How much power does it take?

How much power does it take to move a person around on a scooter or cycle?

This is a good article describing how much power it takes to move you on your e-cycle. Even though there's some physics involved, you can still get an understanding of the subject from a quick read through.

http://www.electric-bikes.com/physics.htm

Quote from: the web page

Physics of Electric Bike and Scooter Propulsion

I've seen scooters and cycles claiming 200 Watts and 18 mph top speed and others claiming 400 Watts and 12 mph top speed. How much power does it actually take to move a person around on a scooter or cycle?

Bicycles, scooters, and even automobiles are all governed by the same fundamental power requirements. At constant speed, the power required to move the vehicle and the passenger goes to three places:

1. The power required to overcome the rolling resistance of the wheels on the pavement.

2. The power required to overcome the wind resistance associated with moving the vehicle/passenger through the air.

3. The power required/provided to move the vehicle and passenger up/down any incline (if not traveling on flat pavement).