Thriftstore Hacker's E-Trike Trip
I have always wanted to go on a long bike trip. On my YouTube channel i build bikes and other projects that i enjoy. While thinking about how badly i could use the fun and freedom of a long bike ride i decided to turn to my viewers, Gofundme, and the internet for some assistance.
I have recently built an electric tricycle from old wheelchair parts and bits from online stores.
Link to trike build on Instructables
Trike videos on my YouTube channel
After testing the trike in vairous weather conditions and terrain the build quality has held up very well. Now that i am sure that the vehicle i made could survive a long trip i want to take it on a grand tour of the state of California. I want to ride the lesser traveled roads, visit the small towns, learn local history, and bring it to all my viewers on YouTube. The grand plan is to start in the north working my way all the way down to San Diego. Since there is a lot of land to cover i would like help planning the journey from experienced cyclers in California and have my YouTube viewers vote on what town i go to next when there is a possible fork in the road.
The money i raise will go to the following.
-Building my biggest project yet! A bicycle trailer that i can fold out to a bed. This way if i need to sleep out in the middle of nowhere CA i have a roof. (about 60% complete)
-Upgrading the batteries on my trike. The used batteries i am currently using are over 10 years old. I would like to go to a lighter battery technology so i can carry more power and have a longer range.
-Off grid charging.
Plugging in the trike in some parts of California may be hard to do. I may need to charge up on the side of the road. I will need to purchase some roll up solar panels or some sort of power generation equipment. I will need to charge up at least once a day to get the range i need.
-Pay for admission to local museums and attractions. This will allow me to research the history of towns, check out cool roadside attractions and points of interest.
-Buy extra trike parts and supplies. Supplies like bike tubes, tires, brake pads, bearings, chains, motors, motor brushes, and anything i think will need replacing going over a thousand miles.
-Buy food. I want to sample local small town restaurants. This will help me pay to review local eateries in the small towns i visit.
-Pay for lodging. I don't plan on sleeping in a hotel most nights. I will be using every campground, farmers field (with permission), and any other place i can sleep for the night. A hot shower is always nice but i really want to sleep under the stars as much as possible.
-Buy better video equipment. Most of the videos i do are shot on old cellphones. I would like to take a few GoPros with camera mounts, batteries, etc. Vastly improving my video quality on my YouTube channel for years to come. If possible i want to buy a drone for neat wide angle video shots and moving shots.
-Pay for video editing services. Since i will be on the road and shooting video every day i would like to hire one or two people to do daily edits of my videos. This will help take some of the workload off of me and give the viewers high quality videos.
-Pay for gifts for donors. I want to do something nice for the people who help me out. Currently i am looking at fun swag to give to my donors and also looking at making some cool swag to give to people i meet on the road.
Advertisement Opportunities and Giveaways.
Advertisement or whatever you want!
If you donate at an advertisement level i will carry a sign around with me saying whatever you want (within reason). So if you want to pay me to carry a sign saying "Todd is a douche" or "I bought this sign!" something funny i will be up for that. If it is super funny i will plug you sign in videos! Just keep your ads somewhat tasteful.
Donors of $5000 or more will get a swag bag of cool technologies i use on the trip. Should be a good bag of toys. You will also get a 2ft by 2ft (or 1ft x 4ft) advertisement panel for your company, cause, or whatever message you want for at least 60 days of the trip. I will rotate the panels until i do everyone's advertising and then i will continue to rotate them so everyone has equal ad time. If you donate a huge amount of money and are not the highest donor i will still do something a little more for you.
Everyone who donates $2500-$4999 will get a swag bag of neat stuff from my journey and other bike technologies. You will also get a 2ft by 2ft (or 1ft x 4ft) panel for your company, cause, or whatever message you want for a minimum of 30 days of the trip.
Everyone who donates $500-$2499
will get get a 1ft by 1ft (or 6in x 2ft) panel for your company, cause, or whatever message you want for a minimum of 14 days of the trip.
$100-$499 donors will get a T-shirt, stickers, or keychains. Something to show my appreciation. You will also get a 6in x 6in sign for a minimum of 7 days of the trip.
Your donation means a lot.
With your support and funding you are doing more than just sending some guy to make a video. You are giving me the freedom and financial security to explore the history and beauty of my home state. This is something i would not be able to do without support. This project could be a well needed positive change in my life. If the funding goal is made i want everyone who is able to come ride with me, visit me on the road, and let me thank you personally.
