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IMAGINE THE DAY when a bicycle is used to explain the inner workings of a hi-tech engine ... Bike Friday enthusiast Ats Nakamura in Tokyo alerted us to this media coup: HONDA approached our top dealer in Japan, Jun Kataoka-san of Cycletech IKD wanting to feature his Traveler XL with IPS (independent pedalling system) in its latest TV commercial - to explain how their hybrid engine works. IPS means the stoker and captain can pedal independently of each other - an option you can request on all Bike Friday tandems. "They're using the tandem *with the IPS* to explain their hybrid engine," says Ats. "The hybrid engine consists of a gasoline engine represented by the captain, and an electric motor represented by the stoker. They're trying to say that the electric motor assists the gasoline engine, but the level of assistance is varied, with the gasoline engine stopping at times (see the captain stop pedaling), and the motor stopping at times (the stoker stop pedaling)." Very associative, Holmes! Here's the translation of what they're saying gal: So this is the earth room. voice: The earth is a closed world. In order to cut CO2 [emissions] as gal: susunderu (very advanced)
Bike Friday is no stranger to the Japanese car manufacturers - Jun says his Family Triple was used in a Nissan commercial previously. We don't need to point out that as green as a hybrid engine is, riding the tandem is a lot, lot greener ... plus you can put it in the trunk of your Honda, of course. Thank you Ats, Jun and our fold in Japan - you're the reason we're up there with the 9 o'clock news ... RELATED LINKS |