2011 Zero XU Complete Upgrade 20KW Brushless Conversion - Ready for New Parts

It's been a couple of weeks since I made my first video on the 2011 Zero XU Complete Upgrade 20kw Brushless Conversion Project I started. I am in the process of upgrading my 2011 Zero XU from a brushed motor system to a brushless motor system, and so far I have stripped the bike down to its bare essentials removing all the electronics and wiring other than lights and the ignition switch. The new complete kit system comes with the motor, controller, throttle, left and right controls, wiring harness and the main speedo screen. All of this is pre-wired and ready to be installed. It is taking a bit longer to arrive but I should have it this Monday so installation can begin on Tuesday hopefully.

I also had the dual sport tires installed and balanced and they are now back on the bike, along with a 428 rear sprocket to match up with the 428 front sprocket that comes on the new brushless motor. This new setup is going to be a major upgrade from the 5kw brushed motor that had a 200 amp controller, the new setup comes with a 450 amp controller and a 10kw nominal motor that can run as high as 30kw peak, that's around 40 horsepower. Here is a link to the new motor and controller kit I bought from Aliexpress:

QSMOTOR QS165 10000W 72V 50H Kit Hall and Encoder PMSM Mid drive Motor Fardriver ND72890

Road to the Vancouver Open Regionals - 6 Weeks Out Posing

Officially we are now 6 weeks out at the time I recorded this video, which was on Saturday May 31st. The Show (Vancouver Open Regionals) is being held on July 12th in Abbotsford BC Canada which is nice and close to me. I am feeling really good and I am very happy with how everything is going. I would even go so far as to say this may be the best conditioned I am at 6 weeks out I have ever been. I have been bigger before in terms of muscle but that did not always work out for me as even at my biggest I generally get outsized by most of the guys on stage, so I my strategy has always been to try and at least out condition most of the guys to enhance what I have as much as possible.

The goal for this show was not to be super big as I just can't do that anymore. What it takes is just too hard on my body with a heart that has already been through a lot, and needs to be taken care of. My goal is to come into this years show with about 5 more pounds of muscle and with similar conditioning to last years same show, as I feel I was really well conditioned but last year I just did have enough time to get that added muscle I needed to be more competitive.

As I said, I feel really good, I still have lots of energy and no real hunger issues. I even raised my calories from around 2000 per day up to 2500 per day as I was losing a bit too much fat a bit too quickly. I want to kind of stay in the area I am right now till perhaps 4 weeks out, and then reassess my calorie intake to slowly lose the last 5-6 pounds of fat or so I need to trim, to get into the 5-6% body fat range I need to be in. The Body Composition Scale (Evolt Active) at my local gym says I am in the mid 6% body fat ranges, but I think it is being generous to me. I would say I am closer to a high 7% or low to mid 8% body fat currently. I am also holding really close to 190 pounds which is great. Over the next 3 to 4 weeks I hope to add a couple more pounds of muscle and maybe lose about the same in fat and then it will be time to get shredded :)

Vancouver Open Regionals 6 Plus Weeks Out Update

Getting closer by the day and here we are now at almost 6 weeks out from the Vancouver Open Regionals, where I plan to compete in Men's Physique and also Classic Physique. Im' still sitting right around 190 pounds, maybe a bit under in the morning, and according to the Evolt Active Body Composition machine at my gym, I am 6.3% body fat, but I think that is a bit on the low side. I feel more like around 7-8% which is a good place to be right now. At a month out, being between 6-7% would be ideal before I start the harder dieting adn cutting.

More importantly I am feeling really good, I have good energy most days, and I am not really all that hungry so far. I did increase my calorie intake a bit to around 2500 per day a few weeks back, as I felt I was dropping weight a little bit too quickly. I would like to have more muscle but that is always on the list, and I should be able to add a couple more pounds of it as I am not dieting very hard right now, and my workouts are still very productive.

Life has been busy as always with some projects I am working on, one being the new 2011 Zero XU Electric Motorcycle I am partially rebuilding, at least the electrical aspects of it. But I do like having projects on the go, they keep my excited and busy, maybe even a little bit distracted from some of the more negative things in life I don't want to be focusing on. In a few days on Saturday when it is officially 6 weeks out, I plan to make a Physique Update Video so watch for that one coming up.

2011 Zero XU Complete Upgrade 20KW Brushless Conversion - It Begins

If it was not obvious by now, I do have a bit of an Electric Vehicle addiction, not so much when it comes to cars, but more so with vehicles for having fun on and just ripping around on. Not the daily driver stuff. Currently I have my Kingsong S22 EUC which is probably one of my favorite Personal Electric Vehicles (PEV's). I also have a Frey Electric Mountain Bike I upgraded the motor on to a 1000 watt Bafang M620 motor. One of my more resent purchases is my SLY-08 Electric Mountainboard which again I couldn't resist upgrading with a FlipSky Controller and higher voltage and capacity battery. That thing rips now! I also have an Electric Scooter I purchased from Eevee's called the Cypress. My Electric Scooter may be the only PEV I haven't modified or upgraded so far?

