NBB member company AMERIgreen Energy, Inc. partnered with the Lancaster County Career and Technology Center (LCCTC) in Pennsylvania to help design and build a biodiesel-powered motorcycle. Students built the 1900cc chopper motorcycle around a 2002 refurbished Volkswagen Jetta engine. It runs on B100 made from recycled cooking oil that is refined in a LCCTC-built biorefinery.
State and local officials joined company representatives, students and faculty at the official unveiling of the year-long project in Willow Street, Pennsylvania.
“We knew the bike was going to be good, but we were blown away by what we got: a custom build comparable to any customization in the world,” Seth Obetz, Co-Owner of AMERIgreen, told the Lancaster New Era at the unveiling. “More important than the technological success of the project is what the students learned.”
Lt. Governor Jim Cawley also attended the event and said, “The motorcycle is proof of what could be accomplished by going after a goal with determination. Biofuels were one part of the overall solution to sustainable energy resources produced domestically.”
The chopper — which some have suggested may be a candidate to test the current land speed record for biodiesel motorcycles — will travel to local fairs, expositions, ballparks and other venues to showcase a commitment to a cleaner environment, renewable domestically produced fuel, and the capabilities of the award-winning automotive program of the LCCTC.