welcome to karpova I'm Johnny Smith today we're
going to be going green laning on green bikes actually that one's not green but these two are
so today I've decided to do a feature that I've wanted to do for ages I wanted to go green laning
on green bikes and by that I mean green laning is something the UK's full off and there are like
quite a lesser-known place they're roads that have vehicular access all over the place that
you can find on Ordnance Survey maps annajura you're respectful and there's the vehicle that
you're driving or riding is road legal you can go exploring and in this time of social distancing
you can get away from it all and what better way to get away from all it explore nature and have a
bit of peace on an electric motor bike and that's what this is this is an electric motor bike that's
an electric motor bike that isn't good we've got that here for reference and I've brought some
experts with me because I'm not gonna lie I'm not a motorcycle expert I have a full licence but
I've only ever ridden periodically here and there so I've brought with me here this is John Spencer
from not your average bikes John is a zero byte dealer these are zero motorcycles and I think zero
are kind of like doing for the motorbike electric world what Tesla is doing for the electric car
world I've also brought along my friend here mark Potts key Potter and Polsky well I've known
mark since he was editor of motorcycle news for many years when we used to work on magazines
and papers together so he's also a dab hand on a bike and he's got vast experience of Pistons
and electric so these two boys collectively know a lot more about bikes than I do we're gonna get
our stuff on and carry on but before we do that here are the rules of green laning and what green
laning really is green bikes for green laning what are green lanes well Green Lanes of public byways
that are often rural and lesser used they're never tarmacked they're often allowing nature to kind
of grow back hence the term green green lanes are dotted all over the UK so you can actually legally
venture off the beaten track to explore away from the crowd I'm not an accomplished road rider so
this really appeals to me in green laning on a green motorbike with zero emissions appeals to
my nature loving side as well as my mechanical fascination – Green Lane you have to be road legal
MOT to text and insured on your vehicle you also have to behave this isn't a motocross track so
you're looking for public rights-of-way of two types one of them is byways open to all traffic
known as boats and on an Ordnance Survey map boats are shown as a series of green pluses the other
thing you can look for is other public access these can be unclassified country roads you see
ours which on an Ordnance Survey map come under other routes with public access and are a line of
widely spaced green dots on these particular maps these are not classed as public rights-of-way so
any restrictions do need checking with the local authorities first if you're unsure about what your
boats are new you see ours and your or pisar it's probably easier to join someone like glass the
Green Lane Association go to class – UK org it costs forty eight quid a year you can get lots
of guides and you will always know when you're traveling in the right direction and on the
best routes boats UCR's remember guys respect your surroundings no litter no going too fast
prep your vehicle first make sure it's fully road-legal and apparently carry a saw let's have
a little chat guys I tell you what I'm absolutely marinating as soon as we start rolling the cat
the Sun comes down the Sun comes out as soon as we start start filming what I think the way I see
electric motor bikes is in the same way with cars as soon as people realize what they're capable
of and the way they feel they're suddenly really interested at first they dismiss them because
they don't make the sound you know that it doesn't sound like that yep but actually there's
so much to enjoy about it isn't there I mean this bike for example this this is this is the one I'm
riding today which is really cool it's called the FX FX that's the FX s I'm gonna try and remember
all the information so basically you've got the main the main part of it this part here is the
battery pack isn't it yeah the motors down there at the back they're the sort of cylindrical thing
yep this is chain-drive converted from belt drive yeah that one's belt will drive but most people
that do the sort of green laning will do on a WR 250 Yamaha as you kind of archetypal Green Lane
Trail bike essentially yeah really good condition and it's um it's a lovely thing it's it's very
different to these yeah well what's weird is when I was riding here we did about 10 miles or so to
get to this green light I dunno I've lived around it for eight years I didn't know this existed I'm
back here next week and this is what's cool about green laning as soon as you open up an ordnance
survey mapping you know what you're looking for there's actually quite a lot of them around Great
Britain and they're a great chance to just get away from the madding crowd and and explore them
someone like me that's an absolute beginner on a motorbike I feel more confident doing something
like this at average speeds I'm not looking to go on a motocross track I'm not looking to get my
knee down on the road so it's that nice kind of leisure cruising but also enjoying a bit of mother
nature at the same time yeah confined to just listening to an exhaust which I mean I like an
exhaust no like anybody else but it's a different experience on these you can hear the birds tweets
in yeah you can chit chat amongst yourselves even if you want to do while you're riding it's gonna
