Althouse: Will an electric bike make you lazy?

June 8, 2010

Will an electric bike make you lazy?

Or is it more of a danger to your feelings as real cyclists mock you?

23 comments:

Hoosier Daddy said...: I'll tell you what fries my giblits is seeing those kids on motorized scooter things that used to be propelled by foot power. Now that's lazy.

As for motorized bikes I think they just contribute to a more lazy society that can't muster the minimal extertion to pedal a bike.; 6/8/10, 9:43 AM
TWM said...: I'll stick with my Kawaski Vulcan. At 50mpg it's a great non-sweaty/eco-friendly way to get around town. And no one mocks me either (except Harley riders and they're all bald and sweaty by nature so who cares).; 6/8/10, 9:44 AM
Ron said...: If there were only a bike that would save the earth AND cure our obesity AND get us out of Afghanistan our moral superiority would be complete!

Oh, and save the snail darters too...; 6/8/10, 9:47 AM
Andrea said...: I see they've revamped the moped.; 6/8/10, 9:47 AM
Unknown said...: I think ebikes are fantastic and bike purists are one of the reasons that more people aren't using bikes for serious commuting and errands. Who cares if you're "cheating"? My only concern is making sure that ebikes using bike facilities (i.e. bike paths or bike lanes) are limited to below certain speeds/horsepower, otherwise they're mopeds that should be on the street with the motorcycles and cars. But if an ebike lets someone use a bike who otherwise wouldn't/couldn't due to fitness, disability, age, energy, or concerns about professional appearance then I am all for it! Some people are great riding 10 miles to work but don't want to tackle big hills and an ebike is the only way they'd do it.; 6/8/10, 9:47 AM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 6/8/10, 9:56 AM
Anonymous said...: Or you might just find them a whole lot of fun.

I predict a short career at the Grauniad for this one.; 6/8/10, 9:57 AM
Tibore said...: "Or is it more of a danger to your feelings as real cyclists mock you?"

It wouldn't be as bad as the mocking one would get for riding a Segway. And that'd be the general public speaking, not just cyclists.; 6/8/10, 10:05 AM
John said...: Jenniferwhatnot,

I agree with you. The general douchbaggery of cyclists does more to make bikes unpopular than anything else.; 6/8/10, 10:07 AM
joeschmo1of3 said...: I mock, I mock! Really, get a pure bike or a pure moped. Don't fake it!; 6/8/10, 10:10 AM
kjbe said...: I think Trek has some kind of electric-assist bike (though not as full-on as this one) and agree with Jennifer, it has a lot of potential enabling those who wouldn't normally consider biking.; 6/8/10, 10:15 AM
rhhardin said...: You go at whatever speed just works you at the highest level you can sustain for the distance involved, once you're competent at cycling. Judging that effort is the competence. (There's the trouble with cycling with girlfriends; your happy speeds differ a lot. You have to be willing to go for the company instead of the cycling high.)

Adding a motor then would just raise that speed.; 6/8/10, 10:16 AM
Hoosier Daddy said...: The general douchbaggery of cyclists

That's Mr. Douchebag to you skippy ;-); 6/8/10, 11:06 AM
TWM said...: "I agree with you. The general douchbaggery of cyclists does more to make bikes unpopular than anything else."

Lord this is true. I have two good friends - husband and wife - who are big cyclists. They have for years harped at me to buy a bicycle and join them, touting how great a lifestyle it is (healthy, good for the environment, etc) while condescendingly chiding me every time I have resisted their efforts. Then again I have some fun with them by occasionally noting on my FB page how I often throw empty coke cans at cyclists who get in the way of my SUV so it's all good.; 6/8/10, 11:09 AM
Hoosier Daddy said...: Then again I have some fun with them by occasionally noting on my FB page how I often throw empty coke cans at cyclists who get in the way of my SUV so it's all good.

Oh that's real nice.; 6/8/10, 11:14 AM
Big Mike said...: "Will an electric bike make you lazy?"

Doesn't the answer depend on whether you're bicycling because (1) you are trying to get exercise, or (2) trying to get from point A to point B?

It's not as though the electric bike does all the work for you, is it?; 6/8/10, 11:23 AM
TWM said...: "Oh that's real nice."

It's a joke Hoosier. I would never waste a recyclable can like that.; 6/8/10, 11:31 AM
Wince said...: I don't think anyone from the flat lands is in a position to "mock" those in hilly regions about the use of electric power assisted bikes.; 6/8/10, 11:37 AM
GMay said...: "Will and electric bike make you lazy?"

I'm thinking that you make you lazy.; 6/8/10, 11:44 AM
Hoosier Daddy said...: It's a joke Hoosier. I would never waste a recyclable can like that.

Never can tell these days as I know a fellow cyclist who did get brained in the helmet by an empty beer bottle tossed from a passing car.; 6/8/10, 12:52 PM
Anonymous said...: If all those people who think owing a Prius is the coolest, greenest, most moral, bravest decision any person could ever make, I find it hard to see why they would object to a battery-assist bike.

I've tried out two battery assist bikes in the last two months. One was powerful but its motor whine, I could tell, would drive me crazy, after a few days. The other was so sluggish I just figured, "hey, I'll just put another 10 pounds of air pressure in my tires and save myself $2,000." So instead of a new electric bike I bought a new full-size, heavy duty bicycle pump.; 6/8/10, 3:25 PM
ken in tx said...: It won't matter. You're still going to get sooty and sweaty if you bike to work any place south of the Maryland/Pa line. To promote biking to work, work places have to provide showers and time off to change to accommodate bikers. The same with public tran. If employers don't allow people to be late when the metro is late, few will take the metro.; 6/9/10, 2:06 PM
Average Joe Cyclist said...: All of the people (such as Hoosier Daddy) who are so utterly scathing and dismissive of electic bikes - I think it's a good bet to say you've never had a heart attack, right? FYI, many of the people on electric bikes HAVE had heart attacks; also serious back surgery. You may be young and healthy now, but you won't always be, so it might be an idea to start developing a little compassion for those less fortunate than yourself. See also my post, http://averagejoecyclist.com/?p=321

I know a guy who has had TWO near fatal heart attacks. AFTER that, he took up cycling to work (with a little assistance from his ebike). He is preserving the environment and rebuilding his shattered health. I think he deserves respect, not contempt.

IMHO, ANY kind of cycling is better than destroying the environment in a car.; 11/2/10, 11:46 PM