Just a still alive note.

[dogman dan]

Possibly somebody cares. Still alive and kicking. Never got covid yet. Just haven't been e-biking for quite some time.

I've gone to the dark side, spending most of my time on motorcycles. Currently have a bmw 650, honda dirt 450, and a yamaha 250 dirt street. So I'm still in love with two wheels. But as you all know, having my e bike burn my house down cooled off my desire to have big batteries around.

I pedaled a mt bike quite a bit for a few years, but now my knees don't like it much. Walking the dog for exercise now, 2 miles a day at least. Sadly, the last St Bernard died at 11 years age last winter. Our new dog is a bit smaller, a 2 year old Golden Doodle. A rescue of course. She is the closest thing to a perfect dog I've had since I was 10 years old. Tell her something once, she has it. Not three times, once. She travels excellent. Went to the Grand Canyon N rim, Santa Fe, and more local trips. Needs a leash only where there are leash cops, like the Grand Canyon.

Have fun with the e bikes, I'm going to ride the motorcycles a few more years, and hope for safer batteries by then.

 

[Chalo]

I'm glad you're apparently well. Good to hear from you.

Automotive battery modules appearing in the secondhand market have improved my relationship with e-bikes by a lot. The quality control part is already nailed down, and I only have to do the management part.

 

[2old]

I echo Chalo, and miss your technical help, but he's assimilating the function well.

 

[E-HP]

Possibly somebody cares. Still alive and kicking. Never got covid yet. Just haven't been e-biking for quite some time.

Your presence is missed here. Your name still comes up in threads, but without the real world explanation point your posts always add to the dialogue. I've been thinking about getting back to motorcycles myself, but I think I'll still be riding my ebike for shorter trips. Stay safe out there, and don't be a stranger. Maybe split the baby and get a LiveWire?

 

[999zip999]

Miss you Dogman. I remember you from the early days of ping batteries. And the melting of 9C motors in the 10t wind. Sure glad they came up with bigger motors less expensive than the old crastalyte motors. With lead acid.
Yeah I had a garage fired too it love melting my crab fight skis and fishing poles in the ceiling. Yes my fire wasn't as bad as yours but it's a hard thing to come back from. I would love to have a spot welder but it scares me to be spot welding batteries in my garage.
Great to hear from you

 

[neptronix]

I miss having you here but i understand the battery PTSD is real, i've had a little bit of that myself.

I'm torn with buying the highest density lifepo4 cells money can buy and trying to accept it's heft, or waiting for solid state/some other significant leap over the state of the art today.

I'm in an apartment for the moment, so a safer battery would be a major factor in getting me back on a bike.

Hope you find a reason to get back into the saddle someday

 

[nicobie]

Hey, You've been missed. Every once in a while I think back to the Death race in Tucson. I remember checking the temp on a motor you totally melted.

Keep having fun. I hope you and your family are well.

Nick

 

[amberwolf]

Possibly somebody cares.

Nah, not here.

Been hoping you might come back, at least now and then, missed you.

Sadly, the last St Bernard died at 11 years age last winter.

I'm sorry....I sympathize, having lost both Yogi and Kirin within weeks of each other, leaving me with just the queen-me-me JellyBeanThePerfectlyNormalSchmoo(butaverystrangedog), who, while often adorable, is not interested in sticking around people unless she is actively got your direct and full attention; she's worse than Tiny was in asserting her independence.

Our new dog is a bit smaller, a 2 year old Golden Doodle. A rescue of course. She is the closest thing to a perfect dog I've had since I was 10 years old. Tell her something once, she has it. Not three times, once.

Any pics? What's her name?

I wish JellyBean was anything like that...but she does what she wants--sometimes that is what I want, and sometimes I have to keep her sitting there doing nothing until she decides she will do what she's supposed to. She's better now at six-and-a-half-ish than she used to be, but if she doesn't want to do something, it's a challenge to get her to, because she doesn't really "want" anything from us enough to reliably use as a reward for training. :/ (Most dogs have *something* they want, and you can use that as a reward for them...but her... )

 

[fechter]

Glad to hear you're doing OK.

I have a Goldendoodle also. Great dog. Very smart for something with a brain the size of a walnut.
Here she is in her Halloween costume:


She was the "runt" of the litter and is about 16lbs at 2 years old.

I haven't been riding as much as I used to after getting that $500 ticket for riding an ebike on a trail where they aren't technically allowed. I don't like riding my bike on the streets much as the cars are idiots and it's too dangerous. I do occasionally poach a certain trail near here and will try to claim my bike is a handicapped mobility device if I ever get stopped again.

 

[nicobie]

and will try to claim my bike is a handicapped mobility device if I ever get stopped again.

Any way you can get one of the Doctors at your hospital to sign off on a disabled placard?

 

[dogman dan]

Here's one, taken about two days after we rescued her.

