Fairway wants to replace golf carts with this funky electric bike
Who needs a golf cart when you’ve got a… golf bike? That’s the thought behind Fairway Bikes’ new three-wheeled electric bike designed for golfers, helping kick the lazy golf cart for a more interactive alternative.
It’s fair to say that golf doesn’t rank very high on the list of sports praised for their cardiovascular exercise benefits.
That’s not to imply that golfers are lazy, but let’s just say that it doesn’t help that for many people, the little bit of walking involved is replaced by an overgrown mobility scooter.
But what if instead of driving a ClubCar around the course, you could pedal around? Now that sounds like a great way to get some light exercise and enjoy a day on the links at the same time.
And that’s exactly what the startup Fairway Bikes is trying to do. The company’s three-wheeled e-bike has dual front suspension for improved stability and even features two rides modes offering both an electric throttle and adjustable pedal assist for more or less of a workout.
The company was founded in 2023 by golfer and tech startup veteran Jim Billmaier with the goal of making golfing more enjoyable – especially between the holes. After retiring, Jim was playing more golf but found it challenging to walk the course. Instead of opting for a golf cart, which would have significantly reduced his exercise, he designed a new solution that became a golf bike.
To bring it to market, Jim teamed up with lifelong golfer and fellow startup veteran Fairway CEO Alex Wunderlich.
“Our mission is to make the game more accessible and fun for more players. For many golfers, the opportunity to get active outdoors is what draws them to the game, but some courses are almost impossible to walk,” explained Wunderlich. “Previously, the only solution was golf carts. With the rising popularity of e-bikes, we saw an opportunity to offer an alternative option that speeds up play, reduces impact to the course and environment, and makes golf more active and fun for everyone. It seems so obvious in hindsight, but it took years of work to tailor the product and business model to meet the unique needs of golfers and golf courses.”
The bike offers a top speed of 12 mph (20 km/h) and is powered by a Bafang mid-drive motor connected to a belt drive.
With two front wheels, it takes on a tadpole trike design, which is known to be more stable than typical delta-style trikes with two rear wheels. A forward cargo section holds a golf bag and a center console area offers golf cart-like storage for drinks and scorecards.
The removable battery mounted under the bench seat claims to offer 20 miles (32 km/h) of range, which is likely enough for several rounds of golf when used all day for rental use on a golf course.
Targeting both consumers and fleet usage at golf courses, Fairway Bikes already has over 50 courses across the U.S. on the waitlist for bikes with more being added every week.
The company recently raised $1.25M to fund initial production with plans to roll out bikes in time for next year’s golfing season.
In addition to fleet usage, consumer models are expected to be priced at around US $6,999, which the company anchored by explaining that such pricing puts it at around half the cost of many golf carts today.
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On today’s episode of Quick Charge, I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords. I’d like to remind them that, as a trusted media personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves cobalt mines.
We’ve also got the world’s quickest police pursuit vehicle, an Amnesty International report highlighting Tesla and Mercedes’ efforts to improve worker conditions in the Congo, and an exploration of Trump voters’ love for solar power.
Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 50% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday pre-sale, now through November 11. Learn more by clicking here.
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Read more: Cybertruck dually, overland Kia concepts, and electric Mopars at SEMA.
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Donald Trump will push fossil fuels and undo renewable energy policies, but it ultimately won’t stop clean energy’s momentum.
Trump has always pushed for more oil drilling and fewer regulations, left the Paris Agreement in his first term as president, says he hates “windmills,” promised to scrap offshore wind on “day one” if he won the 2024 election, and calls climate change a “scam.” And now that he’s won, this is a direct threat to the US’s pledge to reach net zero by 2050. After all, federal policy directly impacts the pace of renewable energy growth, especially when it comes to incentives and research funding.
The Biden administration’s groundbreaking Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which has spurred a clean energy boom, will be challenged under Trump. Because Republican states have received 80% of the IRA’s money with which they’ve built factories and created thousands of jobs, a complete IRA repeal is unlikely. What’s more probable is that the Republicans phase out tax credits earlier than planned or cap overall funding.
