Wow! Great write-up; I really appreciate the time you took to give me such a thorough answer. :) Thank you! And now I definitely am going to be eyeing some e-bikes myself haha
Can’t possibly recommend them enough! Just spend some time thinking about what features you want and need.
There’s everything from “Basically a slow moped that can technically be pedaled” to “literally a normal bicycle with a motor slapped onto it”, with price ranges to match.
I’d generally say that unless you have money to spare and/or intend to rely on the e-bike as much as people rely on cars, the expensive stuff isn’t really worth it. Fancy features like mid-drive and force-sensitive pedal assist are nice but i’ve done completely and utterly fine with a dead simple e-bike that cost like 1000€. There’ll be a bit of a learning curve as you get used to to the quirks of having the motor engage when you pedal but after a while it becomes second nature.
If you get a cheap basic e-bike like me, i’d recommend taking advantage of it to get exercise: Having both fully functional pedals and motor assist means you don’t have to worry about running out of stamina and having to trudge home in misery. Which means you’re free to push yourself as far as you feel like, and thus you can improve your stamina and leg strength really quite quickly.
Having that physicality means the e-bike becomes even more useful, you become able to use less motor assist which extends your range, and range anxiety goes from “oh man if the battery runs out i’ll be stuck!” to “if the battery runs out i’ll be quite annoyed, oh well”.
I’ll probably be picking up an adult trike actually–I have developed some balance issues as I’ve aged sadly. But I am happy to see they even offer e-trikes!
Wow! Great write-up; I really appreciate the time you took to give me such a thorough answer. :) Thank you! And now I definitely am going to be eyeing some e-bikes myself haha
Can’t possibly recommend them enough! Just spend some time thinking about what features you want and need.
There’s everything from “Basically a slow moped that can technically be pedaled” to “literally a normal bicycle with a motor slapped onto it”, with price ranges to match.
I’d generally say that unless you have money to spare and/or intend to rely on the e-bike as much as people rely on cars, the expensive stuff isn’t really worth it. Fancy features like mid-drive and force-sensitive pedal assist are nice but i’ve done completely and utterly fine with a dead simple e-bike that cost like 1000€. There’ll be a bit of a learning curve as you get used to to the quirks of having the motor engage when you pedal but after a while it becomes second nature.
If you get a cheap basic e-bike like me, i’d recommend taking advantage of it to get exercise: Having both fully functional pedals and motor assist means you don’t have to worry about running out of stamina and having to trudge home in misery. Which means you’re free to push yourself as far as you feel like, and thus you can improve your stamina and leg strength really quite quickly.
Having that physicality means the e-bike becomes even more useful, you become able to use less motor assist which extends your range, and range anxiety goes from “oh man if the battery runs out i’ll be stuck!” to “if the battery runs out i’ll be quite annoyed, oh well”.
I’ll probably be picking up an adult trike actually–I have developed some balance issues as I’ve aged sadly. But I am happy to see they even offer e-trikes!