After Day 1 of EVworld, Segway NZ took the opportunity to double the size of our stand overnight. By the time the public began to pour into the venue on the morning of Saturday 11 August our stand was twice as big and colourful as the day before. Which was just was well because the event was packed with people on Day 2.
Outside, the Low Powered Vehicle test track had queues of people lined up on this warm and sunny winter day. The public were invited to ride the Segway KickScooter (with Extra Battery pack) around the e-Bike course, and to ride the Segway miniLITE, miniPRO and miniPLUS both around the course and also in another nearby area.
This safe riding area gave the public a great opportunity to compare the differences and advantages between an e-Bike, a power-assisted KickScooter and a self-balancing personal transporter.
A lot of people had their first-ever 'moment of realisation' about the real-life benefits of using a KickScooter or mini-Series for getting out and about, running errands, and commuting. Sometimes you just have to try something before you
"get it."
Based on the queues of people we had waiting for a chance to ride the Segway KickScooter and Segway mini-Series, we think hundreds of people went away convinced of the benefits of these very practical new 'last mile' solutions. Both offer safe, lightweight mobility options that are easy to carry and easy to store (including on your car's back seat or in the boot (trunk).
One thing that surprised us was just how many younger people and how many older people were really attracted to using our Segway products (whereas e-Bikes seemed to attract middle-aged riders).
Older people remarked to us how they really liked the idea of how they could use a KickScooter on the relative safety of a footpath, or on a shared path. Another interesting comment (made by an elderly woman who currently rides an e-Bike) was the observation how the wide open, step-on/step-off design of the KickScooter and mini-Series were devoid of peddles, cables and hard metal surfaces found on e-bikes that can bruise the thin skin of an older person when they are cycling. We'd never thought of that benefit ourselves.
Update on 20 August 2018: According to the show organisers, more than 4,400 people attended EVworld 2018. This is about double the number who attended the inaugural show last year. The next event is EVworld South, in Christchurch 23-24 November 2018.
