luckie
06-26-2006, 12:06 PM
The Segways are coming
By Lauren Ober
Burlington Free Press
June 25, 2006
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060625/NEWS02/606250307
Don't be alarmed if you see a futuristic fleet of scooters cruising through Burlington soon. There's nothing to fear. They might not be the type of two-wheeled transportation that bike-friendly Burlington is accustomed to, but Bruce Morrissey is banking on the fact that curiosity about his Segway Human Transporters will be enough to bolster his new business. Beginning Saturday, Morrissey, of Milton, will be running SegRides of Vermont from the King Street ferry dock in Burlington. Starting July 5, guests at Smugglers' Notch Resort in Cambridge will be able to take Segway tours through the village and on a nature trail.
Even before Segways made their debut on Good Morning America in 2001, a neighbor of Morrissey's who worked on the prototype of the machine brought one home and let Morrissey try it. After a test run, Morrissey was hooked. "I was fascinated by the device. The ability to balance itself is the most amazing thing," Morrissey said. Morrissey admits being a bit taken aback by the look of the contraption, saying it was like watching cartoons of The Jetsons at first. But after five minutes on the machine, Morrissey had it down pat. On a trip to Washington, D.C., Morrissey saw a company offering tours of the city on Segway scooters and it was then, he says, that the seed was planted to run Segway tours in Vermont. "It just seemed to fit the mind-set in Vermont," he said. "A lot of us are stewards of natural resources, and I thought this was a great way to tie things together."
Eco-friendly
Segways are electric and create zero emissions, and therefore are deemed environmentally friendly. After a couple of years of planning and research, Morrissey said he's finally ready to begin his enterprise. With a fleet of 12 Segways, Morrissey will be able to accommodate five riders and one guide at both the Burlington waterfront and at Smugglers' Notch. While a price has not been set for the Burlington tours, a guest at Smuggs will be able to take a 1 1/2-hour tour for $65, which includes a helmet and operating instruction. Morrissey invested $5,000 for each contraption, but judging by the reaction he gets tooling around Burlington, it might be money well spent. Morrissey anticipates the business will take off and would like to open a Segway dealership in Vermont in the future.
The folks at the Lake Champlain Transportation Co. are also banking on the success of the business. They've partnered with Morrissey to offer Segway tours around Burlington. The machines will also be available for private parties and corporate events. Veronica Valz, the accounting department manager for Lake Champlain Transportation, helped facilitate the partnership and says she's excited about the possibilities of Morrissey's endeavor. "For one, they're new and they're really unusual. And in the way they work, they're environmentally friendly," Valz said. "It's just a very neat machine." Valz and Morrissey haven't finalized the tour itinerary, but Valz says it will most likely incorporate information on the history of the waterfront.
Marge McIntosh, activities director at Smugglers' Notch, says the Segway tours will fit in nicely with the resort's other unique summer offerings, including geocaching, a GPS treasure hunt of sorts, and Via Ferrata, or cable-assisted climbing. She envisions the Segway rides being akin to an interpretive nature walk and said they will focus heavily on the natural environment of the region.
Bumps
Valz and Morrissey hope the Segways, which are technically motorized vehicles, will be allowed on the bike path. "They're not going at a high speed and they're not dangerous," Valz said. "They're safer than people going out of control on Rollerblades or bikes." Wayne Gross, director of the Burlington Department of Parks and Recreation, said Segways will not be on the bike path any time soon unless they are used by someone with a disability. "General use of Segways by an able-bodied person is not allowed on the bike path. We don't want any motorized vehicles on the bike path unless it's to provide access for a disabled person," Gross said. Segways on the city sidewalks shouldn't be a problem, says Steve Goodkind, director of the Burlington Department of Public Works, and they won't require registration. "For now, it's OK if they don't cause any problems. But if they become a problem, we'll have to look at that," Goodkind said. Morrissey contends that under state transportation laws, Segways are technically categorized as "electric personal assistive mobility devices," like motorized wheelchairs, and should be able to be ridden in the same places. Regardless of the bike-path issue, Burlington will soon have Segways. "It's going to be a lot of fun," Morrissey said.
What's a Segway?
The Segway Human Transporter first came to life in 2001 when inventor Dean Kamen unveiled his creation, described as "the world's first self-balancing human transporter," on "Good Morning America." A "human transporter" might sound a little futuristic, but the electric, zero-emissions contraptions are very much in the now. Seattle uses the machines on meter-reader routes; police in Atlanta patrol the streets on Segways; and an entire community in Florida uses the devices for everyday transportation. Although it may look like a hand truck that would topple over if one stood on it, the Segway manages to stay upright by moving its wheels at just the right speed thanks to a series of integrated gyroscopes. To move a Segway forward or backward, one simply leans forward or backward. Similarly, to go left or right, one just turns the steering grip left or right. The company claims it is virtually impossible to flip or fall off Segways because they are so well balanced. Each Segway has three keys, or speeds, with a maximum speed of 12.5 mph. The machine has a rechargeable lithium ion battery and gets about 24 miles out of each charge. Since the company was begun, the Segway fleet has grown to include police-specific machines, as well as off-road Segways and Segways for golfing that can haul clubs around. There is even a commuter Segway, fully outfitted with a saddlebag, a light and a lock.
