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Personal Transportation Sports

Kuberg Free-Rider gives electric bikes the power to play

The Premise. Gas powered motorcycles are becoming harder and harder to use for pleasure, due to rising costs and environmental restrictions, while their electric counterparts are mostly made only for young children or to cruise at low speeds.

The Product. The Kuberg Free-Rider is different. With a weight of 84 pounds, and a 2 kW BLDC motor, the Free-Rider can get up to 34 MPH for about an hour supporting a rider twice its weight. With quality forks, suspension, and brakes, this bike is meant for catching air and enjoying the thrill of the ride.

The Pitch. Kuberg learned how to make a quality electric motorcycle by first offering children’s sizes and models. Now realizing that the next step is to apply the same technology for teenagers and adults, they show off the Free-Rider in action as it hits off-road trails, gets some lift off of jumps, and does some trial riding both indoors and outdoors. This bike is not meant to necessarily replace the performance of a gas-powered alternative, but rather supplement it for training and in places where the exhaust could be harmful. Kuberg needs $100,000 strictly for materials and manufacturing costs, as they operate their own proprietary factories.

The Perks. Hitting the trails on a Kuberg Free-Rider takes a pledge of $1,999, nearly half the retail cost. A stronger-motor model, the RACE, is available for $2,999, and the TREX model, which is a lightweight trial bike, is available to backers in a preproduction model for $4,999. Other bikes are available at a discount for backers starting at $599 for the basic Trial E model that includes mechanical brakes and no seat kit. Additional battery packs are available at the $599 level, as are quick chargers that will recharge batteries in less than 30 minutes. Most rewards are expected to be delivered in September of this year, while the prototype TREX should reach backers in July 2015.

The Potential. These electric bikes have already been popular with younger, smaller riders, so the decision to make more grown-up models makes perfect sense. Aside from their entertaining aspects, electric bikes like the Kuberg Free-Rider could be the next breakthrough in urban transportation, and it helps that this company is paying attention to things like performance and design, not just trying to make an upper-end children’s toy.

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Sports

X Ball may help your putts by stretching your balls

xballThe X Ball puts some what-what into your putt-putt. With an oval shape and balanced center point, the X Ball gives golfers the chance to putt straight every time. Used to improve putting accuracy, the X Ball is a great learning tool for those looking to become the next Tiger Woods or great mini-golf champion. X Ball boasts a way to develop muscle memory for a more accurate putting game, but obviously the challenge will be putting the putting practice to work with more spherical products . X Ball’s creators are looking to raise $25,000 in their 46-day Indiegogo campaign. At $10 each, X Ball is estimated to be delivered by May 2014.

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Kids/Babies Sports

Lightning Stick on holey quest to quicken batter swings

Lightening Stick cfcf6246370cfbb09182551cda5717a8_large[1]Just in time for the approach of spring training, the Lightning Stick training tool is anticipated to be a home run with little sluggers, sluggettes and their coaches. Brooklyn-rased, LA-based inventor Joe Magno uses seven videos to explain how the lightweight, polycarbonate material and overall design aims to help players with the development of fast twitch muscle fiber within their body. That feature, combined with a knocking knuckle grip and flat surface, all work together to promote palm up/palm down swings and teach the batter to get all the way through the ball quickly and keep their hands inside. For a pledge of $40, backers get one Lightning Stick, which is estimated to run about $59 once it goes mainstream. Expected delivery is April 2014.

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Fitness Health and Wellness Lifestyle Relaxation Sports

The Navigator points your putter to the precious precise path

GolfNavigatorA bunch of golf lovers led by “Dirty Larry” Feiistel (who seems like quite the clean-cut fellow) got together to develop a product to help other people learn how to golf. This training aid helps new golfers improve their putting game. It involves an attachment to a putter that helps the golfer realize the alignment of the base of the putter, which in turn, determines the direction that the ball will go. They say that it improves the swing after just 15 minutes of use; that might be a tall order, but it’s not impossible.  The developers are asking for $60 to get the first run of the Navigator, which seems to be a big step up for an idea that was borne out of pipe cleaners. It is due to navigate its way to backers in April 2014.

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Sports

Throw Glow could turn your next touchdown dance into a rave

Throw GlowWho wants to play some football? Unless you’re on an organized team in a league, you may not have the privilege of battling for the gridiron on a lit-up field. Throw Glow seeks to make your nighttime pigskin escapades more enjoyable via an iridescent condom that envelops nearly all of the football. A side benefit, according to the humor-attempting video, is that the surface is supposed to make the spheroid easier to grip. Throw Glow covers take about 30 seconds to stretch over the ball and inventor Chris Pike has designs on attracting licensed graphics to adorn the covers. If you’re ready to toss out about $12 to the campaign, your football may be ready to rule the night by April 2014.

Categories
Sports

Krōm balls let you reflect on your next trick shot

Krom BilliardsFor billiards players who wish to distinguish themselves by the novelty of their balls as well as by the shooting of their stick, it’s time to take a look in the mirror — the mirror created by a set of shiny balls created to pro competition standard. The Krōm balls, presumably stolen directly from Bigfoot’s pinball machine, look metallic, but they’re actually made of a resin as using actual metal would have likely had prohibitive implications for weight and price. The shiny 16 can be on their way to straight-shooting backers in May 2014 for just a shade under $150 assuming the creators can rack up enough funds.