say I can hear a lot more when I'm on the road your yo-yo there is this weird lawlessness feeling the
fill like such a rebel green laning over the lumps and bumps on a serious-looking bike there
are serious intentions but yet zero tailpipe emission and totally legal the loudest sound
as you can hear is the the chain and then the normally tires but this 0 FX is a wonderful
thing you know you've got American company made in America but using components that are
proven from other manufacturers so Japanese shock absorbers brakes from Spain good suspension
travel really progressive throttle I love it and it's just great that these sorts of green lanes
are on our doorstep all over the country and yet so many people have no idea and I really enjoy
that sort of feeling of freedom John you deal in piston bikes and you dealing in zero other another
electric bikes what sort of people buy zeroes people black ops we called it which is really
designed for green laning so you've got people want to use it for that you've got people just
doing general touring on them keep them out with property charges you can you can quite easily
go do a bit it's all right on them it's a bit of a different mindset you need to just go
to the metro station and filling up yeah but it's quite feasible some of the guys have
proved you know across the Germany all kinds of stuff yeah so they are capable we just like
John says you just got to treat you with a bit of a different mindset and maybe just plan it
a little bit more in advance yep somebody like me though that will do that would only have
a ride occasionally I don't you know I know you can commute on these bikes in fact they're
perfect for doing commute short journey stuff like that yep but for someone like me that would
would go out on a Sunday and enjoy it maybe do 50 mile round trip something like this works for
that doesn't it it's more than capable you'll do if you're doing Green Line fact riding just
probably see 75 miles 80 miles out of a charge on that so you do your dirt riding you gonna do
50 60 miles so he's done oh and this one though you say this has been modifying the reason why
I became interested in this bike is after seeing the fact that the police had ordered something
yeah the police South Yorkshire Police had added to pretty much to this spec almost identical
to this for their offer our policing team sir and around Southie action yeah I'm nowhere near
South Yorkshire Stephanie nothing to do with me let's talk about the specs of this because I guess
this is the hero bike in this particular instance the FX you've done a couple of little mods so
a standard it comes with belt belt drive belt driver standard and that's more for an aggressive
off-road Yad moderate abilities if against turns like we've got here they're not getting stuck in
the Bell and potentially puncturing the belt and maybe split gonna stun into that I'll just be
crushed and so more most of these mods are done for if you tend to favor doing a bit of laning a
bit yeah yeah that's what this one's been modified faster tires but that are about as aggressive
while still being illegal that you can get yeah the hang guards yeah on this particular one with
convert at the rear bricks or the handlebar on the left hand side you've got no clothes so it gives
you a bit better control if you stood up on the pegs you've got your Britain your rear Brits a
hammer quite literally all the modification we have removable indicators off indicators not
removal just when you drop it if you're going offroad just bump loaders I've never even seen
those sockets I mean your pocket if you drop it you're not gonna stop an indicator is the easiest
thing to do when you drop a bag the foot pegs are more aggressive there's another addition of notice
that yeah especially when you're afraid five-year warranty on the battery yet younger said mileage
warranty on the back first five years two years on the back of the whole the battery on this
is is 7.2 kilowatt hour right and that motor I think is 20 kilowatts of power which is about
27 horsepower but that's not really the main event with the ebike so electric motor bikes
isn't no it's all about talk it's all about the talk yeah I don't have to say the talks were
really quite addictive Iver I thought I'll ride it yeah get used to in Eco mode I know sport mode
exists but I'm not going to be an idiot and just slow mix transport I'm just gonna get used to
it and I have to say it's really quite it's a lot of poke another thought in each yeah yeah so
standard effects would be 999 er that's after the government Gramp which is 1500 pounds okay this
particular model specs up like this with the tires the foot pegs the hangers and everything this one
would be eleven and a half thousand okay so starts at just under 10 yeah this one about eleven and
a half five-year warranty on the battery to you more until the bike so in terms if I was using
this bike to do a sort of 10 mile commute on back roads that we've done today and then I did a bit
of knobbing around on Green Lane tuned there what saw what kind of a range would you get if I was
riding it like a beginner like me I'm not going full balls yeah there's people that have managed
to eke 100 miles out the charge and I know some of the people in London city centre yeah I think
that's right if you're in town you get a hundred but round here probably more like exactly it's
John Stein 75 80 miles yep it's all about how much gas you use your course you know and I guess
if you choose these tires less efficient than a nice yeah absolutely they're meant to get you
through much you know you're gonna take a bit out of it I think in a world where we're being
