I Think E-Bikes Are A Problem

This is a video 2 years in the making, with one theme... e-bikes. They are everywhere folks and I don't think it's good for the cycling industry, which is suffering right now. These things are big, they are fast, they are taking up more space on trails and pathways and roads... and they're increasingly being ridden by people who don't know what they are doing. They also don't encourage cycling... you know CYCLING... peddling a bike.

I tie a number of things together in this video and my conclusion is... e-bikes are not good for cycling or the cycling industry.

#e-bikes #cycling #bikeindustry

[merlemunque]

I'm 75 and my wife is 72. We;ve been riding ebikes for 9 years, putting on about 2400 miles together. At 12 mph, that's over 200 hours of riding. Yes, we go at bike speeds, I might add another 800 miles solo. Last year, 500 of them were on a regular bike.Here in the midwest, ebikes have overwhelmed the bike paths yet. It's like 10% on a weekend, less on weekdays when no one is out.

You're right. Too many people don't have bike trail etiquette, but that includes regular cyclists. It's common for people to ride two abreast and take up 5/8-2/3 of the lane, Very few people call out when passing. At my age, I'm used to it. My wife is used to it. We try to get out when there's less people.

Happy riding.

[rhettoracle]

A couple of key points:
Ebikes are the fastest growth in transportation worldwide.
They are energy efficient and reduce the use of cars for short distance travel.
The issue you express concern about is behavioral ie don't blame the vehicle, blame the driver.
Horse and carriage drivers made the same complaint when cars began entering the roadway.
This is not in anyway to dismiss your incident, just to add perspective.
Bicycle lanes will become congested with this growth and inconvenient for those used to "the good old days".
I am 69 years old, have recently purchased a small ebike, 400 watt motor, max speed of 20 mph. Having ridden a motorcycle in the past, and recognizing that one of the biggest risks is not being aware of what's behind you, immediately installed a rearview mirror on purchase.
You can at least know that your health is benefitting from cardio exercise of pedaling.
Peace

[test]

Nice rant. As a licensed motorcyclist who ride analog bikes I see the same thing. But my angle is education, children should be taught in school on rules of the road like Dutch children. I was hit head on by a cyclists going the wrong way on a one way cycle path. Keep talking and raise awareness. Thanks!

[jenniferjohnson]

I’m sorry you were hurt. I can definitely see the emotion you felt after your accident. It must have been very scary. I’ll start by saying I’m 52 years old and I ride a Trek e-bike. I love cycling but my bum knee made it difficult to climb some of the harder hills in Calgary. E-biking has allowed me to get back outside and my husband and I can ride together and both enjoy ourselves. I can appreciate why you feel the way you do about e-biking but I’d like to think I ride with courtesy and because I’ve broken my knee I’m not looking to go fast or ride dangerously. I just want to have fun, like most people. I went out on the weekend for the first time this year and was passed by a regular road bike - he did announce himself which I appreciated but he was going way too fast and on a blind corner at that. If someone would have been riding/walking towards us we all would have been in trouble. I think if we all learn the rules and use courtesy we can all share the paths. We have some amazing paths in Calgary. We have to share them with pedestrians, cyclists, roller bladers etc. and all different fitness levels. There will be respectful and disrespectful people in each group. I’m tired of hearing about how this group is better than that group . It makes me feel bad about something that I enjoy so much. I hope you recover and are back out on your bike soon. Take care.

[Greg-mele]

It is always cringe when people are so dead against things that they haven't tried or understand. It is one thing to have an opinion. But it is another thing to be so dogmatic and authoritative when you simply have an opinion like everyone else. Ebikes and regular bikes will both have a place in the market. Ebikes have greatly expanded the bike buying market and also have had people with health issues also be able to get on bikes when the could not previously. Many of us have both types and it has caused us be cycling much more than ever.

