I tried taking a tiny e-bike kayak-camping on a deserted island. Here’s what happened

Published

1 week ago

April 7, 2025

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When I first looked at the JackRabbit XG Pro, my instinct was to take it somewhere wild. Sure, it’s designed to be a compact, fun-sized ride for urban zipping and off-road excursions — but what if I took it even further? What if I used it to tow a kayak… to the beach… and then paddled that kayak with the e-bike strapped to it to a deserted island to go camping?

Sometimes bad ideas turn into great stories. This was one of those.

You may recall that I recently covered the launch of this wild new micro e-bike (that technically isn’t a bicycle due to the lack of pedals, as my commentors will surely point out). The lightweight 35 lb (16.7 kg) ride can hit 20 mph – or 24 mph in off-road mode (32 to 39 km/h), and has 749 watts of power combined with 48 miles (77 km) of range.

So basically, it’s a lot of performance packed into the frame of something that feels and rides like a small-format throttle-controlled e-bike.

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And at half the weight of most off-road e-bikes, this is just about the only one I could find that would be able to tow 100+ lb (45+ kg) of kayak and camping gear in off-road conditions, including uphill through sand, and still be small enough to then carry it on my kayak in open water. Or at least that was the plan, and I hoped it was going to work.

To see this crazy idea play out before your eyes, check out my video of the whole debacle. It’s a bit of an investment at 30 minutes, but word on the street is it’s worth it, and you’re probably running out of options on Netflix anyway.

Towing a kayak with a 37 lb micro e-bike

The JackRabbit XG Pro is often referred to as a “micro e-bike”, but it felt light a might micro e-bike pulling all my gear.

I attached a DIY trailer to my 10 ft sit-inside (shout-out to my dad, since I stole the trailer he built for his larger kayak to get it from the van to the boat ramp) and loaded up with enough gear to keep me comfortable for an overnight island camp.

Then I hit the road — a mix of beachside streets, bike paths, and some surprisingly rough off-road sections.

The bike never flinched. I was legitimately surprised because I had expected this to be a ‘pushing it to its limits’ situation but the JackRabbit XG Pro didn’t really care.

The only time I ever felt like I was pulling a trailer was during slow uphill sections when it would tend to wheelie due to the slow speed, high torque, and the 100 lb kayak pulling back on the seat post.

I kept speeds modest — around 5 to 8 mph (8-13 km/h) felt like the sweet spot before things got bouncy in the kayak filled with camping gear — but the e-bike never seemed to struggle.

Phase two: Packing the JackRabbit onto the kayak

Once I made it to the launch point after several miles of towing my kayak, it was time to test a theory I hadn’t actually tested: Can you fit the JackRabbit onto the bow of a sit-inside kayak and still paddle?

Turns out: kind of.

I broke the bike down as small as I could — batteries out, front wheel off, handlebars turned sideways — and lashed it to the bow. I had added a few tie down points to my kayak the night before to make this lashing process easier, and those definitely helped.

The trailer, wheel, and loose gear filled the rest of the space, and I wedged myself in around it all. Barely. I had to offload gear just to fit my legs in. After moving my tent, sleeping pad and a few other bits of gear to the stern to make more leg room, I finally managed to squeeze in. A quick drag down the waterline reminded me just how heavy the kayak had become, but there wasn’t any turning back now. It was either sink or swim. Or, well, hopefully neither.

Paddling into the unknown

Despite being comically overloaded, the kayak floated (barely), and I pushed off toward an uninhabited barrier island I’d scouted via satellite maps.

The paddle was a bit stressful at first until I was pretty sure the three inches (7.5 cm) of freeboard I had left was enough to keep me from capsizing. The wake thrown off from passing jet skis and pontoon boats made things exciting in all the wrong ways.

I paddled around for a while until I finally found the cut in the mangrove trees I had spotted via blurry satellite map, though it took me several false alarms as I discovered others so small they didn’t show up on the pixelated images.

When I finally found the right cut in the mangroves and slid into a coarse, natural sand ramp, the feeling was somewhere between “I can’t believe that worked” and “Oh no, now I have to unpack it all.”

Island life, e-bike style

I didn’t end up unpacking the bike at camp. It had taken a lot of effort to get it loaded and I could see the clearing I had spotted on the satellite images was only a short walk through the trees, so I stashed the boat and bike in the mangroves to keep them out of sight from the water and humped my gear the rest of the way.

I found the clearing, set up my tent, and cooked dinner over a twig-burning stove under the creeping suspicion that the Florida Skunk Ape was going to join me at any moment.

