The Electric Bike Expo Bringing Entertainment and Education to Consumers in 2016
Las Vegas, NV (PRWEB) October 05, 2015 -- The First Annual Electric Bike Expo commences in January 2016, launching its six-month, six-city tour to provide thousands of consumers a chance to experience the excitement of riding power-assist electric bicycles on a thrilling test track.
Tour organizer Extra Energy Services North America has executive roots that extend in Europe and Asia and collectively have been responsible for successful advocacy and education about the electric bike industry since the mid-1990s. The company recently launched its new indoor test track experience at Interbike 2015, North America’s largest cycling trade show, with tremendous success.
With Bosch eBike Systems as the presenting sponsor, the tour will visit six bicycle-friendly markets in the United States and allow bicycle dealers and enthusiasts over the age of 16 to test ride a massive selection of electric bikes on a closed loop outdoor circuit featuring specialized terrain to help highlight hill climbing capabilities and the nimble abilities of electric bikes that emulate the feel of a traditional bicycle.
Scheduling
The first tour location will be Tempe, Arizona in conjunction with affiliate sponsor Interbike® and their annual conference for bicycle dealer education. The IBD Summit is scheduled for January 12-14 at the Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes. The Electric Bike Expo will overlap starting on the 14th and will run through the weekend at Tempe Diablo Stadium. The event opens to the public on Friday afternoon from 3pm to 8pm, Saturday from 9am to 8pm, and Sunday from 9am to 4pm. Additional stops on the tour itinerary include San Diego, CA in February; Houston, TX in March; Palo Alto, CA in April; Portland, OR in May; and Denver, CO in June.
Brands
Over 50 different electric bike models will be featured at the event and available for test rides. Joining Bosch will be the tour track sponsor Trek Bicycles, who is launching its own line of electric bikes throughout North America. Additional brands who have signed on to showcase their bikes include Raleigh, Haibike, Stromer, A2B, Polaris, Felt, iZip, Focus, Gazelle, Kalkhoff, Easy Motion, and BESV. Company representatives will be present to teach each rider how to use the features as well as to answer questions about care and maintenance. These brands will also be joined by equipment and accessory suppliers specializing in electric bike products.
Another unique interactive feature available to the visitors will be the Cargo Bike Experience where riders will be able to test the latest bikes from Yuba, Xtracycle and others. Before entering the track, they will have the option to add boxes of a variety of sizes and weights to the frame to see what it is like to ride with the added freight. The cargo style bike is becoming quite popular with the ability to carry one or more children, a full load of groceries and other goods including pizza deliveries, small packages and mail. The electric motor supplement makes transporting the extra weight a breeze. Several models of cargo e-bikes have been converted into police bikes for local police departments, park rangers and even hotel and resort security units.
eBike Education
The concept of a power-assist bicycle has a long history, and over the last ten to fifteen years has been a dominant transport method in Asia, with more than 37 million electric bikes being produced annually. More recently, Europe has become the second most popular region for the use of e-Bikes as a great urban commuter option. Recent statistics show that more than 600,000 e-Bikes were sold last year in Germany alone.
The legal US definition of an electric bike is based on a traditional bicycle with a battery-powered electric motor that can assist in removing the strain to climb hills and attain speeds up to 20mph. The drive system is primarily activated through pedaling. Many of today’s e-Bikes have capabilities to travel as far as 30 to 40 miles on a single charge, costing as little as $0.07 cents in electricity to recharge the lithium battery packs. With education becoming a key component of the tour, Bosch will also be conducting technical mechanics training at each location for dealers.
Besides the consumer education and entertainment aspect, the tour has an additional motive to reach out to state, city and community officials and push for additional bike-friendly policies that extend to the use of legal electric bikes by commuters and local businesses. Charitable recognition will also feature prominently at the six locations – a selection of one local radio news casting team will compete against a local TV news casting team where they will pick local non-profit organizations to represent. A friendly e-bike based challenge will occur and the winning team will see a $4000 Tempo Electric Bike presented to their charity.
About Extra Energy Services North America: EESNA is a Nevada Corporation made up of the leading experiential marketing and publishing organizations within the electric bicycle and light electric transport marketplace from the US, Europe and Asia. German-based ExtraEnergy.org has been the pioneer of consumer education, testing and advocacy throughout Europe since 1992. Publisher and editor of ElectricBikeReport.com has been the leading news and review source for e-Bikes in North America since 2010 and Raymond Verhelst & Associates brings a team with more than 40 years of combined exhibition and special event experience, along with a strong technical background in LEV transport and rechargeable technology.
About Robert Bosch, LLC: Considered one of the leading technology and services companies in the world, the Bosch Mobility division has become a leader in the electric bicycle drive systems with combined motor, controller and rechargeable battery pack solutions utilizing the company’s advanced engineering and manufacturing experience since 1886.
Pete Prebus, Extra Energy Services North America, Inc., http://www.electricbike-expo.com, +1 702-688-5573 Ext: 700, [email protected]
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