Photography: Galen Maynard
The gearing capabilities of modern multi-speed bicycles are impressive and can accomplish great feats, from moving kids, to heavy equipment, to moving all your furniture to a new residence. Using bicycles for regular transportation is one of the fastest growing markets in the bike industry today, evidenced by the increased demand for cargo bikes. Builders like Bilenky and Bakfiets are expanding, along with the more visible presence of Xtracycles.
One way the heavy loads of cargo bikes are becoming a more practical mode of transportation for riders is through the development of electric assistance. Seattle is home to a handful of individuals who are experimenting with electric-assist technology.
Operating out of a small but impressive metal shop in Georgetown, welder Colin Stevens, of Haulin’ Colin Custom Trailers, has made a name for himself with his sturdily built cargo trailers, bicycle cargo modifications and off-the-wall welding projects, such as his pedal-powered parade float used in Seattle’s 2009 Gay Pride Parade and Festival. Recently, Stevens has been working to merge the worlds of cargo trailers and electric-assist hubs.
Not to be confused with fully electric bikes, electric-assists are essentially a type of hub with an electric motor added to a conventional bicycle. On cargo trailers, they are attached to one wheel and have a throttle that allows the rider to add an electric boost.
There are several types of electric-assists, including hub motors and chain drive systems. Hub motors come in styles for both front and rear wheels and produce power with or without rider effort; their downside is that they are most efficient when used within a particular speed and pedaling cadence. Chain drive systems go through a bicycle’s existing drive train and add power to what the rider is already producing. Regardless of cadence or pedaling power, chain drive systems are always efficient.
Stevens’ personal trailer is as inspiring as it is clever. Using a chain drive system, his electric-assist is connected to a seven-speed internal hub, effectively giving the rider the efficiency of an electric-assist motor and an additional seven speeds with which to propel the trailer and rider forward. All this, in addition to the mountain bike’s existing 24-speed drive train, makes for a wide range of gearing options when confronting Seattle’s dynamic elevation changes.
In the growing frontier of what can be accomplished by bicycle, electric assistance is quickly enabling cyclists to do more.
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