[rideseventyMTB]

You need to specify which class e-bike you are talking about up front. You mentioned a throttle ebike near the end, but I am assuming you are talking about all of them. I ride a class 1 e-bike (pedal assist with max 20mph). If you ban those, ban elite riders too. I can’t keep up with my 13 year old son while I am on my e-bike and he’s on a Scott Spark. He averages 15 mph on mountain bike trails. Which is way faster than I can ride my e-bike. In paved areas, he regularly gets over 20mph on flat sections. Riding an e-bike over 20 is extremely difficult, unless it’s downhill. I work hard to keep up in trail mode on my Canyon Spectral:On.

Without the e-bike, I wouldn’t be able to ride with my son.

As another poster mentioned, it is the rider, not the bike. Your crash would have happened regardless of the bike. It was the idiot on the bike.

[jimporter]

I could not disagree more, e-bikes are not ruining biking. First of all it seems like you are lumping all e-bikes into the same category, there is a HUGE difference between a pedal assist bike and a bike with a throttle.

Sorry to hear about the accident, but that accident - as you described it- didn't happen because the rider was on an e-bike. Lets face it, if an analog rider did the same thing, the result would have been the same. It happened because an inattentive person did something inherently dangerous to other people. Sure you could make an argument that the person would not be on the trail if they had to pedal a regular bike, maybe it's true, maybe it's not but you can't blame a product because some idiot is using that product in a dangerous manor.

I live in WA state where there are lots, and lots of hills. The area where i live, you couldn't find a ride over a mile that is completely flat, having an e-bike opens riding up to people who would normally just sit on a couch and rot away.

The majority of people I see on e-bikes on my local trails are older unfit people who literally couldn't ride an analog bike on those paths. Sure I see the occasional idiot being an idiot but I'm not willing to tell my mom (in her 70s) she can't ride her bike because there are other idiots out there.

Finally, it seemed very arrogant to me that you should expect others to exercise based on your preferences. I have e-bikes and analog, I choose what i want to ride based on my goals for that day.

[marcazcona]

The e-bike you ran into by your description was most likely a Super 73 or Surron. No self respecting Santa Cruz Heckler eMTB owner would be riding on a bike path with roadies. Your video makes it seem like you group eMTB riders and Super 73/Surron riders together as a problem. This discussion reminds me of skiers who hated snow boarders in the early days. It's a bummer that you crashed. Glad it wasn't more serious. You are vilifying all e-bikes including eMTB riders. I've owned multiple Santa Cruz, GT, Canyon, and Rocky Mountain analog bikes. I recently purchased the new Specialized Turbo Levo SL and all I can say is if you ever get on a super light eMTB you will have hard time going back to your analog bike. I get the physical challenge and sense of accomplishment of climbing. But nothing beats the smile you get from lapping flowy downhill over and over again. Good luck on the bike paths.

[johnnyfraley]

After riding bikes all my life and I just bought an Aventon Aventure 2. It came with an extra battery included, normally a $500 addition, for a total of $2000 delivered. With both batteries it has a 80 mile range without pedaling and more range the more you pedal. It weighs 75 pounds and has 4 inch wide tires. It is a beast. The big advantage is that I can pedal when I want and let the ebike motor take over completely when I want to rest but still keep moving. I think it extends the biking experience for older folks.

[Argyle]

Dang, I thought you had some footage to show. Bottom line is, you can have a-holes on any type of bike, scooter or skateboard. It’s not about what type of bike they are riding, it’s about the person that is riding the bike, and their behavior. I’ve been on our bike hike and had crazy riders recklessly zoom by me on just regular bikes, but that’s just my experience. I wouldn’t blame the bike, or what type of bike, so much as I would blame the person that is riding the bike.

[webopus]

While I appreciate your viewpoint, I must heartily disagree. I rode everywhere on a Peugoet racing bike in early adulthood. Then I was inactive for a couple of decades. Now, at 76 I’ve become an avid mountain biker. Without the assistance that an Ebike provides, I doubt I would have ever made the attempt.

