Green Options » evo design

15 Bikes Competing In Today’s World First Electric Grand Prix

Jerry James Stone — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:37:16 +0000

Today’s the TTXGP - the Time Trials Xtreme Grand Prix. And don’t let that misspelled word fool ya. It’s going to be one heck of a ride! In fact, it’s going be the world’s first zero-carbon, clean emission Grand Prix.

With twenty-three different electric bikes and sixteen riders, seven different countries will compete in this inaugural race. The event take place in the Isle of Man with teams from the UK, Italy, USA, India, Germany and Austria.

An e-Grand Prix? Um…I wanna go!

And if you’re bummed that you can’t make it, don’t worry. Organizers plan to showcase their contestants here in the States too. It will be at this year’s American Motorcyclist Association Vintage Motorcycle Days festival at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

Here are 15 hot bikes racing today.

My Glass Is Greener

Aaron Szymanski — Fri, 23 May 2008 18:40:04 +0000

It seems that everywhere I turn, all the design conferences somehow are focusing on green.

In March, I had the opportunity to attend the 2008 International Housewares Show at McCormick Place in Chicago. Every spring, the show takes up three of the four gigantic halls covering everything from small, local pot holder manufacturers to giant international appliance manufacturers, like Haier (China based “white goods” manufacturer with annual sales over 15 billion).

Most people I know go for the exhibition portion of the event, but there are also conferences. This year, one of the predominant themes was green. There was also a special section on the floor for green design and many of the speakers also had a presence in this area. (At the end of this I will post a list of those who presented.)

The exhibition area also had many manufacturers marketing a sustainable position. The claims ranged from using post consumer waste (as in the Sustain Mug by Aladdin) to using classic design forms that would inspire consumers to keep them forever.

Why Can’t Every Product be Sustainable?

Aaron Szymanski — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:39:44 +0000

If you go to the mass retailers today, it’s likely that you’re going to pay more for sustainably designed, developed, manufactured and shipped products. In some cases, like my Timberland boots, the products will be superior in all ways that matter and the sustainable attributes will be an added-value. But in most cases the product will either be harder to find, quicker to wear-out or less aesthetically pleasing than the less-sustainable competition.

It’s tempting to point out the many examples beyond my Timberlands, which are sustainable without the sacrifice or the bloated price tag. Sure, they exist but they are the minority–a miniscule struggling minority. If we all start to question why, we can shift every product manufactured towards a more sustainable approach. Every product.