By Lauren Ober
Burlington Free Press
June 25, 2006
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060625/NEWS02/606250307
Don't be alarmed if you see a futuristic fleet of scooters cruising through Burlington soon. There's nothing to fear. They might not be the type of two-wheeled transportation that bike-friendly Burlington is accustomed to, but Bruce Morrissey is banking on the fact that curiosity about his Segway Human Transporters will be enough to bolster his new business. Beginning Saturday, Morrissey, of Milton, will be running SegRides of Vermont from the King Street ferry dock in Burlington. Starting July 5, guests at Smugglers' Notch Resort in Cambridge will be able to take Segway tours through the village and on a nature trail.
Even before Segways made their debut on Good Morning America in 2001, a neighbor of Morrissey's who worked on the prototype of the machine brought one home and let Morrissey try it. After a test run, Morrissey was hooked. "I was fascinated by the device. The ability to balance itself is the most amazing thing," Morrissey said. Morrissey admits being a bit taken aback by the look of the contraption, saying it was like watching cartoons of The Jetsons at first. But after five minutes on the machine, Morrissey had it down pat. On a trip to Washington, D.C., Morrissey saw a company offering tours of the city on Segway scooters and it was then, he says, that the seed was planted to run Segway tours in Vermont. "It just seemed to fit the mind-set in Vermont," he said. "A lot of us are stewards of natural resources, and I thought this was a great way to tie things together."
Eco-friendly
Segways are electric and create zero emissions, and therefore are deemed environmentally friendly. After a couple of years of planning and research, Morrissey said he's finally ready to begin his enterprise. With a fleet of 12 Segways, Morrissey will be able to accommodate five riders and one guide at both the Burlington waterfront and at Smugglers' Notch. While a price has not been set for the Burlington tours, a guest at Smuggs will be able to take a 1 1/2-hour tour for $65, which includes a helmet and operating instruction. Morrissey invested $5,000 for each contraption, but judging by the reaction he gets tooling around Burlington, it might be money well spent. Morrissey anticipates the business will take off and would like to open a Segway dealership in Vermont in the future.
The folks at the Lake Champlain Transportation Co. are also banking on the success of the business. They've partnered with Morrissey to offer Segway tours around Burlington. The machines will also be available for private parties and corporate events. Veronica Valz, the accounting department manager for Lake Champlain Transportation, helped facilitate the partnership and says she's excited about the possibilities of Morrissey's endeavor. "For one, they're new and they're really unusual. And in the way they work, they're environmentally friendly," Valz said. "It's just a very neat machine." Valz and Morrissey haven't finalized the tour itinerary, but Valz says it will most likely incorporate information on the history of the waterfront.
Marge McIntosh, activities director at Smugglers' Notch, says the Segway tours will fit in nicely with the resort's other unique summer offerings, including geocaching, a GPS treasure hunt of sorts, and Via Ferrata, or cable-assisted climbing. She envisions the Segway rides being akin to an interpretive nature walk and said they will focus heavily on the natural environment of the region.
Bumps
Valz and Morrissey hope the Segways, which are technically motorized vehicles, will be allowed on the bike path. "They're not going at a high speed and they're not dangerous," Valz said. "They're safer than people going out of control on Rollerblades or bikes." Wayne Gross, director of the Burlington Department of Parks and Recreation, said Segways will not be on the bike path any time soon unless they are used by someone with a disability. "General use of Segways by an able-bodied person is not allowed on the bike path. We don't want any motorized vehicles on the bike path unless it's to provide access for a disabled person," Gross said. Segways on the city sidewalks shouldn't be a problem, says Steve Goodkind, director of the Burlington Department of Public Works, and they won't require registration. "For now, it's OK if they don't cause any problems. But if they become a problem, we'll have to look at that," Goodkind said. Morrissey contends that under state transportation laws, Segways are technically categorized as "electric personal assistive mobility devices," like motorized wheelchairs, and should be able to be ridden in the same places. Regardless of the bike-path issue, Burlington will soon have Segways. "It's going to be a lot of fun," Morrissey said.
What's a Segway?
The Segway Human Transporter first came to life in 2001 when inventor Dean Kamen unveiled his creation, described as "the world's first self-balancing human transporter," on "Good Morning America." A "human transporter" might sound a little futuristic, but the electric, zero-emissions contraptions are very much in the now. Seattle uses the machines on meter-reader routes; police in Atlanta patrol the streets on Segways; and an entire community in Florida uses the devices for everyday transportation. Although it may look like a hand truck that would topple over if one stood on it, the Segway manages to stay upright by moving its wheels at just the right speed thanks to a series of integrated gyroscopes. To move a Segway forward or backward, one simply leans forward or backward. Similarly, to go left or right, one just turns the steering grip left or right. The company claims it is virtually impossible to flip or fall off Segways because they are so well balanced. Each Segway has three keys, or speeds, with a maximum speed of 12.5 mph. The machine has a rechargeable lithium ion battery and gets about 24 miles out of each charge. Since the company was begun, the Segway fleet has grown to include police-specific machines, as well as off-road Segways and Segways for golfing that can haul clubs around. There is even a commuter Segway, fully outfitted with a saddlebag, a light and a lock.