gliding in cold weather

[rwoynaro]

Today was the first really cold day we had this year and there are a few more on the way this week. By cold (my standards of course, I am sure other folks in different parts of the country would laugh and think this is balmy )
I mean below 30, mid 20's or so.

I haul my segway to work on a SegVator on the back bumper for almost an hr commute, so I was a bit apprehensive this morning to see if it would have any issues. My I2 (less than a yr old and < 1K miles) started right up and glided fine, although the floor mats were a bit stiff and didn't release the foot sensor buttons when I got off.

So what are your cold weather experiences with a seg ? How low a temp can it handle before I have to worry about it ? Are there any tips in how to help mediate the cold ?

My main concern is to just get to work and get it in the building where it will warm up. I really need it to get around.

[Lily Kerns]

Tip? Bundle up when riding it in the cold. You are air conditioned whatever the weather is doing!

[JPM]

Hi Rwoynaro,

Colder weather has settled into my neck of the woods as well, and so far I haven't had any problems gliding in it!

I'm still a very new Segway owner (I've had my gently used i167 since September now) but ride it almost daily in whatever weather conditions are out there. The coldest temperature I've glided... Glode? Glid? (Someone, help me out here!) in thus far has been -24 Celsius (-11 Fahrenheit) which included a wind chill and my i167 worked flawlessly. No reduced performance, no shutdowns or anything like that, and my Nickel batteries didn't seem to mind either. After riding for about an hour, I got home with lots of battery to spare!

Mind you, I turn it on about five minutes before departure in balance mode and let it rest against the door just to warm up a little bit, so you may not see the same results starting it up cold after the trip on your SegVator. In fact, I thought I recall reading on here how the radio boards on some i2s get a little grumpy when trying to start in cold temperatures without a prior warm up. However I'd say if you didn't encounter any start-up problems in the cold the last time, you likely have a greater chance of effortless start-ups the next time in the cold as well. If I recall, the radio board is located at the top of the centre console on the base of your i2, so I suppose you could create some sort of thermal insulation that you slide over the console to try and keep it warm-ish during the drive. I'm not sure how well it would work, to be honest, but I figure it couldn't hurt.

Apart from all that, I definitely agree with what Lily has said: Bundle up! Your Segway will likely do much better than you will in the cold, so break out the warm clothing! I typically go out with a hat underneath my helmet, scarf, mittens, and a warm insulated coat at the very least. Even with all that I'm usually ready to pack it in after a long glide while my i167 shows no signs of wanting to stop!

Good luck, glide safe, and stay warm!

[eJM]

Originally Posted by JPM

If I recall, the radio board is located at the top of the centre console on the base of your i2, so I suppose you could create some sort of thermal insulation that you slide over the console to try and keep it warm-ish during the drive.

So, you could get, for instance, a tiny little quilt blanket for it... ahem, Lily.

Jim

[rwoynaro]

Originally Posted by eJM

So, you could get, for instance, a tiny little quilt blanket for it... ahem, Lily.

Jim

Thanks for the info, gang. I have a 12V electric blanket, they make them for truckers. I can drape it over the center console, as the radio board and electronics seem to be the best thing to concentrate on keeping warm. I don't have far to go to get inside, so a full charge will help. I really appreciate the responses where others have gone gliding in cold weather and were successful, it makes me feel more at ease. I just got into the building for day 2 of the arctic blast, the metal of the segway itself is darn cold. Come on spring

[Lily Kerns]

Originally Posted by eJM

So, you could get, for instance, a tiny little quilt blanket for it... ahem, Lily.

Jim

Sure! Just use the same principles as when designing a toaster or sewing machine cover. A bit of Velcro might be needed to keep it in place

And just for you folks, I'll add a tip from one of my classes. Mold paper toweling over the hump shape. Use a pen to mark where you have folded or pleated...and you have your pattern. Easy as that!

[Civicsman]

The coldest temperature I've glided... Glode? Glid? (Someone, help me out here!)

"Glided", if you are interested in using the English language properly, or perhaps "rode", "driven", or "operated".

If you wish to fabricate a word, the sky is the limit. However, people may think you are not well educated, or that English is not your native language.

[JPM]

Originally Posted by Civicsman

"Glided", if you are interested in using the English language properly, or perhaps "rode", "driven", or "operated".

If you wish to fabricate a word, the sky is the limit. However, people may think you are not well educated, or that English is not your native language.

I don't know... Using the English language properly is far too mundane!

I kid of course, as I did with my series of fabricated words in my original post. However don't be so quick to assume fabricated words are created from the poorly educated! My father knows a colleague at his workplace who has a Ph.D, yet every document produced by the fellow is supposedly laced with more blatant (and sometimes humerous) spelling mistakes that half the words appear to be fabricated!

Getting back on topic, I love the idea of incorporating quilting and Segways to keep them warm. Perhaps we can make entire Segway tea cozies to keep our machines snug on those cold days...

[Civicsman]

As JPM said, his I167 worked at -24C, and his process of starting and loading the Seg probably helps during the initial start-up and ride away.

The issue is mostly the internal temperature of the batteries. Cold batteries (soaked to some cold ambient temperature overnight) have less capability to delivery current than warm batteries. This might not be a problem at most temperatures, unless the batteries are weak to start with. Once the Seg has been operating for a few minutes, the batteries will begin to warm, and some of the "lost" capability will return.

However, when a Seg has stabilized at some cold temperature, providing an unheated blanket for the machine would not help much. The Seg provides very little self-heating when shut down. Think of this idea as putting a blanket over a rock in Antarctica. The rock was already cold, and the blanket doesn't help warm it up.

However, if the Segway was warm from a ride and subsequent charging, putting a blanket over it helps to retain the residual heat. Only put a blanket on the Seg AFTER charging is complete, as charging generates heat.

[KSagal]

Back in the NiMH days, I used to use a simple blanket made of some bubble wrap next to the batteries and a foil skin over it all to deflect the worst of the cold, and to retain a bit of heat that is generated, because as was stated, the batteries loose capacity in extreme cold. The LiIons generally out last me in bitter cold, so I do not insulate them as much.

A radio board cozy is an interesting idea. I use chemical insoles that warm up for 6 to 8 hours in my boots. Perhaps one of these devices under the cozy would warm up those boards, but I believe that point is relatively moot now. The cold weather problems were due to a run of boards that would act poorly at cool temperatures, and did not need extreme cold, and have mostly been corrected, I should think.

By the way, I glide on my segway. I do ride it, but prefer to say that I glide on it. Because of that, a glide that I take on Monday may be referred to by me on Tuesday... If that happens, I might say that glode on Monday, as the past tense of glide.

If some want to consider me uneducated, so be it. Some of the smartest people I know, well educated and functionally brilliant, speak with a southern drawl. Up here in the north east, most people consider that southern drawl to be an indicator of ignorance or poor education. I do not.

Make up a word that is witty and makes sense in its context, and I will appreciate it. Make up a word that does not, and take your consequences.

Try to pigeon hole me or evaluate my intelligence or education simply because I glode on my segway yesterday, and you do so at your own risk. My intelligence or education will not be affected by your inability to evaluate them appropriately.

As with all things, how I choose to express myself in one environment may not be how I choose to express myself in a different environment. Even if I am describing the same event.

Glide more, smile more.