Quiet Rush 1 of 3 finalists in 2015 Hunter Innovation Festival

Quiet Rush are delighted to be recognised as one of 3 finalists in the 2015 Hunter Innovation Festival, for our proposed mild to wild palette of electric bike experiences, powered by smart solar urban infrastructure that also doubles up as convenient power sources.

Our entry was based on several years of working to determine feasibility and validity of the role of powered riding as an active transport option, with forays into emergent electric action sports riding options in events such as the Hunter Electric Vehicle Festival and CASAR Park on the Central Coast. 

Hunter Electric Vehicle Festival racing. Image courtesy of Mr Bill Collison. High resolution image available on click through.

We are all too aware of the population health challenges of the Hunter region, with spiralling obesity rates and transport modes that do little to encourage human movement and active transport. The need to rethink how we move has never been more urgent, in the face of spiralling rates of chronic disease, mortality and morbidity rates associated with lifestyle risk factors. In the face of this, cycling is well proven as a form of lifestyle medicine that can positively impact health at a whole of population scale when it's convenient, affordable and safe. A large scale epidemiology research case (http://www.nhs.uk/news/2013/04april/pages/hard-times-in-cuba-linked-to-better-national-health.aspx) confirmed the impact cycling had in needy times on the Cuban population, with obesity, heart disease and diabetes rates plummeting as the country took up cycling in the 90's economic crisis.

With electric bike sales across Europe continuing to accelerate and the industry delivering frequent iterations and updates of new options in Pedelec and Speed-Pedelec formats, the demand is obvious for two wheeled transport options that help people move a little easier, whilst minimising their inconvenience. Urban infrastructure across Europe is increasingly integrating solar as a supplementary or sole-source power option to provide power on the move. We are  exploring collaboration opportunities with European partners working at the leading edge of installation and concept design for embedding smart infrastructure and clean power options at the point of use, using local manufacture under licence arrangements with partners like Solar Power Australia, based in Warners Bay.

Our products span the spectrum of mild to wild, sourced from recognised brand leaders such as Gazelle bicycles and Australian partners like Stealth Electric Bikes, for whom Quiet Rush is a local dealer for town and offroad bikes.

Electric bike hire station with embedded solar charging and advertising options.

The recognition of our innovation themed offering comes on the back of our Land Forces 2014 (APAC Region Defence Industry Conference) Agile Logistics entry, recognised as an SME Innovation Finalist, where we combine a high capability, Australian designed off-road electric bike with smart portable solar generators from our alliance with Laughing Mind as a Goal Zero dealer. 

We've built on that work, with recent partnering alliances with other local innovators like New York TropFest Winner Jason Van Genderen's Pocket Film Academy, using a CargoCycles trike as a "Pocket Film Academy on Wheels", which we plan to have roaming through the upcoming Vivid4shore festival in Tuggerah Lake and Newcastle.

To find out more about the detail of what we're looking to bring to the Hunter, you'll need to come along to their Smart Ideas breakfast briefing on 14July 2015 to hear our 90second pitch ;-)