Sunny Florida

[implovator]

We had a wintery mix of precipitation in Raleigh, NC last night and all day today. I hopped in the pickup and headed out in 37 degree weather this morning. Hours later, I drove through some sort of thermal barrier and the temperature jumped up to 77 pretty much as I hit Jacksonville, FL. I threw on some shorts and continued on to Tampa, FL.

My plan is to say hello to the staff, sign for the Empulse, load it up, and head on back home. However, I might just have to take her for a spin in case the wintery mix lasts through the rest of the weekend. I'll try to post up some pics. Please just promise me they won't make it up on Pinterest. I'll never hear the end of it.

[protomech]

Hours later, I drove through some sort of thermal barrier and the temperature jumped up to 77 pretty much as I hit Jacksonville, FL.

Freaking Florida, man. : )

Looking forward to pics.

[BrammoBrian]

Could this be implovator picking up his bike?...



Just showed up on the Euro Cycles twitter feed.

[FreepZ]

I see that Brian recognized his drool (that he neglected to wipe off) on the white Empulse.

[Gavin]

I know it's Florida....but if he rides it home in that shirt, shorts and those shoes....

Well I won't do anything, but....dude....some gear...even light gear....dude

G

[implovator]

Like I said, please don't post it on Pinterest.

Yeah, that's me picking it up this morning. I had gear, but I was too lazy to put it on. I skipped the test ride and we just loaded it up and I took off. It's 46 in Raleigh right now, maybe I should have reconsidered.

Speaking of cold, does anyone know about how long it takes to heat up the batteries before it starts charging? The charger's been on for about 40 minutes total and it's still staying it's only drawing anywhere from -3 to 0 A on the display. I've only got one light on the cordset indicating that it's on, but not currently charging. I know the batteries are fridid, because regen wasn't working during my quick little trip around the neighborhood. Unfortunately, I didn't ride it long enough to get any heat in the batteries. I'm not really worried, but I would like to at least see it start charging before I turn in for the night. I've got a lot of riding to do tomorrow.

[FreepZ]

This may sound like a dumb question, but are you sure that put pushed the J1772 plug all the way in?

The first time I connected the charger, I didn't do that, and while the lights were on and it looked like the bike was charging, it wasn't.

The thing is, as soon as you press the release button to remove the charger, the charging stops. So if it isn't fully depressed (i.e. it's still pressed in a bit because you didn't push the charger all the way in), then the charging will not happen.

The tip is: Push it 'til you hear the click!

(See http://freepz.wordpress.com/2013/02/11/lesson-1-push-til-you-hear-the-click/)

[implovator]

This may sound like a dumb question, but are you sure that put pushed the J1772 plug all the way in?

No sir, that was far from a dumb question. That was it! I'm so suprised that I could insert it enough to boot the bike into charge mode and to trip the relay in the cordset without actually pushing it all the way on.

Thank you thank you thank you, FreepZ!

[implovator]

Here are some more pics from earlier today. I was seriously impressed with Euro Cycles of Tampa. I rolled in at 9a and it was already hopping around there. Saturday's are usually busy days for dealerships, but you could tell that Euro Cycles was definitely the destination. I got to meet the owner(s) and Jaime, my sales rep. Everyone there was pleasant and enthusiastic. I can't speak highly enough of those guys. Here's what their dealership looks like from outside. Can you spot my Empulse?



As I mentioned earlier, I opted against the test ride and just loaded it up. Of course, then I had to put up with it staring at me in disapproval the entire ride home.



I was definitely in a bit of a hurry to get back on the road. In fact, I didn't even look at it much at the dealership. I did take a solid look at my first fuel stop. Wow, the white really pops! I'm so stoked.