Ladies and gentlemen, hello.
I will not do a very long demo because there is not much room.
Here is a device that is modifying
the rules of the game of urban traffic.
It’s a small vehicle with which I came today,
to present it to you,
but also because it’s my main way of moving.
I live fourteen kilometers from here so I came with today.
I imagine that, for your part, you came with more traditional means –
maybe by public transport, by car, by taxi, whatever –
displacement means in any case that involve certain constraints
as my predecessors have just announced:
waste time in traffic jams
or to wait for an RER that does not arrive
because of a suspicious package, for example, in a station,
or spend time glued to each other
in a metro train full of people,
situations not always very pleasant.
I propose to free you from all these problems on a daily basis
that add stress and fatigue every day, or very often,
by this means of displacement.
So, how does it work?
We must dare to climb on it.
It’s true that at first, it can be scary.
And you have to fall forward and trust the machine.
She will catch you, which will move you forward.
It’s a story of center of gravity:
putting your weight on the front of the machine, it accelerates forward,
putting your weight on the back, it slows down or even recedes
if you stay on your heels.
Here.
There are many ways to use this way of moving.
Some just use it to have fun.
There are those who go to the skate park
to do small jumps, freestyle,
to make several technical figures,
to ride on one foot, go backwards,
even make acrobatic figures.
Some are very strong, they manage to roll on their hands.
Then there are those who will use it in a more traditional way,
to do simple walks, visit the country, hunt Pokémons,
do whatever you want.
Then there are those who will use it for a more extreme purpose,
drive the crate in the forest, go off-road,
which is closer to my profile.
If you look at my wheel, it is not very clean.
I like to cross in the mud, the bottom of the box.
Here it is a Finn who makes the wheel in the snow.
Here. So a whole lot of ways to have fun with the electric wheel.
I consider that in addition to being
a playful alternative to means of displacement,
it’s a real way of moving
which will make it possible, really, real distances.
One kilowatt hour costs 15 cents of electricity
among the different suppliers, knowing that with 1 kW-h,
you can travel up to 80 km on this kind of device –
80 km real: this is not bogus manufacturer data.
I am a factor.
I am not a commercial. I will not sell you a product.
I can sell you stamps if you want, (laughs)
but not an electric wheel.
I came here passionately, to share this passion
and make you want to think
to a future means of displacement
in addition to or in replacement of your current means of travel.
So I said, 15 cents, 80 miles.
If we compare to the car, for the same distance,
it will cost you 50 times more fuel,
not to mention insurance, maintenance, repairs,
tolls, parking meters, tickets, if any,
everything that goes with the use of a car,
not to mention that the heat engines
are much more polluting and make noise.
This kind of device does not have these constraints.
You do not need to park, to have insurance,
or do a lot of maintenance.
This one, I just exceeded the 10,000 km mark
on the counter of this wheel,
10,000 km and I have never changed any room
apart from the tire that deserves to be changed because it is a bit smooth.
But otherwise, other than that, it’s almost free to use,
except the price of the purchase.
I did not talk about the purchase price.
These devices can range from 600 to 3,000 euros.
That’s why if you think of it as a way to have fun,
it’s a bit expensive, the toy.
That’s why I consider it a real means of travel.
It’s really the ideal way of moving
to do everything you have to do,
be it go shopping at the supermarket,
go to an appointment, see friends, family in the area,
or go to work, for example.
I have been going to work daily with my wheel for two years now.
Before, I went there by bike.
The wheel takes up less space at home.
It’s less cumbersome, easier to transport on the stairs.
It weighs a little heavy but it’s less annoying to wear a bike.
And then, I have my little morning slide session before going to work,
it’s very pleasant, a pleasure to glide,
in this large playground in the Paris region.
In the morning, at the time I leave, there is little traffic,
it is therefore a treat to practice this means of displacement.
So, I arrive at the office much cooler.
Before, when I went there by bike, I arrived by sweating
because I tend to leave late.
The electric wheel really changed everything.
I can put it to recharge under my working position
while I work,
which allows me to pay the employer in my place, impeccable.
That’s it, it’s really convenient to go on vacation too.
It takes up little space in a car
or under the seat in the train.
Then, arrived at destination, you leave the station, you are free.
You can visit cities or regions anywhere in France or Europe,
much faster, with much more freedom.
I made a trip – you have the pictures behind.
I left Amsterdam and drove in the Netherlands, Belgium, France,
for 1,600 km in a row in 18 days.
I recharged on 39 electrical outlets that I found as and when
on my way: in the restaurants where I was going to eat,
in public spaces, the building halls,
EDF cupboards, railway stations, everywhere.
It had become a little game to sniff the stream
wherever I could find it,
a life-size treasure hunt with electricity,
allowing me to continue my adventure.
I named this adventure “I’ll go home,”
a nod to Antoine de Maximy’s show on France 5.