 

[dogman dan]

Sophie is her name, she's now just about 3 year old. Adopted her last winter at two years old. She was in a funky situation where somebody thought it was a good idea to have a puppy and a new baby at the same time. The dog got stuffed into a spare bedroom in a crate. Let out twice a day to poop, never walked, never socialized, never trained. Once day the owners sister comes and says, that's it, I'm taking the dog. Sister is a cat lady, about 7 cats in the house, but she knows nothing about dogs. She did a little bit of training, just behave loose in the house stuff, and get along with cats.

She put the dog on craigslist, and we were the first caller. When she heard our dog history, having done the crated dog rescue more than once before, we got the dog.

She had to learn how to leash walk, that took about 5 min. Had to learn when to go through a door or not, that took about 5 min. She was completely trained to behave perfect in all situations in about a week! Including off leash ! Unbelievable. Usually the bare basics like walk on a leash well takes two weeks, and 6 months to fully train a sensory deprived dog. She had to learn everything, like how to run. Never had been in a yard bigger than 20 feet. Did not know how to bark. She developed a bark so weird we call it a chuchacabra bark.

Now she zooms on those long standard poodle legs. Out loose in the desert, she dissapears in front of you for about 5 minutes, then re appears from behind you at about 30 mph. Sometimes you know she saw a rabbit because you hear her crashing through bushes. I try to fool her and change directions and hide, and she finds me every time in 5 min. Out in the mountains, she won't chase an elk, or deer, but just stands and points. She stays very close up in the mountains, or anywhere else unfamiliar. She will chase a squirrel though, we have one in the back yard that teases her. Someday, its going to be chomp.

She's not that small, golden and standard poodle, so she weighs 80 pounds. But thats pretty petite after the St Bernards and Bloodhounds for 30 years.

 

[dogman dan]

The last year in pictures.

Sophie discovers water.


At the Grand Canyon north rim.




At 9000 feet, where I spend summers. Cloudcroft NM.


Sophie learning to be at home in the RV.

 

[dogman dan]

More pics from the last year.

Our friend in Albuquerque has one too. We are nearly certain they are either litter mates, or from the same mother. Sophie never learned to play with another dog at dog park. Take her there, and she only learned to defend herself from several male pit bulls.

With her sister, she learned to play. Sunshine on the left, Sophie on the right.


At the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. She was the darling of the RV lot. Everybody wants to pet her, since she gives such a friendly, not about to bite look.


Sophie was all dreadlocks when we got her, especially her ass, so we keep her groomed in what I call the lion cut. Tight in back, and just enough fur to show her curly fur in front. Not too long, or it chokes the roomba. Golded doodles DO shed.

 

[dogman dan]

The stable of motorcycles. insanely fast honda 450, yamana 250, and bmw 650

 

[Hwy89]

Good to have you back Dan. You may have gone to the dark side but we know you still have a wealth of knowledge for us electron lovers. Pop in and share your wisdom whenever you can.

 

[amberwolf]

Sophie reminds me of Kirin--both her story, body style/looks, and she also had a wierd bark, more like a woOW than a WOOF, starting quieter and ending louder. She didn't use it much, except to call me because she had lost track of me.

She also paid attention pretty well, and learned things, but probably not as fast as Sophie.


KIrin was found starving in a backyard with a couple of other dogs

and had gained a little weight by the time the rescue brought her to me

Slept wierd




And was a goofball


with a little insecurity (often carrying her Troll)

And wanted to be with me wherever I was no matter what I was doing

 

[gobi]

Dan,
welcome back!
What years are the bikes?
I have been working a sienna van setup for winter fishing and playing tennis.

 

[neptronix]

Dogman..

What do you think about sodium ion batteries lately?
The safety is said to be better than lifepo4.

I'm noticing some no-name sodium ion cells on the market already. Could be that we get good ones in 2024.

 

[fechter]

We need someone like Luke to try catching some on fire. I’ve seen LiFePO4 catch on fire but you have to try harder than lithium cobalt. Energy density is kind of low but they should become pretty inexpensive if the hype is true.

 

[neptronix]

A few tests have been done so far. Need more data, but looks good so far:

 

[fechter]

Those tests look encouraging.

 

[neptronix]

Yeah..
Now to add some nuance, it seems like sodium ion comes in a less flammable than li-ion less type and a supposedly non flammable type. We're not sure which type he tested, because they're some rando cells from alibaba-grade vendors.

 

[999zip999]

Dogman you are the man who most influence my early years 14 15 years ago. During your racing days in the melting of the 9C 's till I moved on to 45 mm. Even though those can still melt. I also had a battery fire that took out half of my toys skis fishing poles anything made of graphite or resin. To this point I'm still extremely careful and not bought a spot welder to make battery packs. I guess because I have 3-72 volt batteries a 52 and 2-48s and that's a whole lot of potential energy already and I don't need any more batteries even though they're bigger and heavier than I would like.
Good luck and I know the storms that come through my neck of the woods end up on your doorstep most the time.Love.

 

[raylo32]

Sophie looks like a very happy and very lucky dog!