The moon was just a sliver that night, but I had a really cool 44-foot (13 meter) solar-powered string light that Biolite sent me and so I set that up for a little extra light as the sun went down. This area of Florida is under a burn ban right now, meaning open fires due to recent drought conditions leading to extra dry brush. I checked with the Department of Fish and Wildlife and confirmed I could use a camping stove, so between that small fire and the string light, I could see my way around my small camp at night. The two were just enough to illuminate all the rats that came out at dusk, who apparently had taken over the island.

I thought I had cleaned my mess kit well after dinner, but throughout the night I was listening to and watching through my tent mesh all of the rats rummaging through it and my bag.

While I had been looking forward to my morning coffee and oatmeal, that pretty much made the decision right there that I’d have to skip it and go for the granola bar I had safely tucked away with me in my tent.

The rats aren’t dangerous by themselves but they do carry diseases and so I wasn’t going to be using that cooking gear until I had a chance to clean it thoroughly.

The ride back: Just as wild

Packing everything back up was just as tight the second time. I loaded everything back into kayak and after one last look at the beautiful sunrise, I pushed off into the open water of the Gulf of Mexico.

I had considered a longer paddle that would cut down the road segment of my ride, but once I got out in the deeper water and the waves picked up, I quickly called an audible and realized I shouldn’t mind the extra miles on the road since drowning in asphalt is a lot less likely.

I beelined it for the coast and have never been happier to hear the crunch of sand under my bow as I beached the kayak for the last time of the trip.

Back on the sand, I hopped out and strapped the kayak to the trailer, reloaded the bike, and cruised back down the highway and into the nearest beach town — tired, sore, a little sunburned, but incredibly satisfied.

The JackRabbit XG Pro isn’t meant for towing a kayak to a beach and then sailing away with it. But that’s what makes this microbike such a fun tool. It’s small, but mighty. Weirdly capable. Surprisingly rugged.

It’s true that JackRabbit’s tiny e-bikes are a favorite among boaters for taking up such little room on a boat, though I think this might be the smallest vessel anyone has ever brought one on. They’re also popular in the light airplane and RV community for the same reason – e-bike-sized wheels for riding around when you get to your destination.

Would I recommend repeating this trip? Only if you enjoy problem-solving on the fly, questionable decision-making, and the occasional kayak-side existential crisis. But yes — it was absolutely worth it.

And considering this is about the worst case scenario for portability and power in a small e-bike, most people should find the JackRabbit XG Pro more than capable of a daily commute or a fun off-road adventure.

What do you think? Would you ever want to try a trip like this? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comment section below. And before you go, check out my video review of the JackRabbit XG Pro below, which stayed (mostly) on dry land. Or check out my full kayak towing/paddling adventure video here.

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Environment

Oil giant BP is seen as a prime takeover target. Is a blockbuster mega-merger in the cards?

Published

2 hours ago

April 15, 2025

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Oil giant BP is seen as a prime takeover target. Is a blockbuster mega-merger in the cards?

BP logo is seen at a gas station in this illustration photo taken in Poland on March 15, 2025.

Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Oil giant BP has been thrust into the spotlight as a prime takeover candidate — but energy analysts question whether any of the likeliest suitors will rise to the occasion.

Britain’s beleaguered energy giant, which holds its annual general meeting on Thursday, has recently sought to resolve something of an identity crisis by launching a fundamental reset.

Seeking to rebuild investor confidence, BP in February pledged to slash renewable spending and boost annual expenditure on its core business of oil and gas. CEO Murray Auchincloss has said that the pivot is starting to attract “significant interest” in the firm’s non-core assets.

BP’s green strategy U-turn follows a protracted period of underperformance relative to its industry peers, with its depressed share price reigniting speculation of a prospective tie-up with domestic rival Shell. U.S. oil giants Exxon Mobil and Chevron have also been touted as possible suitors for the £54.75 billion ($71.61 billion) oil major.

Shell declined to comment on the speculation. Spokespersons for BP, Exxon and Chevron did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by CNBC.

“Certainly, BP is a potential takeover target — no doubt about that,” Maurizio Carulli, energy and materials analyst at Quilter Cheviot, told CNBC by video call.

“I would conceptualize the question of ‘will Shell bid for BP’ in the more general consolidation that it is happening in the resources sector, both oil but also mining — particularly in the past year a lot of companies thought that to buy was better than to build,” he added.

A Shell logo in Austin, Texas.

Brandon Bell | Getty Images News | Getty Images

In the energy sector, for example, Exxon Mobil completed its $60 billion purchase of Pioneer Natural Resources in May last year, while Chevron still seeks to acquire Hess for $53 billion. The latter agreement remains shrouded in legal uncertainty, however, with an arbitration hearing scheduled for next month.

