1. Eye on E Commuting: Go Grandma Go!
2. NYCE Introductions: New Shipper, New Shop Dog
3. 30 Conservation Tips to Celebrate Earth Day
4. Upcoming Event: Tour de Sol
Go, Grandma, Go!
This month's Eye On E Commuting takes place here in New York City with Jane, owner of three electric scooters and daily scooter commuter.
NYCE Kim: Hi Jane, thank you so much for agreeing to this interview.
Jane: Oh, my pleasure. I get a kick out of your newsletter every month! Plus I think this interview will resonate differently than your past interviews.
NYCE Kim: Why is that? Because you are our first woman interviewee?
Jane: That, and also the fact that I am 63 years old. Electric scooters aren't just for the young, you know!
NYCE Kim: I do know! And that is why I'm so excited about this interview - the opportunity to share another perspective with our readers. Tell me about your ride.
Jane: My "ride" is a blue Badsey Hot Scoot and it rides like velvet. It takes me up hills without a problem and it is very smooth taking off and braking.
NYCE Kim: That's because the Hotscoot has a 750 watt motor - very powerful. But you didn't always ride a Hotscoot, did you?
Jane: No. My first scooter was a Zappy with a seat kit. I got the idea from Kevin Spacey on the Today show and having just had knee surgery from a skating accident, I thought hey, this could be for me! I loved my Zappy - it is a terrific machine but I had to kick it up hills and eventually I got turned on to the Phat Flyer. A bit more power in the Flyer and I loved that. But, you remember that day I came in with my Currie Flyer, don't you?
NYCE Kim: Yes, I do. Your back wheel was as flat as a pancake (umm. . . pancakes. . . ) but then we put the Mag rim on the rear and-
Jane: and bam! Never a flat problem again. And I had had so many flats before that. I think because the other rim used to rip into the sidewall of the tire due to my weight -
NYCE Kim: Not necessarily your weight, Jane. Rear flats are a common problem for anyone using a seat kit on a Currie Flyer because it puts the riders weight directly over the back wheel and, as you supposed, the standard rims are sharp enough to rip the sidewall when any load greater than 180 lbs is applied to them. But this is boring and dull . . . lets talk about your scooter. We sold you that Hotscoot that day. What do you use it for?
Jane: Absolutely EVERYTHING! I commute to work on a daily basis with it. I work for the Girlscouts and it is about a mile commute from my house. I ride to work in the street and love it when people yell, "Go, grandma, go!" or "You go girl!" I park it in my cubicle and I save $60 a week in cab fare! I also ride it into the grocery store and do my shopping on it and I've even ridden it into the Kmart in Astor Place and driven it right into the restroom, right into the stall!
NYCE Kim: Wow, when you say "everything" you mean it!! That's really awesome. Listen, I really want to ask about your experiences at work with the scooter and with other drivers on the road, but first, did you say you work for the Girlscouts? As in THE Girlscouts of America?
Jane: Er . . yeah, but I don't see what that -
NYCE Kim: OH, WOW. It is truly a pleasure to speak with you. I LOVED Girlscouts back when I was a young girl. How about those cookies? Can you get the cookies??
Jane: No. I work at Headquarters, they don't have cookies at Headquarters. But that's not what you want to talk about right? I am usually always treated with respect by motorists and the police are very protective of me on my scooter. The other motorists seem to think I am the neatest thing they've seen all day! My scooter has really improved my ability to get around. Other women my age ask if I think it is dangerous and I always laugh and tell them I'm more of a hazard on the sidewalk! I'm constantly bombarded with questions like, "where did you get that?" "how fast" etc.
NYCE Kim: Right, right. The usual stuff. So, it is pretty weird you can't actually get the cookies at the Headquarters. I mean, I would imagine that the Headquarters would be full of cookies. You know, little dishes of cookies spread out here and there throughout the halls and meeting rooms . . . so, any advice you can offer to other electric scooter commuters?
Jane: The biggest hazards I've noticed are getting doored by cabs and folks on cell phones stumbling around in their own little worlds - very dangerous. I was actually doored one time by a guy getting out of a cab who happened to be on a cell phone!
NYCE Kim: Wow, Double wammy. Wasn't there a Girlscout cookie called Double Mint? No, wait, that's the gum by Wrigley's. But they did have Thin Mints - I remember those . . . my favorite are the Samoas.
Jane: They don't call them Samoas any more - they call them Caramel Delights. And Tagalongs are now called Peanut Butter Patties.
