People always wanted faster horses
this post was submitted on 26 Feb 2026
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micromobility - Bikes, scooters, boards: Whatever floats your goat, this is micromobility
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"Transportation using lightweight vehicles such as bicycles or scooters, especially electric ones that may be borrowed as part of a self-service rental program in which people rent vehicles for short-term use within a town or city.
micromobility is seen as a potential solution to moving people more efficiently around cities"
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Hah, joke's on them. I've got a regular horse. Very green (actually brown), runs on grass (both literally and figuratively).
I want to get two of them and have them haul my pompous ass around in a chariot.
Why not 4? or 6?
In this economy?
Giddy-Up Buttercup?
...okay, that's pretty f*ckin' rad...
They need to call this a Battle Cat instead of an electric horse.
Can't wait to be hunted by billionaires riding these fucking things in our dystopian future...
They'll just mount a minigun on it and hunt from their bunker living room using an OceanGate© controller
Behold a pale horse...
My first reaction: LOL. LMAO, even.
My second reaction: ... Wait, this could actually be really useful if it's actually functional and affordable though.
I'm not holding my breath, but like, in theory this could actually be really good?
but like, in theory this could actually be really good?
Yeah ... in theory, this could be an electric ATV capable of handling extremely rough and difficult terrain that would stop any other vehicle.
Kawasaki is a huge zaibatsu, mostly driven by heavy industry sales. They tend to float some quirkly ideas no one buys, like the hybrid electric motorcycle.
Yeah people still use horses in many places where any wheeled or even tracked vehicle can't go. It's pretty smart.
Will this be better than a horse though? You don't have to charge a horse, just feed it and water it (on the other hand, you can't repair a horse like you can a machine).
I think it depends, but considering pure practicality, horses tend to require a fair amount of pasture and food that an electric "horse" wouldn't. You can't just leave a horse in a garage for a few months.
In the early 1900s, horses were the original "mobile emissions" source of pollution, causing great consternation to anyone that happened to be in their wake at the wrong time. Yes, we have troughs that catch horse poo now, but still doesn't perfectly mitigate the problem specific to horses.
And then there's the issue of horses on surfaces: on dirt, their weight cause erosion. On pavement, they can injure their hooves, plus the sound of horseshoes at full gallop on asphalt must be deafening.
(I promise this isn't a subtoot about automobile environmental impacts)
As an aside, in wilderness in America, where there is the most protection for the environment and anything mechanized (like bicycles) are prohibited, it is a bizarre historical exception that horse riding is permitted, in spite of the obvious degradation caused by trampling over everything. Wilderness is meant to be a nature-first place, but somehow it's actually horseriders-first, then nature.
on dirt, their weight cause erosion. On pavement, they can injure their hooves
These problems would equally apply to the 'electric horse', would they not?
LOL a horse is a living creature. It can be temperamental or ill and needs a barn and you have to clean it's shit. This will absolutely be better.
You can eat a horse. If it comes to it.
Fair.
In theory, it could actually be surprisingly good at uneven terrain, and Kawasaki isn't really a company known for fucking around, but on the other hand, they seem ridiculous.
Kawasaki isn’t really a company known for fucking around
Hybrid electric motorcycle. No one bought them.
Just because you don't fuck around doesn't mean success is guaranteed. Was it a terrible bike or just unpopular?
Both. Heavy, needlessly complex, trying to solve a problem no one had, expensive. They had an EV bike that also sold poorly.
This is more about compliance for Japanese grants than sales.
30 years from now, people will buy them for YouTube channels but Kawasaki had to clear these below cost.
So they did have a practical reason for doing it, it just wasn't to make a great bike.
Sometimes life isn't about efficiency.
Just unpopular. Some dude bought one near me. I can't say I get the reasoning.
I suppose the added cost of a hybrid motorcycle might put some off when motorcycles are already really fuel efficient in comparison to a car, maybe that's why it wasn't more popular?
Motorcycles are not more fuel efficient than an efficient car. It all falls apart when a car can carry 4 people.
Thing is, the car is usually only carrying one or two people. Also, most cars aren't efficient, especially in countries where most vehicles are ridiculously huge.
I would imagine an electric bike would be too quiet. Don't some people put loud pipes on a motorcycle to increase road presence in the name of safety?
That's what they tell you, but it's just to make noise.
Electric bikes like Zero have actually lower collision rates than ICE bikes, and motorcyclist love to whine about cars, but 1/3 of crashes are all alone, 1/3 are their fault. The anti car bullshit is just tribalism.
There is definitely an element of Tribalism. But in my experience you have to maneuver to avoid cars coming into your space more often on a bike or motorcycle than you do in a car. Not that it is constant, but it's a one or two times a week vs a couple times a month in a car. You're just less visible since you're so much smaller. Not that loud exhaust is a good fix, haha.
Back when I was riding regularly, I would start weaving back and forth in the lane whenever a car got to aggresive or started tailgating me. Just a gentle side to side bob.
People get suprisingly far away from you when it looks like youre going to lose control of a 600lb projectile a couple of feet in front of them.
A lot of people say that they do, but it's just an old wives tale/excuse to have loud pipes. There's no good data to back it up.
As a single data source, I've been riding electric bikes for 3-4 years now and have noticed no difference. Drivers did seem to get worse during/after COVID-19 and after the boom of texting and driving.
And poor police enforcement.
Motorcycles can't be ridden distracted.
I drive a car that could be called a microcar. I've thought about putting a loud muffler on it to make it louder and more present on the road. I'm not really much of a car guy so it's been a pipe dream for over a decade.
It's just that the blind spots on most vans and trucks are the size of a garage I could comfortably park my car in. Factor in people being less attentive and the only blind spot I'm comfortable being in is right in front of everyone. I could tape my horn down and call it a day but I feel that would be too aggressive.
I drive an NA Miata, so I understand completely. People see me less in the Miata than on my motorcycle.
The Miata actually has loud pipes (that I didn't want) and it does not seem to make a difference. People try to merge into me all the freaking time!
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One electric horse power
Frankly I don't see how the carriage-less horse will ever catch on.
Just attach a carriage to yours. Easy
I'm not going to get one, but I do want to see this concept in anime
I doubt I'd pick one up, but I'd watch videos of people falling off of them.
it runs on hydrogen to generate electricity for propulsion
wat
aka fuel cell, aka gunna be a bitch to refuel and not very good
No way that thing runs on hydrogen, it would need a huge pair of balls to store the gas.
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