KillaCycle takes off, crashes into parked minivan; Bill Dube OK
Since we have brought you past news on Bill Dube's KillaCycle, we thought that you might like to know that the owner/builder of the machine (and not the normal rider!) is all right after a crash. The accident happened while Dube was giving a demonstration of the electric bike, which is capable of covering the quarter mile in around 8 seconds at over 150 miles per hour. With power like that, it is not surprising that the bike shot out from under Dube while he was putting on a show by doing burnouts. After crashing into a minivan, paramedics took Dube to the hospital for X-Rays.
There is a video at this link of an interview with Bill Dube who explains that the bike uses A123 lithium ion batteries which can propel the bike to sixty miles per hour in less than one second. Right after the interview, you can watch the crash! The accident took place on the 13th in Los Angeles at the Wired NextFest conference. We wish Bill a speedy recovery!
On last thing: please consider this a reminder to be safe while operating any vehicle. Especially consider safety on a motorcycle, where a helmet at the very least should always be worn. Oh yeah, maybe it's time to change the bike's name.
UPDATE: I've pasted the video here after the break!
Related:
- Electric Killacycle to attempt world record dragstrip pass
- Edmunds editor Karl Brauer offers a brief opinion on batteries for electric cars
- Watch an electric motorcycle run an 8-second quarter mile
[Source: TGDaily via Engadget]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Kyle 8:03PM (5/18/2008)
It was a publicity stunt
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pedmac 12:03PM (9/14/2007)
a123 might have a problem of too much power..
at least they dont explode right ? not yet at least .
stick with nimh ..proven safer .. and cheaper .
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Kardax 1:12PM (9/14/2007)
pedmac: The A123 cells didn't cause the accident... insufficient braking from the front tire is the cause.
There's nothing wrong with being a NiMH fanboy, but at least try to be relevant to the topic.
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Dave G 1:22PM (9/14/2007)
pedmac - I believe NiHH has 3 problems:
1) For the same electrical storage, NiMH is about twice the size and weight of Li/Ion.
2) I believe NiMH has more issues with self-discharge. For example, if you park it for a month someplace where you can’t plug in, I believe the Li/Ion batteries will hold the charge much better.
3) As I understand it, Chevron now owns the patents for NiMH, and they won’t allow it to be used in any vehicle that doesn’t use gasoline as the main fuel source.
In addition, MIT / A123 systems seem to have solved most of the issues with their Nano-Phosphate Li/Ion technology, safety included.
As for cost, whenever a new technology comes out, the existing technology is almost always cheaper because its been around for a while. So using that argument, nothing would ever change.
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Kardax 1:22PM (9/14/2007)
The latest official KillaCycle blog shows that he's ok, though rather embarrassed. He takes a moment to tout the fact that though some cells were shorted in the impact, there was no explosion or fire:
http://www.killacycle.com/2007/09/13/im-fine-scapes-and-cuts-bike-is-a-little-bent/
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rgseidl 4:51AM (9/15/2007)
I hope A123 is smart enough to withdraw its sponsorship for this project. The crash showed the batteries are safe, but doing burnouts with this monster on a public sidewalk with no safety gear and a parked minivan blocking the route ahead is just totally irresponsible. Besides, A123 is now a strategic partner on the GM E-Flex architecture, so they need bad PR like they need a hole in the head.
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Domenick 5:01AM (9/15/2007)
MEDIC!!! Man, that thing took off! Glad everyone's all right.
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JJ Daddy-O 1:52PM (9/15/2007)
What the video didn't show was Dube jumping up and saying "I meant to do that!" a la PeeWee Herman....
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AES 5:28PM (9/15/2007)
If anything this is GOOD PR for A123, since it shows their cells involved in a violent automotive accident - and with no violent results from the batteries. The killacycle battery pack also doesn't have anywhere near the kind of protection it would have in a car.
Doing burnouts like that is a dangerous activity in ANY high-powered motorcycle, so the fault was with the operator and not the technology.
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cowboy bob 8:01PM (9/16/2007)
Just goes to show you that a person should NOT do their own stunts! However, he WAS impressive!
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Don 11:48PM (9/18/2007)
What a twat.
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Mike 10:03PM (9/22/2007)
Batteries didnt cause this crash
Brakes didnt cause this crash
The guy sitting on the bike caused the crash.
Theres nothing wrong with that motorcycle. The guy paniced for a split second, on that bike a split second is a long ways, lol.
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rick smith 9:17AM (12/06/2007)
two questions:
why wasn't he wearing a helmet? who's the blonde?
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