Monday, April 20th

Today was awesome! We finally know for a fact that we created two fully functional motor bikes. Our day began bright and early when we went to Patrick's. Once there he looked at the oil we bought, and helped us figure out how to mix the oil and gas. Our two packs of two stroke motor oil eventually ended up being mixed in with half a gallon of gasoline, which we bought at a gas station near Patrick's. We then put the fuel mixture into the fuel tank and fooled around with the bike. We watched other videos to make sure we had the starting method down, then took to the road right outside Patrick's. We noticed our gas bike is a little more difficult to operate than the electric bike, but not too hard to figure out. Basically, to start the motor, you have to get going on the bike up to a good speed, then release the clutch, and the motor kicks into gear. When you want to remain idle, you can pull the clutch back in and lock it in place. It is so awesome.
Once we figured out how to ride the bike, which goes rather fast by the way, we said our goodbyes to Patrick, as our work with him was complete. We then loaded the bikes into my truck and headed over to Piedmont Park. Our initial plan was cut short when we were told that we weren't allowed to ride motor bikes in the park. I was able to get away with it on the electric bike, but Eli's was way too loud to be inconspicuous. However, this wasn't really an issue due to all the neighborhoods surrounding Piedmont Park. We rode the bikes for a good while in the surrounding neighborhoods and streets trying to get a feel for the bikes. We want to have experience when talking about our bikes, saying we have actually ridden them in the city and they are quite practical. One major thing I noticed today was when Eli and I stopped for lunch, we were able to pull our bikes right up to the door instead of having to look for a parking spot in the full parking lot. The bikes also lasted a lot longer than we expected. One major thing we noticed is that the bikes should really be used as an assist system. By this I mean that the rider should still pedal at all times, but use the motors for help. Using just the motors to get around, though fun, uses a good amount of fuel/energy, especially when going up hills.
Once our bikes were dead, Eli and I spent a good amount of time going over what we had learned, how to best present this information, and our plan for tomorrow. All in all, it was a really good day. Today was by far the most fun day of our project yet, and I can't wait for what is in store for tomorrow. One of the most fun parts about today is the amount of heads we turned when rolling by on our bikes. People were astonished at what we were riding, and we think they wished they had some motor bikes of their own.