TESTIMONIALS

Despite the rising cost of gas, one West Knox County man couldn't get enough of the roads this Memorial Day Weekend. He's enjoying a new plugged-in technology that could help motorists by-pass the pump.

"Everyone who's seen it wants to know where I got it," Vectrix Zero Emission Vehicle owner Barry Omasta said.

Omasta is proud of his new wheels.

"It's in between a motorcycle and a motorscooter," Omasta said. "You can't call it a motorcycle. It doesn't have a gas tank."

He got a pair of 2007 Vectrix Zero Emission Vehicles this weekend. They were delivered by the nearest dealership, which is in Kentucky.

"Electric has so much power, and the price of fuel has been going up, and I thought the best thing would be to get an all-electric vehicle," Omasta said.

But Omasta admits there are drawbacks to the new technology.

"The range is 65 miles, you know, it's not a touring bike."

The West Knox County engineer says the bike's range is determined by the driver's speed. The faster the rider goes, the shorter the range.

The maxi-scooter takes about 3 hours to recharge but can plug in anywhere. It can go about 62 miles per hour.

Omasta says his favorite part is freedom from the high price of fuel.

"Right now I can drive back and forth without having to stop at a gas station and getting upset everytime I see the prices."

The price tag for a Vectrix is more than $8,000, which has Omasta's friends and co-workers a little skeptical about his electric purchase.

"They all thought I was crazy," Omasta said. "They also said I was crazy when I bought a hybrid car."

The first Vectrix dealership opened up in Rhode Island last summer. Since then, 13 others have opened up nationwide.

Omasta's dealership in Kentucky said he is the first Vectrix owner in Tennessee.

Seven years into her yoga practice, Debbie Ketter enrolled in a monthlong teacher training program at Kripalu Center in Stockbridge, Massachussetts. There, the mother of six from Easton, Pennsylvania, found her connection with nature reawakened. On returning home, she made life-altering choices, such as getting certified so she could teach yoga to cancer patients and high school students. She also descided to be more environmentally conscious. When she joined her husband at a test-drive event for the Vectrix, an all electric zero-emission vehicle (ZEV), she decided to trade in her gas-guzzling SUV for this smaller, more eco-friendly alternative.

"With our kids going to college and gas prices inching up to four dollars per gallon, it seemed a smart choice for the environment and our budget, " she says, "Plus, it was fun to drive." Last October, Ketter became the first woman in the United States to buy a Vectrix — a low-maintenance maxiscooter that reaches a speed of 62 mph. Vectrix has no emissions and requires no gas-it's nickel-metal hydride battery plugs into a regular 110/220V outlet and charges in two to three hours. She uses it for daily commutes to Easton Yoga and to a high school where she teaches a mix of Kripalu, DansKinetics, and Svaroopa-style yoga classes. Ketter says her choice to drive a Vectrix is a reflection of her values. "I'm doing my best to find ways to tread more lightly."

Four plug-in Vectrix scooters re being road tested starting as the New York Police Department tries to become more environmentally friendly and reduce gasoline use in its massive motor fleet.

The nation's largest police department already uses a handful of hybrid cars and so-called flex-fuel vehicles, which can run on both gasoline and ethanol.

"Police effectiveness comes first, but where we can combine environmentally friendly vehicles without compromising the mission, we do," Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said.

The NYPD says officers use the current fleet of regular-fuel scooters to patrol city parks, police street demonstrations or direct traffic.

The Vectrix has a top speed of more than 60 mph and is recharged by plugging it in a standard outlet for two hours. Its higher purchase price compared to other scooters would be quickly offset by the fuel savings, the department said.

Detective Derek Siconolfi, who will train riders, suggested the quiet engines also offer a side benefit: the element of surprise. "You could easily sneak up on somebody if they don't expect it," he said.

Philip Knatchbull is CEO of Knatchbull Communications, a private equity fund which has investments in Media and Technology companies in the UK and across Europe. Living and working in Central London he is also a big supporter of the children's and young people's cancer charity — CLIC Sargent. At a recent fund raising event at Windsor Race Course, an unusual item was being bid for on the auction list — "A high performance, electric motorbike" was described and Philip found himself bidding for the Vectrix.

"The Vectrix was rather a surprise purchase for me as I'm not particularly environmentally focussed, however that surprise soon turned to enthusiasm as the Vectrix has turned out to be a great machine." "I've been a Vespa commuter for some time, but since the Vectrix arrived, my Vespa is redundantly parked in the garage. I've already done over 300 miles on my Vectrix and I love the whole experience."

Philips' commute is only around five miles, but his day takes him to many meetings around central London for which the Vectrix is ideal. 'Finding a place in a bike park in Kensington & Chelsea at this time of year is impossible, so being able to park on a meter or pay & display is perfect. I also use my local NCP where I can charge the bike, and regularly park alongside another Vectrix left each day by its traffic beating, cost saving owner.'

Philip has great fun as he drives through central London, as he pulls up at the lights, the multitudes of couriers and commutersastride their foul smelling petrol bikes, scowl at him as if to say — you won't be going far on that, but as the lights change, he opens the throttle and at the next set of lights, they catch up and the questions start — how far does that go?.......

One day forgetting he was on an electric bike Philip found himself heading up the M40 on his way to a meeting in Beaconsfield, on arrival he realised that he would definitely need to charge the Vectrix in order to make it home. The building newly built offered various external power points which disappointingly for Philip had not yet been wired in. The kindly janitor then led Philip and his Vectrix to a glass atrium housing a forbidding illuminated statue of the late great Sir Lew Grade, unplugging Sir Grade, Philip gladly plugged in his Vectrix to charge up for the journey home, an intrigued crowd gathered to witness the event. Sir Lew had never had so many admirers.......

When asked, "What's the best part of owning a Vectrix"? Philip's reply was simple and direct — "Not putting in any petrol!"

EKU POLICE ADD ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE TO EMERGENCY FLEET RICHMOND, Ky. - Eastern Kentucky University's commitment to energy efficiency and environmental preservation extends to the campus police department. EKU Police now has a "green" tool to help keep the campus safe - the first electric motorcycle for any police department in Kentucky, according to Chief Mark Merriman. The Vectrix motorcycle, if driven the same amount as a cruiser, would save the University almost $10,000 (its approximate cost) annually if gas averaged $3. EKU's police cruisers use an average of 2,521 gallons of fuel annually and require $2,300 in maintenance, not counting unforeseeable repairs, Merriman noted. "It is an ideal fit for our college police force," Merriman said, "because it will allow us to continue our community-oriented approach to policing that facilitates more interaction with the student body, faculty and staff. It allows us to patrol areas not accessible to traditional police vehicles, much like our bicycle patrol." During test drives of the Vectrix around campus in August, "members of our community were quick to approach the officer to discuss the new patrol vehicle, which resulted in immediate interaction." The motorcycle, manufactured by Vectrix California, can go from 0 to 50 mph in 6.8 seconds and carry two passengers.