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April 1, 2003
Segway first impressions
So I got my Seg<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00007EPJ6/martinandalex-20/104-9365267-4530368">way Human Transporter </a>yesterday. I got an e-mail Friday from the company with a tracking number saying the thing had shipped. So I hacked together a script to reload the DHL tracking site with my number every 5 minutes. The package got to Bellevue Monday, but somehow had the wrong address on it so they sent it back to the warehouse. Five calls later and a visit to the warehouse finally yielded a 110 pound box of joy.
When I got it home it was a snap to put together. Just plug together two color coded plugs, insert the handle into the base and plug it into the wall. The manual says to charge for 15 hours to ensure a full charge to the batteries, but of course I couldn't wait. After about 20 minutes I unplugged it and rode it around the house. I had already rode one at the official Segway training and a courtesy ride from <a href="http://www.bookofseg.com/">Phillip</a> the local lucky early delivery winner. I applied for early delivery as well, but told them the first thing I would do was try to hack it, so I guess they didn't like that part.
Stepping on for the first time is a real thrill. It is deceptively easy (as advertised). Just like stepping onto a stool or ladder. It is a little weird for the first 1/10 second to have something under you trying to balance, but your body naturally adjusts. Especially if you do any balance sports like surfing or snowboarding or wakeboarding (I do them all).
My first ride was just around the house. In the first five minutes I ran into a door going too fast, but didn't hurt myself or the Segway. It takes a couple of tries to stop quickly from a fast run. But it is actually very natural. You just kinda sit down and pull back on the handle bars. I was able to maneuver around all the furniture, over the rug, into the bathroom with ease. With only about half an hour of sun left I was dying to take it outside and try it on the streets. The first challenge was to get it down the 20 stairs from my apartment to the street. The Segway has a power assist mode that lets you crawl it slowly up and down obstacles like stairs. In power assist mode, you turn the handle to go forward or backward. I tried two strategies going down the stairs. First time I turned the handle to give some power assist down each stair and stopped on the one below, then took a step down myself, gave another turn, step, etc down the stairs. That worked fine, but was a little herky jerky since each turn was of different length and intensity meaning the power assist level varied. It took a couple stairs to get it right. In the middle of the stairs I tried to see if I could apply a constant amount of power assist and just walk down the stairs with the segway decending at a constant rate. That actually worked much better and felt smoother.
Once outside, the big question I had was how obstacles would be handled. Going up and down curb cuts. Uneven pavement. Other pedistrians. There is no suspension on the Segway, so all jolts and jars are telegraphed directly to your arms. You need to hold onto the unit with both hands at all times. For someone who usually walks holding a latte, that is an issue. And maybe a bigger issue for Segway in the Seattle market overall. My strategy was to approach all these obstacles slowly. That seemed to work. It was especially easy since the thing stops so quickly and starts so quickly, it didn't seem like an inconvenience to slow down for things. So I motored up to the store to get some icecream for desert. I went right up the handicap ramp and into the store back to the icecream isle. The clerks looked funny at me, but didn't say anything. I picked out the icecream and went up the the cash register all the while on the Segway. It worked great, and was in total control. Your footprint while on the unit is no more than walking, so it is not an imposition. The clerk asked what it was and I told her, paid her and was on my way. Just great. Next I went up the cobble stone street in the <a href="http://www.pikeplacemarket.org/">Pike Place Market</a> to get some money from the bank machine. The cobble stones are rough and uneven, but the Segway just rode over them fine. I had to hold on because the thing was jerking around, but not uncomfortably and no more than riding a bike over it. I rode up to the cash machine and took out some money, all without getting off the Segway.
Riding home lots of people waved and honked. Lots of fun. Today has been in the office leting everyone ride it. With literally 15 seconds of instruction everyone was able to ride it. Only<a href="http://www.tongfamily.com/"> Rich </a>ran into a cube! It automatically adjusted to the weight and height of everyone in the office.
More to come
Posted by Martin at April 1, 2003 6:57 PM
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