I tried to sleep with people,
which was not always obvious.
I spent a few nights under the stars beside my electrical outlet.
It was the most important, the number one rule:
have power to continue.
I had made it a rule not to go to the hotel,
nor to use other means of displacement
because it would have removed charm to the adventure.
I wanted to do something unique, it was a challenge.
So, I managed to reach this goal
thanks to people who welcomed me on the road,
because I wrote a blog as and when,
to tell all my adventures.
People contacted me via the blog, social networks or other,
to say to me: “You pass near my home, if you want, come sleep,”
for lunch also noon or whatever,
in any case, to recharge my vehicle.
This trip has proven
that it is a real means of displacement,
and also, in a way, a social tool that allows you to meet people.
When you ride on it, automatically,
there are everywhere in the street, parks, lots of people
who will, out of curiosity, come to you to take an interest in your machine.
“It’s great your thing, what’s it like? Where can I buy? How many ?
Can you make me try? “
This easily creates a contact with the outside world,
with people you did not necessarily talk to
if you had been an ordinary pedestrian.
I met people in the wheeler community,
as we are called:
the wheelers of Paris, the wheelers from all over France.
We organized walks regularly, and still today.
In the same way that there are roller blading,
there are now the rando wheelers, walks of tens of kilometers
during which we stop in bars
to reload the gear that needs it most.
It is also an excuse to go for a drink with friends, eventually.
There you see pictures with more than a hundred people.
These are events organized from time to time in the year.
The next will be at the end of April with more than 250 people,
which proves that this is really a way
which is developing strongly lately.
It is therefore a social object in addition to being a means of
a playful alternative to the means of displacement.
I made another trip more recently,
on the African continent.
It may seem odd to leave with that in Africa.
We had a small humanitarian project with two friends.
Before leaving, we had created a kitty on the internet.
We reached almost 3,000 euros, more than we had imagined,
and thanks to this money, we have, during our trip to Senegal,
brought things to people, especially talibé children
who are orphans living from begging
and who have been entrusted to someone who takes charge of their education.
We were helping these people
to bring them everything they needed:
mattresses, notebooks, pens, big bags of 50 kg of rice,
sugar, milk powder …
We repeated these actions several times throughout our journey.
They were very happy to see us arrive.
In addition, on this kind of small device, it has created a lot of surprises.
We crossed the country in remote places
where people did not necessarily have the habit of seeing tourists.
Seeing three whites come home surprised them a little,
so in addition, on this kind of device, I let you imagine!
We did a lot of great matches everywhere we stopped.
It was like a kind of magnet.
The whole village gathered around us out of curiosity,
to see what we were doing here with that.
So, we really had no trouble finding places to sleep,
to eat, to recharge our vehicles.
The people were delighted to welcome us to their home.
Despite the omnipresent poverty in the country,
they were always very welcoming.
They offered to share the meal with them,
we offered a small room to spend the night, an electrical outlet,
all we needed for our happiness.
So, a beautiful adventure …
that you can follow, if you’re interested, through a small web series,
a web series that will be broadcast on YouTube
in the form of several episodes, by the end of spring probably.
There are many pictures.
There you have some
where we are seen driving on these roads in red earth.
We had been asked a lot before:
“How are you going to roll in the sand there?
How are you going to find power? “
I also asked myself these questions, having never been to Senegal.
Finally, we did not have any problems.
The roads are rather in good condition, the traffic sometimes a little dangerous,
but we had these roads where the carts usually roll,
which were very nice to walk around.
Regarding the current, we did not have any problems either.
The electrical installations were sometimes a bit scary.
The standards are not the same as in Europe.
But, the current was at the rendezvous, so we could move across the country.
So, for this adventure quite out of the ordinary.
I hope that made you want
to convert to this new mode of travel,
without necessarily going to extremes while crossing entire countries.
But, for your daily commutes in an urban environment,
I think it’s a really great way to get around
who will give you a lot of fun, make you meet people,
save you money and time.
That’s why I came today to share this passion.
A little anecdote since I have more time.
I drove in the vineyards of Nantes last year with my wheel,
without bike paths or sidewalks.
I was in the countryside,
and I drove without a helmet – which I have the right to.
The gendarmes arrested me for this reason.
They wanted to verbalize me.
I told them, “No, the helmet is not mandatory.
Like on a bike, it is advised effectively.
By cons, I have an engine but, I’m considered a pedestrian,
a super-pedestrian somehow.
You can verbalise me
because I’m on the road and I have nothing to do there.
So, I received a ticket of 4 €:
“Illegal pedestrian”.
(Laughter)
I helped them a little because they had trouble finding the pattern.
All that to say that the rules of the game are changing.
Even the police are not yet aware of it.
The rules of the game are changing and I hope I’ll meet you soon
on this great playground that is the Paris region,
why not, you too on this kind of small vehicle.
Thank you for your attention.
(Applause)
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