Segway crawls to success atop Mount Washington
By Charles Pelkey
news editor, VeloNews
This report filed August 28, 2003
Adding to the evidence that new technology isn't always a great leap forward, one of the new Segway human transporters struggled its way to the top of New Hampshire's Mount Washington, but well off the pace of the machine it may eventually seek to replace.
Click image to enlarge
Photo By Associated Press
Okay, Tom Danielson he ain't
It took six sets of batteries and three drivers, but the Segway eventually made it to the top of New England's tallest peak. The scooter climbed Mount Washington's auto road - site of the annual bicycle race -- in about two and a half hours Wednesday, well off of Tom Danielson's 49:24.
The standup scooter, invented by Manchester New Hampshire's Dean Kamen and manufactured in Bedford, was the first Segway to make it to the top of the 6288-foot mountain in 7.6 miles.
The average grade is 12 percent, and as much as 18 percent in some places. About a third of the road is unpaved.
Kamen has touted the Segway as a small, clean, simple mode of transportation. Critics have said that those goals are achieved far more efficiently by a bicycle than by the $5000 computerized Segway.
The Segway belongs to Heritage New Hampshire, a tourist attraction in Bartlett. The drivers were employees.
The Associated Press contributed to this story
Segway crawls to success atop Mount Washington
Aside from its obvious drawbacks, you have to marvel at the Segway's engineering.
And there may yet be a niche for it in urban commuting. Not everybody can ride a bike, nor is it practical for some. And walking is too slow for others.
...if you don't count the impact of remote electrical generation.
In this urban environment there are many ways to get around without using 'personal transportation'.
If walking is too slow, the city has buses and subways linking most points and, as they are running anyway, your riding them will not significantly increase pollution.
I can only imagine the congestion and contention when cyclists are forced to share a lane with Segway-farers...
Ugly thought, no?
"here's a photo from last week's thread:
http://www.nycc.org/mb/Thread.aspx?B=1&T=910&TP=1#Msg3942
:)
don"
...the chauffeur-driven black stretch Segway.