In the mining space, market speculation kicked into overdrive at the start of the year following reports of a potential tie-up between industry giants Rio Tinto and Glencore. Both companies declined to comment at the time.

Never say never, right? I think even Exxon-Chevron in the depth of the pandemic held talks so I think that would have been even wilder to say.

Allen Good

Director of equity research at Morningstar

Quilter Cheviot’s Carulli named Chevron as a potential suitor for BP, particularly if the U.S. energy giant’s pursuit of Hess falls through.

Speculation about a potential merger between Shell and BP, meanwhile, is far from new. Carulli said that while the rumors have some merit, a prospective deal would likely trigger antitrust concerns.

Perhaps more importantly, Carulli added that a move to acquire BP would conflict with Shell’s steadfast commitment to capital discipline under CEO Wael Sawan.

‘An existential crisis’

“Never say never, right? I think even Exxon-Chevron in the depth of the pandemic held talks so I think that would have been even wilder to say,” Allen Good, director of equity research at Morningstar, told CNBC by telephone.

“I wouldn’t take anything off on the table. You know, oil and gas is facing an existential crisis. Now, views differ on how soon that crisis will come to head. I think we’re still decades away,” Good said.

For Shell, Morningstar’s Good said that any pursuit of BP would likely be an attempt to merge the two British peers, as opposed to an outright acquisition — although he said he doesn’t expect such a prospect to materialize in the near term.

The sun sets behind burning gas flares at the Dora (Daura) Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on December 22, 2024.

Ahmad Al-rubaye | Afp | Getty Images

Asked about the likelihood of Chevron seeking to purchase BP if a deal to acquire Hess collapses, Morningstar’s Good said he couldn’t rule it out.

“BP certainly doesn’t have the growth prospects that Hess does, but you could get a situation where, again, like I said with Shell, you’d have Chevron acquiring BP, stripping out a lot of costs, certainly the headquarters would no longer be in London … but it doesn’t address the growth concerns ex-Permian for Chevron. So, in that case, I would be a little skeptical,” Good said.

“The issues these companies are facing are to please shareholders, and the two ways to do that really are to reduce costs and return cash to shareholders. So if you can continue to lean into that model somehow, then that’s the probably the way to do it,” he added.

What next for BP?

Michele Della Vigna, head of EMEA natural resources research at Goldman Sachs, described BP’s recent strategic reset as “very wise” and “thoughtful,” but acknowledged that it may not have gone far enough for an activist investor.

U.S. hedge fund Elliott Management has reportedly built a near 5% stake to become one of BP’s largest shareholders. Activist investor Follow This, meanwhile, recently pushed for investors to vote against Helge Lund’s reappointment as chair at BP’s upcoming shareholder meeting in protest over the firm’s recent strategy U-turn. BP has since said that Lund will step down, likely in 2026, kickstarting a succession process.

“I think there are three major optionalities in BP’s portfolio that any activist investor would love to see monetized. The first one is not all in BP’s hands, it’s the monetization of the Rosneft stake,” Della Vigna told CNBC over a video call.

BP announced it was abandoning its 19.75% shareholding in Russian state-owned oil company Rosneft shortly after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022. It had marked a costly and abrupt end to more than three decades of activity in the country.

CEO of BP Murray Auchincloss speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas, on March 19, 2024.

Mark Felix | AFP | Getty Images

A second optionality for BP, Della Vigna said, is the firm’s marketing and convenience business.

“I mean, within BP, a company that trades on three times EBITDA, there’s a division that can trade at 10 times EBITDA, right? Amazing. You can make the same point for a lot of the other Big Oils,” Della Vigna said.

EBITDA is a standard metric that refers to a firm’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization.

“The third option is BP is a U.S.- centered energy company — and it’s clear, right? BP is the most U.S.- exposed of all the majors, more than Exxon and Chevron,” Della Vigna said, noting that 40% of BP’s cash flow comes from the U.S.

“So, being listed in the U.K., when the U.K. gets you the biggest discount of any other region in Big Oil, doesn’t feel right. I think some form of relocation or transatlantic merger may be worth considering,” he added.

Environment

Idaho Power wants to cut solar pay rate to under 1¢ per kWh and charge 8¢ per kWh for electricity

Published

7 hours ago

April 15, 2025

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Idaho Power wants to cut solar pay rate to under 1¢ per kWh and charge 8¢ per kWh for electricity

Idaho solar — Photo by Gustavo Fring on Pexels.com

Utility Idaho Power has asked the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to drastically slash the rates it pays rooftop solar customers for excess energy. This move could severely impact solar adoption in Idaho just as electricity rates are climbing.

