smooth running

[silverback]

Everywhere I go in my city they are building these cool smooth bike roads. There real nice to ride on. No heavy trucks will be busting it up.

Thats a thing that stood out to me in Singapore. They have a lot of bike roads under the rail way bridges along rivers, there all over the place. They make it easier to commute. The West is finally catching up.


Its on the far side, it basically follows the road about a mile. With a few nice flowing curves.

 

[silverback]

I thought I had a better picture.

Feel free to post some of your city likes, fun parts of bike road.

I cheated and went up a bridge. My dinky 350W might have trouble lugging me up that hill

 

[silverback]

Whats crazy is how squirrels react to the ebike. Its like they don't know how to react or it confuses them for some reason? I dunno but I had a few dart out in front of my wheel when they had a dozen better options. I've had to jam on my breaks twice otherwise I'm sure I would of killed it. That never ever happened before and I been riding my whole life basically.

Has anyone noticed this crazier squirrel behavior? Or maybe its just here. There everywhere literally.

Maybe their familiar with bikes but now they aren't hearing the common sounds bikes make when there being pedaled. Its all I have for a guess. Its happening a lot and it makes me scratch my head every time it happens lol.

 

[Smaug]

Whats crazy is how squirrels react to the ebike. Its like they don't know how to react or it confuses them for some reason? I dunno but I had a few dart out in front of my wheel when they had a dozen better options. I've had to jam on my breaks twice otherwise I'm sure I would of killed it. That never ever happened before and I been riding my whole life basically.

Has anyone noticed this crazier squirrel behavior? Or maybe its just here. There everywhere literally.

I had the eBike out on a bike trail the other day. I was riding along, unpowered and came up on this squirrel on the left side of the path. I was on the right. He darted in front of me, with time to turn around, then back and forth until I finally ran him over. Best case is he's nursing some broken ribs; worst case is I spined him and he'll soon die of starvation or when a coyote or fox finds him at night.

Do NOT brake for squirrels or rabbits. You're more likely to go down trying to avoid them than if you hit one going straight. I'm always surprised how few of them get hit, when I just maintain speed and go straight. Making noise is a lot more effective. Yell or hit the bell.

******************

Re. bike paths, I thought I read somewhere that Doug Ford wants to eliminate bike infrastructure in Toronto. Is he getting out-voted then, or ...?

 

[silverback]

I'm pretty sure I would of nailed two if I didn't brake, it seemed safe on a wide dry asphalt. Maybe the whine of electric motors is making them go extra squirrelly ;p

Interesting squirrel fact. Squirrels see things in real time 10x slower than humans do. They have plenty of time to register and calculate things when to you and I they seem sporadic and "nutty". That's why they have no problem killing some of the worlds fastest snakes.

That's why I can't understand why the heck they dart towards the front bike tire. Must be the Emotor whining disorients their keen hearing and other senses. Well that's my better guess. Its all fun until your cleaning one off your tire.

 

[usclassic]

from grok

why do squirrels dart in front of ebikes



Squirrels dart in front of e-bikes (and cars, bikes, or anything moving) because of a mix of their hard-wired survival instincts, poor risk assessment, and the unique quirks of e-bike motion. Here's the breakdown:1. Panic-Induced Zig-Zag Evasion

• Squirrels evolved to escape predators like hawks, cats, and foxes by darting unpredictably. When they detect motion (your e-bike), their brain screams "PREDATOR!" and triggers a last-second directional change.
• This works against animals that pounce or chase, but fails spectacularly against straight-line vehicles.

2. E-Bikes Are "Silent Predators"

• Unlike noisy gas vehicles, e-bikes are nearly silent, especially at low speeds. Squirrels often don’t hear you coming until you’re dangerously close.
• By the time they react, it’s a split-second decision: freeze, bolt forward, or double-back—50% chance they pick "into your path."

3. Misjudging Speed and Distance

• Squirrels gauge risk by angular velocity (how fast an object grows in their field of view). E-bikes can accelerate quickly and silently, tricking their depth perception.
• A squirrel might think, "I’ve got 2 seconds to cross!" when you’re actually closing the gap in 0.8 seconds.

4. The "Double-Back" Death Wish

• Classic squirrel move: Run halfway, then reverse. This is an anti-predator tactic—if a hawk dives, reversing confuses its trajectory.
• Against wheels? You become the hawk that can’t swerve.

5. Urban Squirrels Are Bold but Dumb

• City squirrels see constant traffic and become desensitized. They’ll gamble on crossing because 9/10 times, nothing happens.
• E-bikes blend into this chaos—not loud enough to scare, not slow enough to ignore.

How to Avoid Squirrel Roulette

• Slow down when you see one near the path (they’re watching you too).
• Make noise—a bell or "HEY!" can trigger an earlier, safer bolt.
• Steer predictably—don’t swerve last-second; they’ll mirror you.

TL;DR: Squirrels aren’t suicidal—they’re just running 500-year-old anti-hawk software against your 21st-century e-bike. Their panic + your silence = darting disaster.

 

[Chumley]

I'm pretty sure I would of nailed two if I didn't brake, it seemed safe on a wide dry asphalt. Maybe the whine of electric motors is making them go extra squirrelly ;p

Interesting squirrel fact. Squirrels see things in real time 10x slower than humans do. They have plenty of time to register and calculate things when to you and I they seem sporadic and "nutty". That's why they have no problem killing some of the worlds fastest snakes.

That's why I can't understand why the heck they dart towards the front bike tire. Must be the Emotor whining disorients their keen hearing and other senses. Well that's my better guess. Its all fun until your cleaning one off your tire.

I will not avoid small animals, whether in my car or on my motorcycle, or on the e-bike. Unless it is a deer, bear, horse, cow, etc, that will do more damage to me if I hit it, the little guys are not sending me to the emergency room. The little guys are not endangered. The only issue is if we keep killing the stupid animals, the smarter ones will take over. Smart quirrels are a danger to humankind.

 

[silverback]

If its not safe to break / avoid, sorry Chip. My injury list is long enough.

 

[HumanPerson]

potato chips are good