A new way to see the beach

Andrew Edwards

A new Balboa Village store will be ready to roll next month, owners

said.

Segway Orange County owners Jim Headley and Dick Burke have

scheduled the grand opening of their Balboa Village store for April

9. The main thrust of the store will be to offer seaside tours on the

two-wheeled Segway Human Transporters.

“I wanted to be here for the demographics of the Fun Zone, the

Balboa Ferry and the Balboa Pier,” Headley said.

Headley and Burke started Segway Orange County in June on the

industrial side of Anaheim. The Newport Beach store is the pair’s

first shop in a retail-driven setting.

“It’s obviously a beach area, high-income area, generally

speaking, and a good place to do tours,” Burke said.

The partners plan to offer tours of the Fun Zone, a ride to the

notorious Wedge and an extended trip from Balboa Village to Newport

Pier. They hope the trips will convert riders to buyers.

“[Tours] will provide us with another profit center for the store,

and it will also provide us leads,” Burke said.

Headley and Burke have exclusive rights from New Hampshire-based

Segway LLC to sell Segway Human Transporters in Orange County,

Headley said.

Introduced in 2001, the electric-powered devices are essentially

two wheels attached to a base for the rider to stand on, with a pole

that connects the handlebars to the wheel assembly.

Inside the machine, Headley said, is a gyroscopic system that

automatically balances the rider.

Headley pointed out that the Human Transporter has no controls to

accelerate or slow down. To go forward, the rider leans forward and

can stop by standing straight.

Headley said it’s easy to learn how to ride the machines.

“When I stand on it, I’m not a talented lumberjack, riding a log

that’s rolling in a river, or a unicycle rider. I’m you,” he said.

Headley and Burke -- who first started working together at another

of Burke’s businesses, RV Satellite Systems -- plan to open

additional stores.

A Human Transporter sells for about $4,500, Headley said.