Slalom4me

Why aren't Segways, the two-wheel self-balancing scooters, more
visible in pits?




They take up little room during transport, they are super-maneuverable
and negotiate crowds well, the x2's can easily manage rough/damp terrain,
the on-road version gets 20+ mi per charge from Li-Ion batteries (off-road
gets 10+ mi) and ANYONE can operate one.

Quads have a place because of their pulling/carrying/multi-pass capacity.
But I'm just surprised I don't see Segways displacing some of the ubiquitous
scooters.

Ken R.

.

Falcon

Aren't those things pretty pricey?

NoOne

4K was the cheapest I found one on Ebay.

Great idea, very poor pricing model. When we goto Disney in September we signed up for the Segway tour just to try one out.

Slalom4me

They are when compared to pocket bikes, but when stacked up
against Aprilia & Vespa types of scooters, the price of a Segway
appears to slot somewhere in between these two higher quality imports.

When some of the Segway's non-price benefits are considered: easier
operation, smaller form-factor, greater manueverability, fun-to-ride
aspect; it just seems to me that some teams in some series might have
adopted them by now. However, the Segway doesn't appear to have a
presence in motorsport.

.

MistressMotorsports

It's really hard to pull anything with a Segway. You can get some pretty cheap (few hundred bucks) scooters off ebay, which is what I did. No-name Chinese import pieces of crap, but they were fine for running around the pits to fill gas jugs, take tires to be re-mounted, etc. I don't actually know anyone who owns a Segway, I've only seen them as novelty items or the occasional in-the-mall security patrol.

Slalom4me

I agree that the Segway wouldn't be satisfactory pulling anything.
It might be able to, but a fair amount of power must go into the
stability system - pulling another object would increase the load
and decrease the battery life.

But for getting around, I think it has to be superior to scooters.
Whenever there is any kind of pedestrian density, scooter-riders
are always paddling along with their feet. If they need to turn
or back up, there is a certain amount of jockeying and even a
chance of tipping.

If the rider is average or taller in height, a pocket bike just
isn't practical. For me at mid-six ft, a PB is simply out of the
mix.

Watch my fellow countryman ride a Segway while on the set of
Lemony Snicket.

.

AU N EGL

But can you haul gas cans or four wheels on them?? will they tow a pit cart?

Slalom4me

Nope.

But is a quad necessary for a trip to the washroom?

.

Slalom4me

More ambitious Segway antics

No hands!



.

Slalom4me

And, nothing is completely fool-proof

Won't fall over


Segway's Revenge


Extreme Dorks on a Segway


.

Slalom4me

I signed up for an introductory Segway session at a local mall a few
days ago and rode both the original version and the more recent
i2, or Lean-steer model.

Very easy to operate after just a brief bit of instruction. No drama
during several laps of a test rack consisting of ramps and uneven
surfaces. As the videos above illustrate, there is the potential to
take a spill if you try hard enough, but you are more likely to take
a tumble from a bicycle.

.