Question about parking on a slope.

[FreepZ]

I was reading this article about the 2012 Zero DS, when I saw something that raised a question.

An emergency brake or other device to keep the rear wheel from turning when turned off would be nice, too. It’s not something we worried about until we parked on an incline and noticed the DS sliding backward.

If I were parking my ICE on a slope, I could put the bike into gear to lock the rear wheel, but that is not an option on an electric bike.

The obvious solutions are parking perpendicular to the slope, or parking against a curb, but those solutions may not always be viable.

So, you owners of e-motos, what do you do when confronted with that situation?

[Brammofan]

I use a piece of double-sided velcro and wrap it around the front brake lever and grip. It's the same velcro I use to keep the cord coiled. Works like a charm.

[Shinysideup]

I use a TMax scooter all day long on the job in San Francisco which has a few hills.

I'd say about 95% of the time, backing against a curb does the job.

For the those rare situations, it does have a parking brake cable that goes to the rear brake.

It's lever, below the left grip, is easy to deploy, disengage and has a positive feeling. The design is great in that when on, the lever is just under the fingers, so when I get on the bike, I can always feel it's engaged because my fingers won't wrap all the way around the grip, but can just push toward me, releasing the brake.

So would I miss this mechanical marvel on my Empulse? Nah, just use the above-mentioned velcro.

[Richard230]

There is also a motorcycle accessory device, which is designed to be a security lock, that fastens around your front brake lever and the throttle grip to keep the front brake locked on. Sort of like a disc lock that you can see and won't ride off while damaging your brake.      I use the Velcro strap method to lock the front wheel, but this keyed steel locking device will keep someone from pulling it off and letting your bike roll and fall down.

In case you might be wondering, I discovered that I needed a front brake when I owned an Aprilia RS50 sport motorcycle. I once parked it in gear on the side stand on a sloping parking lot and as I walked away it started to roll slowly backwards as the 2-stroke motor did not have enough compression, even when placed in gear, to keep the bike from rolling down hill. That is when I discovered the need to lock the front brake when parked on a hill. Now it seems that electric motorcycles have the same problem - especially when they don't have a gear.