Home at last

Last night I drove the TWIKE 8 miles from Northwest Portland to my house for the first time. It had to climb over 1000 feet in elevation. This was a real test of the 2nd battery I got working and only the second charge cycle on that battery. I know from experience from the other batteries that it takes several charge cycles to wake up the 10 year old NiCad cells. I expect the range now with two batteries is around 15-20 miles on level ground. I am working on a third pack that should extend that to nearly 30 miles. I have lots of other small things to work on and some larger ones. I need to replace all three tires. I noticed that one has large cracks (not surprising for a 10 year old tire). This must be fixed before I can consider much serious driving. It was amazingly stable at speed and at one point I think I was exceeding the speed limit without realizing it. EV grin here I come!

Legal to drive in Oregon

Today, I found an Insurance agent that would insure my TWIKE and not just for liability, but for collision and comprehensive as well (all at motorcycle rates which is far cheaper than any of my cars). Once I had insurance proof in hand, I stopped by the DMV and applied for a title (including vanity plate). One big smile later, I had a 3 month temporary sticker in hand ready to apply to the back window. Look out, I'm fully street legal with no inspection required.