Dutch cycling team first in world with electric team cars

Dutch continental cycling team BEAT Cycling has a world first: starting this year, it will be the first professional team to structurally replace its team leader cars for electric support cars. The four BYD ATTO 3 cars will bring bikes and other materials to races and provide support during the races, for example when changing bikes or wheels, BYD says in a press release. This Saturday, the cars will be used for the first time, during the Ster van Zwolle.

Because of the demanding conditions in and around races, it was long considered impossible to deploy electric cars. Professional cycling teams ride many international races and the cars therefore have to travel long distances in a short period of time. They are heavily loaded and carry bicycles on the roof, which does not help the range. All the more striking is that the electric cars are standard except for their cycling equipment. In other words, they have no extra battery pack or other technical modifications.

Range, power and environment

The cars are from BYD, which entered the Dutch market late last year through distributor Louwman Groep. This is originally a manufacturer of batteries and the ATTO 3 therefore features a battery developed by the company itself, the so-called Blade Battery. It offers advantages in terms of safety, range, power and service life. Moreover, it does not contain cobalt and nickel, two environmentally damaging materials found in many batteries, making it an environmentally conscious option. The latter was the deciding factor for BEAT Cycling Club.

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