Like the title said, I had a blast riding an e-bike and didn’t have anyone else to share this to, so I’ll tell anyone who is willing to read about it.
I’ve been getting into riding bikes for the past several months, and decided to try an e-bike at a store and I can’t get over how much fun it is. Riding at 20 mph feels way more fun than driving any car at like 65+ mph. Just the feeling of the wind going past my face felt much better than any of the creature comforts in my car
I have to put in a conscious effort to show emotions on my face, but with riding this e-bike, I had the dumbest, biggest smile on my face from the moment I got onto the bike. Everybody I passed, I wanted to walk up to them and tell them that I was having so much fun and that they should try out this bike. Of course, I didn’t because I have the social skills of a brick, but the urge was still there
I also wanted to buy the bike that day so bad, but I knew I needed to practice some form of self-restraint and wait to make sure I truly wanted that bike and not needlessly spend money for retail therapy
Anyways, bikes are cool, public transit is cool, and micromobility is super cool. I hope everyone can feel the same joy/happiness I felt while I was riding this bike sometime in their life
I hope your day goes well. If it doesn’t, I hope it gets better. Thanks for reading!
I think a small motorcycle is a lot more practical and will probably last longer as well, no battery to die. I’ve always felt like ebikes are too small/lightweight for the amount of power they have as well. The whole industry is literally just reinventing the motorcycle. I don’t mean that in an insulting way, just IIRC motorcycles started out as converted bicycles.
My biggest concerns with ebikes are being able to replace the battery down the road (no pun intended) and the lack of “safety gear culture” that we see with a lot of motorcyclists. Plus the legal grey area they occupy right now.
Something like a Honda Navi can be had for cheaper than a lot of ebikes out there.
It does feel like the new wave of e-bikes (from manufacturers to promoters to customers) have ignored the existing world of motorcycles in a strange way. Which kind of makes sense given that electric motorcycles have just recently become relevant and are still in their own (ugly and impractical, IMO) fledgling stage. As well as the fact that ignoring regulations and conventions enabled e-bikes to get as big as they have.
But it’s kind of unfortunate. At least in the US, I think we’re going to see some bad accidents, grifts, and unhappy customers result in a backlash that will cause lawmakers to implement crappy, knee-jerk regulations.
If it’s not clear, I’m in favor of e-bikes. I just think we need proactive regulation.