Dan
From Utah
December 9th, 2007
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My name is Dan B. and I live in Sandy, UT
(a suburb of Salt Lake City). Last year my
wife decided to return to college to finish
her degree. We sold the 2nd car to economize
during the 2 years she would be going to
school. We lived 3 miles from my work so
I decided to get a bicycle to commute. There
was a 230 ft elevation difference from home
to work so going to work was a breeze and
the ride home was a good work out.
One year into her program,
we moved to cheaper
housing. This was 5 miles
distance and 370
ft elevation difference.
The ride to work
was still easy but the
ride home was too
much for my late 40's knees.
So I started
my Internet search for
options. Friction
drives, chain drives, and
electric options
were all out there but
none of them seemed
like a good choice. Friction
drives wear
out tires quickly, only
work with smooth
threads (I want, and need,
my knobby tires)
and slip if the tires get
the slightest bit
wet. Chain drives are very
heavy (30+ lbs)
and the chain sprocket
requires major modification
of the rear wheel (if you
have ever built
a wheel you know what I'm
talking about and
if you haven't chances
are you don't really
want to know). Electric
drive technology
is not yet developed where
they need to be
to compare to fuel based
systems, though
maybe someday.
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I am a Engineer and have
17 patents granted
and the Golden Eagle Bike
Engine system is
the only intelligent design
out there. I
read the patent on the
GEBE and was satisfied
with the quality of the
design. But before
I decided to purchase I
had some questions
on some other details.
I called and talked
to Dennis and he was able
to answer all of
my questions clearly with
out any smoke and
mirrors. Julia was very
friendly and helpful
in the non-technical areas.
My bicycle is a 2006 Specialized
Hard Rock
w/ Disc brakes. Because
of the disc brakes
and I did not want to lose
the quick release
feature of the rear wheel,
I needed to modify
the mounting brackets so
it could attach
directly to the frame (Don't
do this with
out talking to Dennis about
the necessary
geometry parameters to
maintain first and
know that this voids the
warranty). I mounted
the engine brackets to
the frame lugs (see
attached picture). This
has worked out well
so that I can change out
my wheel with road
tires (good weather) and
the wheel with knobby
tires (bad weather).
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The Robins Subaru 35 cc
4 stroke engine is
great!! Almost always starts
first or second
pull (sometimes more, if
below 20 F). The
one big hill used to take
me down to my lowest
gear and I could maintain
about 2-2.5 MPH
with a stop 3/4th the way
up to catch my
breath and get my heart
rate back down to
a safe level. Now, I go
up the hill at 12-13
MPH and my peddling with
the engine make
for a good pleasant work
out (not a potential
cardiac arrest). I get
an average of 120
MPG.
If the roads are clear
of snow, I ride every
workday. I have ridden
over 350 miles so
far, in 100+ F and below
0 F weather. The
Golden Eagle system has
handled it all.
The biggest problem with
riding is that many
car drivers just don't
see bicycles. As the
pictures show, I have made
myself as conspicuous
as possible with USDOT
Class 3 safety gear
and flashing LED headlights
and taillights.
Now it is next to impossible
to not see me
on my bike.
I absolutely LOVE the fun,
freedom and all
the other benefits of having
a GEBE.
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