Wife's Track)
2012 BMW S1000RR (Race / Track)
2013 Brammo Empulse R (Race / Track / Street)

Auslander

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #39 on: April 17, 2014, 10:56:50 PM »
Network security engineer, no schooling or letters attached the end of my name.  Originally from SoCal, recent-ish transplant to Austin.  Just picked up a 2013 Enertia Plus on Saturday.  Garage also contains; BMW R1100s, K100, Suzuki DRZ400sm, and VW R32 (read that as: single, no kids :) ).  Hobbies span from camping and offroading, shooting (cameras, firearms), reading, sudokus, and coffee.  Lots and lots of coffee.

Been skimming the forums the last week, I'll be popping up here and there with possibly old questions and maybe some new ones.

dbsuperbiker

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #40 on: May 23, 2014, 10:41:55 PM »
65 yrs old, real estate broker in Daytona Beach FL.
My home and business are solar powered.
I have ridden a mo'sickle as my main transportation since 1963, over a million miles.
There are 14 bikes and no car in my fleet, and only 2 cars ever...both Mazdas.
Eclectic taste in motorcycles...2 Brammos, 5 Kawasakis, a Suz, a Hodaka, BSA, Rickman, OSSA, Aprilia, and an MV.
Married 42 yrs, 3 grown sons.
Hobbies are road racing, going to the beach, and chasing my wife around the house. 

MichaelJ

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #41 on: July 20, 2014, 11:31:13 AM »
41 year-old software tester near Redmond, WA
Married, no children
Wife got me into riding 8 years ago; her father's a H-D veteran

Our road to EVs started with simply watching our budget to get out of college debt and vehicle loans.  When it came time to replace a vehicle, hybrids seemed to be a reasonable choice for fuel economy, so we replaced two ICE cars with one hybrid and rode our ICE bikes when we could (there were no cheap EV bikes with useful range at the time). 

Didn't consider the Nissan LEAF when it first came out, but circumstances changed, making it necessary to have a 2nd car again.  To improve upon a hybrid, a plug-in EV seemed to be the logical choice, so after test driving the LEAF, Volt, and Mitsubishi i, we fell in love with the LEAF.

After the LEAF got me hooked on EVs, I started seriously looking into electric motorcycles that might similarly replace my ICE motorcycle.  Encouraged by the claim of 100-mile highway range of the Zero S with Power Tank and after learning the convenience of charging the LEAF to full in 30-45 minutes with CHAdeMO, started saving up for the Zero with CHAdeMO adapter.  Brammo's Empulse was 2nd on the list because it only had 50-60 miles of highway range and Level 2 charging, which at 3.5 hours empty to full was much slower.  Then I learned that Zero's CHAdeMO compatibility was highly dependent upon the EVSE equipment supporting the lower voltage of its battery pack relative to EV car battery packs.  Not being able to rely on CHAdeMO, Zero's advantage of greater range was thus defeated by it's abysmally slow 11-hour Level 1 (120V) charging speed.  While that isn't much of a problem for daily commuting, having 100 miles of range tempts me into thinking it's ready for touring, but making overnight stops to charge after only 100 miles of travel kills the idea of the 200-300 mile day trips my ICE bike does comfortably.

So while I was agonizing over the decision between Zero and Brammo, this opportunity appeared, and I finally snapped.  Between reading all of the favorable posts about Brammo reliability and customer service on this forum, and reading the heroics that Terry Hershner and others have to go through to kit their bikes out with fairings and bulky external chargers, plus recent horror stories about Zero malfunctions and unhappy customers and potential customers, AND based on a surprise announcement that Brammo had just appointed its first authorized dealer in Washington State, it became clear that it would be futile to expect this generation of electric motorcycles to be ready for touring, and made it more attractive to go with Brammo.

So thanks to Aqualung1, I am grateful to be able to experience the current generation of e-motorcycles and help promote them in an area dominated by wealthy tech employees who litter the streets with their Teslas and LEAFs, but where an e-motorcycle sighting is still a blue-moon event.

Glad to be here and thank you all for the information you're sharing to help us all learn about these exciting motorcycles!  I look forward to learning and sharing with you.

--
MichaelJ
« Last Edit: July 20, 2014, 11:33:16 AM by MichaelJ »
2013 ICON Brammo EBoz Spec 32 (#6)
2012 Current Motor Super Scooter
2007 Suzuki Boulevard C50T

Shinysideup

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #42 on: July 20, 2014, 12:24:24 PM »
Welcome MichaelJ and thanks for sharing your story.

I've found that once I fully took in that I wasn't going to be touring on the Empulse, it fully met 99.5% of my needs with GREAT elan. Actually, I did ride mine from San Francisco to Ventura round trip, but each way took about 2 1/2 days.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1KcXffl9-nzLWJra0NQcFd0X2s/edit?usp=sharing

It was actually a much more enjoyable trip than blasting down the superslab staring at the bumper in front of me. Just needs a change in perspective from a guy that used to get impatient when the microwave took more than a minute to heat my coffee!

theoplus

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #43 on: July 23, 2014, 07:57:03 PM »
52 years old, married 22 years with one child.
I live in NW New Jersey, working for an exhibition design and fabrication company specializing in display solutions for museum collections and private clients.
A newbie rider, having researched both Brammo and Zero motorcycles for several months before pulling the trigger on an Enertia Plus.  I have a very short daily commute of 10 miles roundtrip to my office and I was tired of driving in a vehicle; the gas, the maintenance, etc.  However, my Subaru is still a necessity given the harsh winters and the occasional trip with the family.  Rather than sell or trade-in a perfectly good vehicle and start payments on a new car, I thought, "why not extend the life-span of my current car by buying a less expensive mode of transportation for the daily commute?".  The way I figure it, I just bought a new vehicle (the Enertia Plus) that is better than half the price of most new cars and it will delay the inevitable replacement of my current vehicle for many years.  Besides the savings from going electric and being nearly maintenance free, it is a blast to ride.  I couldn't be happier with my decision to purchase the Brammo Enertia Plus!
Regards,
Theoplus

littlefreak3000

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Re: Our Demographics
« Reply #44 on: August 17, 2014, 04:23:20 PM »
27 year old.
I live in South New Jersey. I work as a Software Engineer contractor for the FAA in Next-Gen Surveillance. I'll have a 2013 Empulse R by the end of this week. It is my first motorcycle.