encouraged to stay distanced from one another riding a motorcycle is probably as good as it
gets you're out in the fresh air enjoying a bit of speed and a bit of power you don't have to talk
to people you don't have to breathe near people listen this is the joy of green laning they'll be
around people are disappointing right nature isn't it's brilliant we've had such a good time worried
about halfway through the day I've still got like 78 percent charge I have to say I've really been
quite taken by this because I am NOT on the first person say I'm not an accomplished by trader I
don't ride on the road very much and I like kind of cruising and I don't feel like feeling outside
my comfort zone on a motorbike what we've done since we've done probably 12 miles on the road
come off the road pick one of these green lanes it's like half an hour from my house I didn't
even know existed and we've gone down here with blitz 204 miles off off off roading don't get
me wrong this is not a motocross track it's not super technical but it's just been really in job
one up this bike has a shared load of power the progression on the throttle is really lovely and
also the balance of the bike it was it's a lot less daunting than I thought it would be I mean
I look at when I'm when I was riding it early and we had a I was looking down I was admiring the
sort of the quality of the controls and everything it's a really well put together bike so these are
made in the States yep it's an American company so like I said before I do think that this is kind
of like thee this is this is for Tesla for bikes really Tesla American company pioneering with v's
zero means zero I've been around a while now since 2006 of started yeah yeah so 2006 started and then
2010 was the first real bikes the first robot I've been building Road V's for 10 years yeah and I
actually when when when I I did that zoom call with you on my Oren thetic charger you guys have
got an old zero yeah one of the first ones from 2010 yeah yeah it's been number one one three I
think is she still looks really good yeah yeah the thing is we're in a world now he bikes are
getting bigger and more powerful and then they're sort of a no-man's land on there between like
are they a bicycle or are they now a motorbike that have mandatory pedals and some of them you
can use on-road and some of the keys offer it so yeah you can go green anyone on a mountain bike
absolutely and there are some really good ones of those area but if you want an actual motor buy
and this what I'm focusing on for this this is an actual motor bike and it it's not a street bike
you know there are faster zeros they make faster bikes there yeah yeah yeah and they make further
range motorbikes this particular model in the UK you can only get with the bigger battery so
right you can get it with a smaller battery in the States yeah but actually when you think
about what miles you can get out of this bike with the performance I've experienced today has
been really really if I hadn't done a full byte license if I just had a CBT can you get a zero
that CBT friendly yeah few of those zeros on the range at CBT friendly and I'll still you can get
CBT version of one of these and they'll still do 85 miles an hour well it really is yes of this
fine pleasure of the effects yes yeah tell me about the servicing so obviously electric cars
the servicing intervals tend to be lot longer and there's less to go wrong so there's sort of
less there's more about checking rather than yeah same for these we'd say every 12 months four
four zero the main thing is to flush the brake fluid through and renew it because of the ABS
can degrade the fluid or the mattresses that's got abs yeah yeah I didn't even notice which is
you can turn off on these particular models as well if you want to do and then next time we
turn it back on it'll be activated again okay oh yeah it's a brake fluid flush and then check in
bearings checking your tires checking your bricks lubricating any pivot points or four pegs your
levers things like that so it's you non-electric stuff yes yeah don't electronic thing on the up
there is to plug it into the machine and it will see if there's any firmware updates for it sort
of it might be a firmware update to improve the economy of the battery yeah it could be a bit of a
farm and something dare from testing that they've done yeah so once every 12 months you get it up
there I think the first I knew of electric motor bikes being taken really seriously was when the
tt0 started then when you see hardcore motorbike entities are starting to embrace ebikes the
motorbikes then you know things are going to be bright motor crossing it's getting big in
the electric world electric trans bikes they're coming on brilliantly and I'm desperately want
to have a go on despite being a massive novice I think the future for this stuff is really
really good now that that zero those zeroes in their own right are really good just as a road
bike but I think it's proved today that you can have a lot of fun as someone that's not you know
an accomplished motocross rider or an accomplished Road Runner you can have a great laugh and
Green Lanes they exist whether you drive a car on them whether you ride a motorbike on them
there's such an underused part of this country and with social distancing and maybe getting
back and enjoying nature a bit more that's the perfect tool for the job life thank you for
watching car pervert if you've never subscribed before why not subscribe if you own an electric
motor bike I'd love to hear what you think of them and what you do with yours and if you hate
electric motor bikes why let me know thank you
