Low-Impact Fun on the E-Bikeboard S500

Fun toy or serious environmentally friendly transportation? The E-Bikeboard S500 from Bikeboard AG in Switzerland that's now available in North America is both.

The E-Bikeboard S500 is based on the company's modular Bikeboard that's popular in Europe. The multipurpose Bikeboard has a light aluminum frame that can be easily assembled within a short time into the Bikeboard/Snow for snowboarding, Bikeboard/Water for wakeboarding behind a tow boat, Bikeboard/Street for skateboarding, or Bikeboard/Offroad for off-road travel. The Bikeboard's combined steering and spring rear suspension is designed for carving great turns on land, in the water, or on snow.

For the Electric-Bikeboard, or E-Bike, Bikeboard has attached two cutting edge rechargeable lithium-polymer batteries to the front fork. The 24 volt, 10 ampere-hour LiPO batteries power the 500 watt hub motor that's also mounted in the front fork of the Bikeboard.

The result is virtually silent and emissions-free transport for to 30 miles on one battery charge. The Electric-Bikeboard has a top speed of 15 mph and can climb 12 percent grades with a 260 pound load. The carving ability of the Bikeboard/Street is retained. Braking is by twin disk brakes in the rear and a V-brake in front. Speed and braking are controlled by grips on the handlebar. The whole thing weighs about 66 pounds including batteries. The price of an E-Bikeboard is just under $2,500 and it can be operated on a few cents of electricity a day.