What drew you to ebikes in the first place? What keeps you riding an ebike?

OK, my turn. I grew up riding motorcycles since about 10 years old. I have always had some sort of 2 wheel vehicle. Harleys to mopeds I have done it all. As age creeps up I am limited to what I can ride. I have some severe tendon damage in my left hand that limits pulling a clutch any more. Even on my Ebike my fingers will lock up sometimes but I will stop if needed and stretch them out. Riding my Ebike has opened up so much for me that is hard to explain. I can ride roads or trails as I want to and it is a blast.
 
Diverticulitis.

That and the findings of the CT scan for fatty liver, enlarged adrenals, and minor arterial plaque.

Could not ride here, no nearby trails or bike lanes really. Needed to be able to keep a reasonable speed out here in the countryside. They are used to 10 mph farm equipment so they will cut you some slack... but you need some speed.

And airflow, 80s and humidity suck at 10 mph. Cycling is one of the few exercises I can do safely and really enjoy.

So ebike it was... took my Blackmountain Gravel bike and put a CYC Photon on it... pleased as punch. Can do 26 mile rides, keep my heart rate reasonable, and ride with the local road bike club.

26 miles planned for tomorrow, I am the ride leader, should have 4 or 5 riders.
 
I was a runner for many years, lots of events, wall full of medals, and then an injury ended my running days. I spent a few years on the couch, gaining weight as I ate my depression. Then we took a trip with friends, and everyone brought bikes, but a few friends brought ebikes. I had never even thought about ebikes before so I was bit intrigued. I tried one and was instantly hooked. I recognized immediately the potential they had for getting me back outside and enjoying the outdoors. A little more than a year later and we have four ebikes now, and I've ridden in multiple events this year. Totally hooked!
 
Similar story here, very active on 2 wheels both bicycles and motorcycles. Now at 65 with diminishing endurance and strength creeping in we went camping with some friends that had e-bikes, game on…the wife and I both ordered e-bikes, mine will be here tomorrow. We are looking forward to being able to get out for some rides we could not previously enjoy.
 
Django said:
I hope that this stays on topic.

For me, it was an opportunity for me and my wife to ride together. Ebikes are a great equalizer and by using different assist levels it has allowed us to ride in a more compatible manner. It has also brought back her love for cycling and it provides a satisfying experience for both of us.

We are both retired, so we don’t have a commute and living in rural New hampshire makes a bicycle impractical as a mode of transportation for a good part of the year. Most of our rides are for fitness, sightseeing and just enjoyment.

For a long time I wrongly rejected the idea of electric assisted bicycles, and I still ride my road and my gravel bike, but the ebike and especially riding with my wife has become my preference. My reasons for riding an ebike have evolved, but the the primary reason remains, (quality time with my wife).
Click to expand...

After 2 heart attacks on bike rides, and I could no longer ride up hills. Living in the mountains of eastern PA, I could not ride much. I got an ekit and added it to my bike, and can ride wherever. Then I moved to NH where there are lots of rail trails, and I can ride a lot further with the ebike. In New England, the only safe place to ride is on the rail trails.
 
Papa K said:
Similar story here, very active on 2 wheels both bicycles and motorcycles. Now at 65 with diminishing endurance and strength creeping in we went camping with some friends that had e-bikes, game on…the wife and I both ordered e-bikes, mine will be here tomorrow. We are looking forward to being able to get out for some rides we could not previously enjoy.
Click to expand...
What kind did you order?
 
RipRacer for me to deal with the hills we have. Lectric 3.0 for the wife as she had ridden a friend’s and liked the layout. Found a sale on the RR and also got a military discount making a solid deal. Believe these will be good intro bikes to get us started.
 
Papa K said:
RipRacer for me to deal with the hills we have. Lectric 3.0 for the wife as she had ridden a friend’s and liked the layout. Found a sale on the RR and also got a military discount making a solid deal. Believe these will be go intro bikes to get us started.
Click to expand...
I have a Denago City 1 and my wife also got an XP 3!

We also got the passenger package for grandchildren and also my wife!

Since we live in SW Florida and the Lectric has a headlight and a taillight wr can ride on the XP to look at Christmas lights!

BTW since my wife is only 4’11” and 105 pounds I rotated the stem bringing it about 5” closer!
 
Papa K said:
We are looking forward to enjoying them, both seems to have solid reviews.But here in North Idaho I don’t think we will use them to cruise the Christmas lights….
Click to expand...
Probably not Papa!

It rarely gets below freezing and the coldest it usually gets is the 60s - 40s range but not for very long at a time, and definitely doesn’t snow!
 
Papa K said:
We are looking forward to enjoying them, both seems to have solid reviews.But here in North Idaho I don’t think we will use them to cruise the Christmas lights….
Click to expand...
Just a heads up, I know you’ve already ordered but fenders come in handy down here as it keeps water from streaming on your back and crotch!

We get a lot of rain here during the summer so biking after a rain is no issue with fenders!

Now my Denago did NOT come with fenders but I had the local bike shop order them and put them on before I picked up the bike!

I think out the door WITH the fenders was $1559.