The utility wants to drop the Export Credit Rates (ECRs) – the amount rooftop solar owners get credited for feeding power back to the grid – by 60%, from the current 6.18 cents per kilowatt-hour to just 2.46 cents. That’s a massive 72% plunge from the previous rate of 8.8 cents per kilowatt-hour, which had stood for over a decade.

If the PUC approves the proposal next Month, the new lower rates will kick in on June 1, right before peak solar-producing months. This shift is part of Idaho Power’s controversial “Net Billing” program approved in December 2023, despite public backlash. Under this new system, ECRs would change every year, making it nearly impossible for residents to calculate the financial returns of their rooftop solar investments – a major deterrent to adopting solar.

The proposed rates would vary seasonally. From October through May, when electricity demand drops, Idaho Power wants to cut solar payments even further by a staggering 80%, paying less than 1 cent per kilowatt-hour. Meanwhile, it plans to charge non-solar customers at least 8 cents per kilowatt-hour for the same electricity, padding its own profits.

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Idaho Power is basing these rate cuts on an internal “Value of Distributed Energy Resources Study” from 2022. However, environmental groups hired independent analysts who argue that Idaho Power’s data selectively undervalues solar power.

“How can our state regulators just let this happen? The PUC is supposed to double-check the utility’s math to make sure Idaho ratepayers aren’t being taken advantage of,” said Lisa Young, director of the Idaho Sierra Club. “Distributed solar is worth more than the retail electricity rate, not less. The PUC needs to stop turning its cheek on corrupted math and letting this monopoly utility pad its pockets even more.”

Idaho Power customers already faced unpopular hikes to their monthly fixed charges from January 2025, when their flat monthly fees rose from $5 to $15. These fixed charges hit low-income residents hardest and discourage energy conservation and rooftop solar.

“People in Idaho go solar because it lowers their power bills, gives them energy freedom and security, and helps the environment,” said Alex McKinley, owner of the local small business Empowered Solar. “Idaho Power is trying to take that opportunity away from people by skewing these rooftop solar rates in its favor. It’s not right.”

Members of the public can submit public comments at puc.idaho.gov/Form/CaseComment and reference Case #IPC-E-25-15.

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Environment

Global EV sales jump 40% in March despite tariff turmoil

Published

8 hours ago

April 14, 2025

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Global EV sales jump 40% in March despite tariff turmoil

Global EV sales surged to 1.7 million units in March, hitting 4.1 million for Q1 2025 as the EV market continues its robust growth, according to new data from EV research house Rho Motion. Year-over-year sales jumped 29% and marked an impressive 40% month-over-month leap from February.

Europe saw a solid 22% growth in EV sales year-to-date, driven primarily by battery-electric vehicles (BEVs), which climbed 27%. Germany’s BEV market rose 37%, Italy surged by 64%, and the UK hit a milestone with over 100,000 EVs sold in March alone, a first-time record boosted by new vehicle registrations. France’s EV sales dropped 18%, severely impacted by reduced government subsidies, with BEVs down 5% and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) falling sharply by 47%.

In North America, EV sales increased by 16% in Q1 2025. The market’s outlook remains unclear due to Donald Trump’s recent imposition of substantial tariffs. February’s 25% tariff on auto imports from Canada and Mexico and a broader tariff in March affecting all auto imports are expected to hike consumer prices. With approximately 40% of US EV sales being imported from countries like Japan, Korea, and Mexico, the impact on affordability and market dynamics is likely significant.

China, still the global leader in EV adoption, saw EV sales grow 36% year-over-year in Q1, approaching 1 million units in March alone – a milestone previously reached in August 2024. The US-China tariff crisis will have a minimal impact on China due to the low volume of cross-border EV sales. However, Tesla’s Model X and Model S are exported from the US to China, and the prices for these could nearly double due to tariffs.

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Rho Motion data manager Charles Lester said, “This quarter, while turbulent, has seen a strong rate of growth globally for the EV market. Some countries, such as the UK, had a record-breaking March as drivers continue to go electric.

Meanwhile, in North America, forecasts are struggling to keep up with the rate of policy announcements under the current White House administration. What is sure is that the electric vehicle market is already struggling to compete with ICE on cost, so reductions in subsidies and hefty tariffs for a very international supply chain are guaranteed to have a cooling effect on the industry.”

EV sales in Q1 2025 vs Q1 2024, YTD percentage:

Global: 4.1 million, +29%
China: 2.4 million, +36%
Europe: 0.9 million, +22%
North America: 0.5 million, +16%
Rest of World: 0.3 million, +27%

The bottom line: EV sales are up month-over-month, quarter-over-quarter, and year-over-year.

If you live in an area that has frequent natural disaster events, and are interested in making your home more resilient to power outages, consider going solar and adding a battery storage system. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

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