The belief that one doesn't expend effort when riding an Ebike is misguided. While the energy output on an analog bike may be more significant during a given ride, one generally rides three times the distance on an E-bike - in half the time. Believe me, it's a work out!

I have two Ebikes: a Sondors Rockstar with a throttle, and a Specialized Turbo Levo. They each have distinctly different purposes. I rarely use the throttle on my Rockstar except after coming to a dead stop at the bottom of a hill. It’s a nice option to have.

Bicycle etiquette is a whole different topic. Good trail etiquette is not the exclusive purview of analog bike riders. I've witnessed nasty crashes and know of fatalities among road bike enthusiasts who did not make good judgments.

I agree that Ebikes will dominate the future of cycling and honestly believe it to be a net positive. It brings new riders into the sport and creates more innovation. A purist approach will not provide more safety. It only creates hostility and division among those who seek the same source of enjoyment from a truly wonderful sport.

[CorncropTv]

It isn't that people are switching from Regular bikes to Electric bikes. There are those who like a regular bike for the exercise and those giving up cars to commute on an Electric bike to avoid the sweat and to haul cargo or kids on cargo Electric bikes. I would argue less cars on the road and more bike infrastructure from cities is far better for Cyclists and commuters on E bikes. Accidents happen, we are only human, and we do not live in some sort of bubble. Not everyone wants to be drenched in sweat when moving about and this argument of E bikes being the problem ignores many cyclists who treat bike paths like their own personal trainer by going as fast as possible for as long as they can, and this is coming from a cyclist myself. It isn't the tool it's the one wielding it.

[carlsadca]

As a path oriented cyclist I would ask what your protocols are for people who are walking in front of you, ware walking with a pet on a leash, walking with pet not on a leash, runners with headphones on etc. and overtaking someone. Double these obstacles because these same occurrences take place in the opposite direction to your travel as well. We need to be even more vigilant on a path-because of all the variables-even more so than a street ride.. I have always my safety is dependent on ME because I cannot control the actions of others. I wear a helmet, use daytime running lights a bell and often a loud but firm voice when passing anything. Yeah I know that bonehead was at fault for your accident because he didn't look before proceeding-you can only do so much to be seen and heard when riding on a path--but you have to be constantly on guard for any scenario you may have to react to when around other

[FloppyWaffle]

I hear what you are saying but in your description of the accident, that could have just as easily happened if a person on a regular old fat-bike decided to brake hard in front of you. I am in agreement in that if the bike has an accelerator it's no longer a bicycle and those should not be on bike paths, bike trails or bike lanes. Pedal assist is a different animal though. You had an accident and now you are hurt through no fault of your own but the bike the guy was on isn't to blame, it's the idiot that was riding it.

[reedwindmiller]

All I can hear is "you kids get off my lawn". What your going to find out is stupid is everywhere. If it wasn't the guy on the ebike it would be the walker or runner blasting music that just decides to change direction on the path without looking and can't hear you coming. You can't fix stupid so you just have to be prepared to run into it every once and a while.

[cenk.toplar]

11:11 Well said Sir !

I fight as a Professional MMA. I have one day off and I do MTBiking for condtioning and fun. I love cycling. I have XC, Enduro, Downhill and a BMX bikes.

I have to tell you this now. I was climbing with my Enduro bike in Germany - Winterberg. Person saw me climbing because I was climbing slower than usual according to him. Because he looked at my bike and said ''oh you have no motor on it ?'' said in German. Because almost nobody climbs nowadays and even if they do it they do it with E-Bike. No way in hell they climb a hill with a normal MTB.

Now I dont mind what people think because I know I want to get that heartbeat and earn that hill as I do it weekly and enjoy it.