NYCE Kim: Oh. I always get confused when a known and trusted brand suddenly changes its name without warning or explanation.
Jane: Me too. But you know what I really love? The positive, kind and interested attention my electric scooter brings into my life. One day I was riding on 5th Avenue and a group of Brazilian tourists hailed me down. It turns out that one of them, a tough little woman all dressed in black leather, was a motorcycle stunt rider in a circus in Brazil! So I let her test drive the Hot Scoot and she loved it! She had her picture taken riding it on 5th Avenue. You have to love this town.
NYCE Kim: Yes, you certainly do. Where else in the world can you find leather clad circus performers in the same place as the Girlscouts of America Headquarters?? Listen, thank you so much for your time - this has been a lot of fun. And do me a favor -
Jane: Yes, yes, I know. I'll email you when Girlscout Cookie season starts!
NYCE Kim: Thanks again! Well, reader, that's all. Until next time, this is NYCE Kim, signing out (and going to lunch).
NYCE Introductions: New Shipper, New Shop Dog
We figure by now, most of you know Bert and me (Kim) well enough - or as well as you'll probably want to anyway. So we'd like to introduce you to the rest of the crew. We figured we'd start out with the two latest additions to our team: New Shipper and New Shop Dog.
New Shipper, also known as Luke, started with us about a month ago. Luke is a full time student at Hunter College and likes to dress in black leather trench coats and camouflage. His personal interests include crazy German and Swedish music, precision to the point of madness, chatting late into the night on the net and generally baffling Bert and I on a regular basis. We like him though - he brings us chocolate and cookies a lot.
New Shop Dog, more affectionately known as Fiona, is a 10 pound ball of fur and fire. She is as fierce as she is small and she isn't afraid to let everyone know it. Her hobbies include barking at inanimate objects, slipping into the art gallery next door and barking at their clients, eating raw hides and biting both Raymond, our UPS man, and Thomas, our Mail Man. But we like her too.
Next month, meet Marketing Dude and NYCE Mechanic.
30 Conservation Tips to Celebrate Earth Day
April 22nd is the day Earth Day is officially observed but there are those who believe it is not the real earth day, rather that the real Earth Day is the day of the Spring Equinox, which changes year to year. At NYCEwheels, we think it's neither here nor there. We're not the sort to get caught up in little details. Besides, we celebrate Earth Day every day by virtue of promoting electric bicycles and electric scooters. Having said that, we'd still like to commemorate Earth Day this month.
When I was young and wore tie dyes all around (mind you, I'm talking about the late 80s
1. Turn the water off while brushing your teeth.
2. Remember the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
3. Hug a tree (I used to do that. It's kind of cool actually)
4. Don't leave your car idling while you run in the store
5. Don't take your car in the first place
6. Take public transportation or other alternative transport
7. If you have to drive, try car pooling.
8. Eat Tofu (some kinds actually taste good!)
9. Take your own bag to the market
10. Shut that TV off
11. When the TV is off, make sure the cable box is off too
12. Turn the lights off and have a romantic candle lit dinner
13. Plant a tree
14. Pick up a piece of litter
15. Curb your dog
16. Don't let the clerk double bag your stuff, unless it's a 12 pack it's not necessary
17. Turn the AC off at night
18. Turn the AC off during the day and keep the blinds drawn to keep heat out
19. Coast your electric bike or scooter down hills
20. Kick or pedal to start off
21. Get out of the shower a minute sooner
22. Turn the water off while you shave
23. Pick up another piece of litter
24. Walk in the woods, it'll help you remember why your doing everything else
25. Plant a flower
26. Buy a house plant
27. Use a cloth instead of a paper towel
28. If you don't, then use biodegradable household paper products
28. Buy recycled products
29. Use Spic and Span (stuff the claims to deodorize and disinfect contains pesticides)
30. Tell someone if we all did a little thing each day we can help conserve our natural resources.
Upcoming Event: Tour de Sol
Regrettably NYCEwheels will not attend this year's Tour de Sol because we want to "keep it local" this spring and we're looking forward to a New York based event to take place this fall instead (we'll keep you posted, of course).
The Tour de Sol goes on, however, and if at all possible, you should try and make one of the following dates, if not all of them!
Burlington County, NJ - Saturday, May 10th
Trenton, NJ - May 12th
Philadelphia, PA - May 13th
Washington DC - May 14th
Highlights include The Hy-Wire GM's most advanced hydrogen fuel cell prototype car built on their skateboard-shaped platform, veggie cars, gas-sipping hybrids and more. Check it out at www.tourdesol.org.
