By Chuck Squatriglia

SONOMA COUNTY, California — Seasoned pro Shawn Higbee won North America’s first-ever electric motorcycle grand prix today in a race that was tighter than the finish would suggest.

Ten riders competed in the 25-mile race around Infineon Raceway, but all the action was at the front of the pack. The 11-lap race was a dogfight most of the way as polesitter Higbee (No. 22) and Michael Barnes (No. 80) repeatedly traded the lead. Higbee would take the lead in the turns, only to have Barnes pull away on the straights. Everyone knew the race would come down to battery management, and in the end Higbee did the better job.

“Michael snapped off the line a little quicker than I thought” to start the race, Higbee said. “It made me nervous. It became a strategy race, like an endurance race. I kept an eye on the volt meter to make sure I’d have the range to finish.”

Source: Wired.com