[This fragment is available in an audio version.]
This is just another round of cheerleading for e-bikes, provoked by my odometer clicking over to three thousand km. Granted, not amazing for twenty months of commuting, but not nothing. For anyone in an even marginally urban situation in reasonable health, if you don’t have one of these, you’re really missing a trick. For earlier raving about this vehicle, see here.
March flowers by False Creek.
More interesting than 3000, and prime.
Capital cost: Noticeable but much less than anything with a motor.
Fuel cost: Damn close to zero.
Parking cost: Free.
Health cost: Negative.
Carbon loading: Trivial.
Mind-clearing ability: High.
Cargo capacity: Remarkable.
Getting you the hell out of the house during Covid: Beyond price.
There must be some gripes? · Oh yeah, I had a flat. So I bought a new tube and slipped it in and absolutely could not get the big thick fucking tire back on the fucking rim. I had to take it to a bike shop, where I discovered that my wrestling with it had ruined the new inner tube — ten bucks shot to hell — and this skinny little bike-shop woman slipped it on in no time.
Oh, and I ran out of power once and just about gave myself a coronary pumping this klunker up a not-too-steep hill.
These things are rough on chains; I’ve replaced it once and it’s getting ratty again. This is unsurprising, since the bike is so heavy and a low gear plus the e-boost pulls awfully hard, especially if you insist on going fast, which I do.
There’s no place to stash a latte if you pick one up on the way to work.
You’re stretching · Obviously. It’s fast, it’s smooth, it’s fun, it’s green, and it’s on balance cheap. I can’t imagine who wouldn’t want one.
Comment feed for ongoing:
From: Paul Morriss (Mar 22 2021, at 02:20)
For me, getting tired is a feature not a bug, so I'm happy to have a normal bike and go for short rides to keep up my fitness. For a longer commute though, an electric bike would be very attractive.
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