The XP comes with fenders!
IMG_0915.jpeg
IMG_0916.jpeg
 
LightningP38 said:
After 2 heart attacks on bike rides, and I could no longer ride up hills. Living in the mountains of eastern PA, I could not ride much. I got an ekit and added it to my bike, and can ride wherever. Then I moved to NH where there are lots of rail trails, and I can ride a lot further with the ebike. In New England, the only safe place to ride is on the rail trails.
Click to expand...
I am in New Hampshire as well, but the only local rail trail allows ATVs and Dirt Bikes, so it is not very bike friendly and I never ride it. The other semi-local rail trail, is 20 miles north in Lebanon. It is nice, but I have only ridden it a few times, (once in the last two years).

My riding is mostly on the gravel or secondary roads of the mid Connecticut River Valley of New Hampshire and Vermont. I guess that perceived safety is relative. I grew up and cycled in Massachusetts. In comparison, I find my local roads to be relatively safe. I do ride with my front light on and I have a Varia rear facing radar/blinking light as well.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Django said:
I hope that this stays on topic.

For me, it was an opportunity for me and my wife to ride together. Ebikes are a great equalizer and by using different assist levels it has allowed us to ride in a more compatible manner. It has also brought back her love for cycling and it provides a satisfying experience for both of us.

We are both retired, so we don’t have a commute and living in rural New hampshire makes a bicycle impractical as a mode of transportation for a good part of the year. Most of our rides are for fitness, sightseeing and just enjoyment.

For a long time I wrongly rejected the idea of electric assisted bicycles, and I still ride my road and my gravel bike, but the ebike and especially riding with my wife has become my preference. My reasons for riding an ebike have evolved, but the the primary reason remains, (quality time with my wife).
Click to expand...
I could not ride my manual bike because of my left knee, which needed replacing about one year ago. The E bike allowed me to turn on a shift when the knee became more painful during a rod. My knee is improving, however, I still use the E bike without the power assist or the lowest assist. This way I still get my exercise and avoid having to use the automobile for relatively short trips.
 
For me, it was the proliferation of E-bikes all around. I contemplated getting a new one, but the prices are ridiculous and way beyond my means. So, I figured I'd go the conversion route since I still have a 26" DiamondBack I bought in '89 for $590 sitting in my shed for the past 16 years. So, if anyone has any recommendations on conversion kits, please drop me a DM so we don't bombard the OP's thread. Greatly appreciated!!
 
Rambo_Of_PA said:
For me, it was the proliferation of E-bikes all around. I contemplated getting a new one, but the prices are ridiculous and way beyond my means. So, I figured I'd go the conversion route since I still have a 26" DiamondBack I bought in '89 for $590 sitting in my shed for the past 16 years. So, if anyone has any recommendations on conversion kits, please drop me a DM so we don't bombard the OP's thread. Greatly appreciated!!
Click to expand...
52v battery @ at least 25ah with a BBSHD if youn you want to climb hills or
a Voilamart 1500w hub drive kit.

If you look through my pics/posts you'll see my black bike that has a Voilamart kit on it and it's been running just fine
in torrential downpours and snow storms since 2018.

Just saying that one does not have to spend all kinds of money to get what they want/need ;)
 
What drew me to an Ebike? About a week ago, I assembled one for my stepson. I had to test drive it to make sure the bike was fully in adjustment. I was pleased and surprised by it.

There is now one sitting in the living room. I already commuted to work on it the last day of the work week (Friday). I found the ride in less stressful than the typical drive in. I used bike trails to avoid congested roads. This made the experience very pleasant and gave me a chance to collect my thoughts and plan my workday.

It is the sum of the experiences which will keep me riding. Wind in my face, the meandering trails, the lack of traffic stress, and the mild exercise to get my blood pumping in the morning. It doesn't hurt that my "fuel cost" was calculated at about 5 cents per round trip (Roughly a ten mile round trip).
 
pagheca said:
@addertooth: now, imagine a world in which this happens to everyone...
Click to expand...
I have mixed emotions about that. This would lead to the bike trail I rode in on becoming quite crowded. This might increase the congestion on that trail. On my ride into work, I only ran across one other rider on the trail. He was puttering along at about 10Mph. The thought of a hundred riders on that narrow trail somehow does not please me.

I am capable of recognizing the Social/Environmental advantages of it. I do realize there are countries which have strongly embraced a bicycle culture (the Dutch come to mind). But then, they have also created the infrastructure to support mass bicycle commuters as well. I am uncertain if most Americans are ready to embrace that mind-set.
 

Similar threads

N
Cold weather riding clothing..what do you wear?
2 3 4
Replies
73
Views
6K
Pinhead
Pinhead
pagheca
My most loved place in the island
Replies
0
Views
160
pagheca
pagheca
T
Yamaha ebike motor: Chain seems to skip on the forward sprocket.
Replies
0
Views
155
Tintinmilou
T
L
Opportunities/Excuses to Ride!
Replies
7
Views
820
Mysery
Mysery
Smaug
Memorial Day Family Ride Report
Replies
7
Views
2K
Smaug
Smaug
Back
Top