What I can not stand is that there are so many entitled people on E-MTBs. They are overweight. They come to bike parks they eat full big Sandwich and right after they turn their bike on and sit on lift just like that. No warming up or setting the bike up NOTHING. Lift take them all the way up and they go down with batteries on. No effort, nothing. And than somewhere around lunch time they sit and have a full lunch and they go back to on trail again. This time they use reserve battery because the first one got empty carrying all that weight.

This is what I call fast-food mentality. Life is on easy mode for them.

[williamholton]

Great commentary and thanks for the discussion points. I have an analogue mountain bike and an eMTB. My ebike will not move forward unless I pedal it. Your point is well taken concerning e-bikes with throttles. Those are motor bikes. My ebike enables me to ride further than I would otherwise in this hilly area where I live. Destination rides are a lot of fun. It has also helped me get back in shape while I recover from some recent health issues. I am now in decent enough condition to ride the analogue MTB again thanks to e.

Cheap e motor bikes are going to be problem moving forward. It’s a bit like a kid with a brand new driving license picking up an Audi R8 just because they can afford it. Doesn’t happen often, but they don’t know how to drive it, like the e motor bike rider that cut you off. The important distinction here is between an ebike and an emotor bike. However, it’s not the tool it’s the fool.

[garob]

Honestly, I will be 63 years old this year, and I ride a Dahon Visc folding bike out on the same streets with crazy car drivers. The Dahon is my exercise bike, since it was designed and constructed very well, in my opinion. It's lasted me for eight years now. My age and where I ride are the two major factors that influenced my decision this year to wear the same body protection that motocross riders and motorcycle riders wear: Alpinestars, Leatt, and Dianese Level 2 protection jackets, knee guards, elbow guards, and a ILM modular motorcycle helmet! I've recently added a pair of Alpinestars knee braces to my armor. In addition to this, I've added SAS-TEC Level 2 protection pads to the shoulder pads, elbow guards, and knee pads. It's made a world of difference in my level of confidence being out on the road with cars, motorcyclist, and other bikers. I haven't seen anyone else whatsoever wearing such armor but me, and everybody looks at me like they've never seen anything like me before - but that's alright. Investing a few hundred dollars in protection gear now is much more preferable to having to spend thousands of dollars later on recovering from serious injuries. I consider myself a very conscientious rider, and always look around me to see what's coming up from behind, or to my sides, as well as what is in front of me. I have both left and right mirrors on my bike! The armor protections probably won't prevent serious life-threatening injury or fractures from a severe car impact, if for some unforeseen reason that should happen; but, if I get thrown from my bike for any reason, they will minimize the chances of suffering minor and severe abrasions, flesh wounds and contusions, perhaps even muscle and tendon tearing as well. I know that the knee braces will lessen the chances for damage to my knees . I would advise any bike rider to consider wearing armor when they're out on the trails or streets anytime - especially on the streets. If you had been wearing a motorcycle helmet, and shoulder pads, you would have been wound-free from your accident. It is at least something to consider.

[JohnDumas-wz]

I have had the opposite experience. I rode regular bicycles most of my life. Now, these were not the upper end bikes. Mine was a Schwin 3 speed which my wife bought me as a wedding gife 53 years ago. Then I met a friend at church who had just purchased an ebike. My brother, then 70, had done the same. Both told me how much fun they were having getting out and riding around town. So, I purchased an ebike and began to ride on our town's bike / hike trail. Within the first 6 months I was forced off the trail by high speed riders on sport racing bikes who had no courtesy and even yelled at me that I had not right to be on that trial. I'm 77 and I read the trail use regulations. Ebikes are allowed, but courtesy is recommended when passing a hiker or another rider.

[toxiemaniac]

Swiss guy here, we had the same cycling and ebike boom during covid. Lots of older people that have never ridden a bicycle in 30+ years bought ebikes (pedal assist models), and it was crazy to see the lack of skills. Lots of them had pretty bad or even deadly accidents. But there's also a tendency that lots of people now use their pedal assist bikes as a commuting replacement for a car, which is a good thing. So not all e-bike related things are bad.