I have also owned a Onewheel Pus which I did end up selling, even though I really enjoyed riding it. I just found it to be the most unpredictable PEV I owned in terms of safety, as at any moment it can cut out if you push it a bit too hard, and that can be as easy as going at a moderate speed from concrete onto grass, and then the next thing you know, you are sprawled out on the ground... Of course I upgraded and modded that one too :)

I have always wanted an Electric Motorcycle, but they can be kind of expensive for something newer and with decent specs. A lot of the cost, like with a car is in the batteries. And more range means bigger batteries which also means added cost. I found a used 2011 Zero XU that had recently had it's battery replaced with a nice large and powerful custom built (for this bike) 72 volt 100ah Battery capable of 400 amp output. The price of the battery is probably about $4000, which is $1000 more than I paid for the bike. But keep in mind the current version of this similar styled Zero Electric Motorcycle is around $16,000 before tax and PDI and all the other stupid add on charges... So closer to $20,000!!! I will be into my 2011 Zero XU for around $4500 all said and done and it will actually be somewhat comparable to the newer model in terms of power and range, for sure range.

when I bought the Zero XU I was aware that it had a couple issue, the main one being the throttle not engaging 100% of the time. Sometimes you need to roll it on a second time to get the bike rolling, once rolling it seemed fine. I am pretty sure it was the controller which meant replacing the controller. I don't want to drag this on too long so getting to the point, I ended up deciding to instead of trouble shooting the multiple problems mostly to do with wiring, I would simple replace all the electronics other than the battery with a complete Brushless Motor, Controller and full Harness and Display Kit. That might seem like an expensive choice but this kit will essentially make all the guts of my bike new and it will be a major upgrade in terms of speed and even range as Brushless Motors allow for battery regeneration and are a lot more efficient than brushed motors in general.

My wife already rides my electric Mountain Bike a lot and the plan is she will be able to scoot around on the Zero XU. We can also go out on rides together, as I have my 1993 Ducatti 750ss so that will be a lot of fun! I just need to wait on the parts to arrive now and put it all back together. I hope to document at least some of this upgrade and conversion so join me if something like this  is interesting to you :)

Ultrahuman Ring Air Initial Thoughts and Unboxing

I have been interested in Smart Fitness Rings for a while now, they have been out for over a decade, and there are several offerings from companies like Ultrahuman, RingConn, Oura, Amazfit, Samsung, along with a bunch of cheap China made knock offs that generally lack in the software department.

I have been interested in how a Smart Ring would integrate with my Smart Fitness Watch (which currently is the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic). I don't think I could give up using a Smart Fitness Watch, as I love the total integration with my SmartPhone and having all the notifications on my wrist so I don't have to always pull out my Phone. But on the other hand, not always having to wear my Smart Fitness Watch when I sleep to track my sleep, or even if I simply want to dress up and wear one of my fancy analog type watches without missing out on my health data.

Having an all the time wearable Smart Fitness Ring, allows me to have the freedom and flexibility to take off my Smart Fitness Watch when it is not convenient or simply maybe just to charge it, and not be concerned about missing on tracking my Health and Fitness Data. Smart Fitness Rings also really focus on not just Fitness or Activity Data, but on overall Body Health, and they do it better than a Smart Fitness Watch in my opinion.

So when Ultrahuman reached out to me and asked if I wanted to test out their latest Ultrahuman Ring Air, and see how it compares to my Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic as a Smart Fitness Tracker, I said yes in a heart beat! By the way all my opinions and views in any review I make for the Ultrahuman Ring Air are my own and not influenced by Ulrahuman in any way. They have not given me any real direction in what content and what I say about my experience using it.

In this first Unboxing Video, I unbox the Ultrahuman Ring Air and go over my initial thoughts along with why I am so interested in what a Smart Fitness Ring can do for me. I will be using it for several weeks, perhaps even a month or so to really get to know it well and find out any of the strengths and weaknesses I experience. I want to compare it to my Samsung Smart Fitness Watch and see if the data is comparable, information like heart rate, step count, calories burned, miles walked, sleep activity, blood oxygen levels, body temperature and whatever else is comparable. I will also figure out what other insights the Ultrahuman Ring Air offers me.

If you are interested in purchasing your own Ultrahuman Ring Air, then here is a Discount Code you can use to save 10% (Discount Code: GFO10), or us this link: http://ultrahuman.com/getfitover40