Last pa trip

The last time I used the power assist was on a trip to Home depot for some 8 foot fascia boards. The trailer shown below has numerous possibilities. Not only does it work for lumber, but it is designed to carry up to eight 18 gallon rubbermaide totes. (Very handy for groceries etc.) It has even been used to transport a small refigerator, and a dishwasher.

It rained heavily while I was in the store, and lightly the whole way home. (about 10 miles each way.) I also got some other smaller items and stowed them insidethe AW.The power assist was helpful pulling the trailer up hills. (Given the realms of possibility this was a relatively light load anyway) When I got home, I unloaded and plugged it into the battery charger.

Later in the day, it smelled like something was burning in the garage. The floor of the AW was very hot under the seat. I unplugged the charger, and went to sleep. The next day, I drilled out the rivets in the floor plate to see what had happened in there. I had eliminated the screw on cover, thinking that the need for battery access would be rare, and though David E. had sent a bulletin about insuring adequate ventilation during charging, I wasn't too concerned, because monitoring of previous charging cycles had revealed no heat biuld up.

The battery pack that blew up was one of the two eqipped with the temp sensor lead, but not the one I had used with the charger. I don't know if the problem was because of the battery box getting wet in the heavy rain, or if it was just my failure to provide adequate ventillation. Having had no previous problems, I am inclined to believe it was the moisture.

I removed the mess, and the other three batteries, which other than being coated with nasty black dust were essentially unscathed, and cleaned it up the best I could. I put the foam blocks back in, in place of the batteries, and riveted the floor back on. The Ride for Roswell (a charity ride for a cancer hospital in Buffalo where I spend (and have spent) alot of time.) was rapidly approaching, and I had been considering removing the motor for the ride. With the fried battery I decided to leave them all out and minimize the weight since use of the PA for the ride just didn't seem right to me. (I could have just left the "key" for the main cut off switch at home, but then Leah would have had the extra weight to drag around.)

I made up a roof rack for the AW with folding loading ramps (14 feet long extended) The ramps attach to the rear of the roof rack with a bolt through the mating halves of a hinge. They are made of thinwall steel u-channel, and enable me to load and unload the AW from the roof without any assistance. ( unless the motor is removed.) The motor prevented the AW from rolling down the back window while repositioning my grasp. With the motor removed I needed to have Leah support it briefly (all but effortless) while I adjusted my hand hold.

I used heavy duty wire ties on each of the wheels to secure the AW to the rack. This worked fine,although I should probably use a safety rope from the front bumper to the front of the AW "just incase." It would suck to have it blow off at 65 mph and get flattened by a semi. (my imagination is far too graphic.)

The ride was fun, and started from Baird Point on the campus of UB. I rode the Versatile, and Leah rode the Alleweder. We did the 20 mile route, which utilized a paved bike path half the way, and went by fast. (so many bikes to pass.)
Since I raised over $1,000.00 ($1975 to be exact) I was treated to a massage after the ride that was over way too fast. Leah and I also had access to the "extra mile club tent", where we received a bunch of tickets for a chinese auction, unlimited nourishment opportunities, and a bag of goodies including a top of the line New Era hat sporting the extra mile club logo. All very nice. It was fun to have the chance to expose many avid cyclists to the existence of velomobiles. They are still so rare in North America that many people don't even know they exist. Practical human powered transportation is out there. With or without the power assist the FAW is a practical means of transportation. With the power assist to speed climbing the primary disadvantage as compared to a regular bike is alleviated. I guess that's it for now. I should write up something for the hood replacement, but I didn't get many photos, so it would likely be pretty dull.