Video: Charge takes us on a ride through green racing history on two wheels

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, On Two Wheels, Europe/EU, UK, Racing

Charge - Click above to watch the video after the break

If you have an interest in electric motorcycles, or even just an appreciation of a well-told story about a game-changing event set in a mystical, modern-day anachronism, then Charge by Mark Neale is one movie you really should must see. It's the story of the birth of electric motorcycle road racing that was sparked by the inaugural TTXGP on the Isle of Man in 2009.

Narrated by Ewan McGregor, the film chronicles the efforts of teams to produce the fastest lap around the beautiful but deadly 37.7-mile Snaefell Mountain Course on machines that had previously only existed in the imaginations of a handful of forward-thinking minds.

Though we do get a look at most of the entries, the focus is mostly on Michael Czysz's MotoCzysz effort. The film also contains lots of footage of Cedric Lynch of Team Agni, who was also the designer of the motor used by MotoCzysz and several other teams. Cedric, who might be considered somewhat eccentric, tends to eschew both footwear and powertools and is the yin to Michael's yang. The contrast between them adds to the story as the suspense builds toward the culmination of that first race.

It is at this point that Charge takes a somewhat unexpected turn. It continues, fast forwarding to the next year, as the same basic contest is taken into the Isle of Man TT tent and renamed the TT Zero. The lengthy epilogue might seem an unnecessary extension at first, but as the teams return to Manxland, the evolution of the technology they arrive with is quite remarkable and the viewer's engagement is rejuvenated.

Charge is currently only available in the U.S. and Canada through the film's website. To get a taste of the electric road racing action, simply hit the jump.

[Source: Charge Movie]

Continue reading Video: Charge takes us on a ride through green racing history on two wheels

Video: Charge takes us on a ride through green racing history on two wheels originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 13:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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