My Next Ride? Probably Not.

[dhgeyer]

I've been seriously curious about these critters ever since Dean Kamen announced them on December 3, 2001. They're made here in Manchester, NH. Of course we've all seen them around, but I had never had a chance to try one out. About 2 weeks ago, Segway opened a retail outlet in a storefront on Hanover Street in downtown Manchester. They started advertising Segway tours of the historical mill district, complete with narration by a very knowledgeable tour guide. Sue got to go along free, being a Granite State Ambassador (think info booth at the airport). GSA's get all kinds of free stuff because all the hotels, restaurants, and tourist activity places want the GSA's to know all about them and be favorably inclined. I had to pay $69.00.

Anyway, after about a 45 minute training session (that really is all it takes), we were off for an hour and a half tour of the mill district and riverfront.

Impressions: They are, as claimed, easy to operate, although not quite as intuitive as I had imagined. They are fun. They will go about 24 miles on 20 cents worth of electricity, after a 10 to 12 hour recharge. Sue and I had a great time, and covered several miles on the tour, which we could never have done in that time on foot. We could have done it on bicycles, but we would have been more tired. They definitely have their uses. On the downside, they have no suspension at all. I can only guess that adding a suspension would be impractical given the unique way they are controlled. At any rate, we were advised to bend our knees for every little bump, and even doing that it was a rough ride over anything but a very smooth surface. Also, Sue and I both noticed that our calf muscles got tired very quickly, and after the tour, our feet hurt. I attribute this to the fact that, since the vehicle is controlled partly by foot pressure on the pads you stand on, you can't move your feet at all while in motion, and only gingerly when standing still without causing unwanted movement. I suspect the calf muscles would adapt in regular use, just as the muscles for riding a motorcycle do after a while. As for the sore feet, most of the people who use them aren't on them for 45 minutes at a time with no break (we did take one break where we got off for a few minutes). More breaks would have been better.

Sooooo, that's one more to scratch off the "Bucket List", and a good time was had by all. It won't replace the motorcycle or the bicycle, or revolutionize the way we all live, as was originally claimed.

[mrlmd1]

Still looks like fun, and not many people can say they've ridden one of those.
If only you could get one in some vibrant colors.
Did you have to ride on the sidewalk the whole time or can you ride along the edge of the road? No ATGATT, just the helmet?

[dhgeyer]

Originally Posted by mrlmd1

Still looks like fun, and not many people can say they've ridden one of those.
If only you could get one in some vibrant colors.
Did you have to ride on the sidewalk the whole time or can you ride along the edge of the road? No ATGATT, just the helmet?

Not sure about colors. All the ones I've seen were black. There are two basic models: on road and indoor, and off road. The off-road model has aggressive tires, a bit more ground clearance, and is a little more powerful. From these two models, buyers can accessorize with all manner of what we would call "farkles". People use the off road model for trail riding, riding along the beach (not encouraged by Segway), and for transportation around farms and other outdoor uses. I was a little surprised to learn that they sell a lot of them to farmers, but I guess it makes sense. There's always paint if you really want a red one, or whatever color you like. :biggrin:

We rode on the sidewalk most of the time, and coexisting with pedestrians was not a problem. We did move along the street in a few places where there were no sidewalks. We had to dodge around hydrants, trees in the sidewalk, potholes, and so forth. They are very agile machines. They will literally spin in place if desired. I was told that they are "sidewalk legal" in 44 states, meaning they must be banned from sidewalks in 6.

They have 2 modes: beginner and, well, normal I guess. You go into beginner mode by pressing a little button with a turtle icon, so beginner mode is also referred to as "turtle mode". In turtle mode, the top speed is 6 mph, and the device will not turn as responsively. We started training in turtle mode, of course, but did the tour in normal operating mode. Normal top speed is 12 mph, and the turning is much more responsive.

I haven't seen anyone using a Segway with any real safety gear on. Not much seems to be made of it. As you can see from the photo, the helmets they gave us are bicycle helmets, and they only had two sizes, neither of which fit Sue or I properly. I actually gave them a little talking to about helmet fit, and how important that is. Probably won't do any good. Most if not all of the people I've seen on them have bicycle helmets and no other safety gear.

[burkbuilds]

That's pretty cool. You are the first "real" person I've heard tell about riding one of these things. I've never actually seen one in person, just in the movies like "Mall Cop". Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

[alanmcorcoran]

There are Segways all over Chicago - you can go on tours from a place about a block from my hotel. The tourists, who generally resemble ducklings following a similar sized duck, always have bicycle/hardhat style helmets as well as a day-glo vest. Although I suppose it would be a good distraction to try one out one day, I've not been overly inclined for two reasons: 1) Practically every trip I take in Chicago is a completely pointless distraction to begin with and the walking, running or riding helps me feel like I'm at least getting some exercise. 2) I already look like a complete douchebag and I don't think mounting one of these things is going to help my situation. Maybe I'll get past this at some point but I'm not very mature in my outlook on these sorts of things.

I suppose it's some form of ignorant bigotry on my part but I can't take the more rotund members of Chicago's Finest very seriously when I see them carting their pendulous manboobs around astride The Next Big Thing. I'm not sure I could outrun one though - I've seen the police versions move at a pretty good clip.

[alantf]

The guards in our local mall use them to get along the walkways between the shops. (the girls in the giant supermarket in the mall only get roller blades)

[dhgeyer]

Originally Posted by alanmcorcoran

I suppose it's some form of ignorant bigotry on my part but I can't take the more rotund members of Chicago's Finest very seriously when I see them carting their pendulous manboobs around astride The Next Big Thing. I'm not sure I could outrun one though - I've seen the police versions move at a pretty good clip.

I think I share your ignorant bigotry. Cops don't ride Segways anywhere in NH that I'm aware of. They do have bicycle patrols in all the cities and a lot of the larger towns, like where I live. We also don't have any seriously obese cops, and the bike patrol guys are the younger ones and are in good shape.

I'm a mall walker, and get to the Mall of New Hampshire almost every day. They have a Segway for the security people. It's funny, though. I've noticed that when they hire a new security guard, I'll see him/her on the Segway a lot for a week or two, and then they're mostly on foot after that. I suspect the novelty wears off after a while, and it's less hassle to walk.