Federal financial support for innovative technologies and projects could also take a hit. Brendan Bell, COO of Aligned Climate Capital, who formerly led the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, told Electrek:
My partner Peter and I led the DOE Loan Program Office under President Obama. We supported the first utility-scale solar and storage projects, as well as early EV investments – including the first loan to Tesla.
Today, these technologies are commercialized and are propelling the clean energy transition. None of it would have been possible if these programs had been cut off 10 years ago.
Put simply, Trump can’t turn back the tide of clean energy – but he could delay tomorrow’s solutions and the birth of new industries.
BloombergNEF’s “2H 2024 US Clean Energy Market Outlook,” released at the end of October, examined the worst-case scenario, where control of both the Senate and the House leads to a full repeal of the IRA tax credits:
The wind, solar, and energy storage sectors jointly see a 17% drop in total new capacity additions over 2025-2035, with 927 gigawatts (GW) of cumulative build compared to 1,118GW in BNEF’s base case forecast. Wind sees the greatest fall in activity in this scenario with a 35% drop, followed by energy storage at 15% and solar at 13% relative to BNEF’s base case.
That’s a blow we can’t afford at a time when we need to reduce emissions by 50% from 2005 levels by 2030 to avoid climate disasters becoming even worse than they already are.
But all is not lost. The clean energy market isn’t solely driven by federal policy. Over the last decade, solar, wind, and EVs have become more cost-competitive and popular. State policies play a huge role too, and many states are committed to their own clean energy goals regardless of who sits in the White House. States like California, New York, and Washington have ambitious targets to combat climate change, and deep red Texas is No. 1 in the US for both solar and wind.
Corporations are also key players. Companies like Amazon, Google, and Walmart have committed to going 100% renewable, and they’re not about to reverse course. This demand keeps the market for renewables strong. Plus, there’s significant public support for clean energy jobs, and renewables create more employment opportunities than fossil fuels in many regions of the country.
JD Dillon, chief marketing officer of California-based solar tech manufacturer Tigo Energy (Nasdaq: TYGO), said to Electrek, “The march toward renewable clean energy is both inevitable and the right thing to do. In a perfect world, we would eliminate partisanship from the renewable energy conversation because everyone benefits from a cleaner environment and affordable energy. Unfortunately, none of us live in said perfect world.”
The US clean energy sector may slow down, but it’s hard to stop a train that has already left the station. What consequences this slower-moving train will have for the US and the world remains to be seen.
Read more: Trump says he’ll end the EV mandate. The only problem: there isn’t one.
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The world’s largest EV battery maker is advancing a new type of battery, promising higher energy density. According to a new local report, CATL is investing heavily while ramping up its workforce to bring all-solid-state EV batteries to market.
With trial production reportedly kicking off, we could see CATL launch all-solid-state EV batteries sooner than expected.
According to a new local report from LatePost (via CnEVPost), CATL has entered the trial production phase of 20 Ah samples. The news comes after the EV battery giant added over 1,000 workers to its R&D team this year.
The report claimed that CATL is now focused on the final Sulfide phase and has already commenced trial production of 20 Ah samples.
The company’s solution has an energy density of up to 500 Wh/kg for lithium ternary batteries, 40% more than current batteries. However, the report said charging speed and cycle life are not quite where they need to be.
At 20 Ah, the battery solution is finalized and ready for its next stage, production tech exploration.
CATL is advancing all-solid-state EV batteries
The report says after that it’s mainly manufacturing hurdles, that can be overcome with a bigger workforce.
In April, CATL’s chief scientist, Wu Kai, announced that the company had developed a verification platform for 10 Ah all-solid-state EV battery cells. Wu also said CATL aimed to produce all-solid-state EV batteries in small volumes in 2027, the first time the news was made public.
In September, the company’s chairman, Robin Zeng, said CATL’s research into the new battery tech was “second to none.”
Several companies, including Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, and others, are betting on solid-state EV batteries as the future.
According to data from CnEVPost, CATL is dominating the global EV battery market with a 36.7% share through September 2024.
China’s BYD is second with a 16.4% share of the market. BYD is also planning to launch solid-state batteries. At the September 2024 World New Energy Congress, BYD’s head scientist and engineer, Lian Yubo, said solid-state EV batteries could be widely used in five years.
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