E-bikes are making a surge in the cycling world. From pedal assisting up a steep climb to speeding up your commute to getting you to your destination without breaking a sweat, the benefits are myriad. If an e-bike can keep you from walking up the hill in the woods or out of your car for your commute, it may be worth it to explore why you may want an e-bike.
For the Commute
If you live in a totally flat place like Amsterdam an e-bike might be overkill. For the rest of the world with hills and E-bike can deliver you to your job without being a sweaty mess. Because an e-bike is still a bike with pedals, you can smash on your way home and get as sweaty as you like, getting your exercise for the day. You may even get a little extra sweaty because the motor and battery will make the E-bike heavier than your regular bike. Remember that by riding any bike, including an e-bike, you will be keeping another car off of the road. In particularly congested areas, you can dramatically speed your commute with an e-bike.
The Faraday Porteur has everything you need in a commuting e-bike – fenders, a low maintenance belt drive and internal hub, commute specific tires and a built in headlamp to light the way. It has an up to date retro style to it too, just in case you are into the aesthetics of your commute. When you are passing all of those cars, you want to let them know that you are a cool kid too.
For Cargo
Pedaling to pick up a big load may be no problem, but the way home may leave you grunting and swearing. A little pedal assist could do the trick to get you home without wanting to swear off bikes forever. Cargo bikes can be significantly heavier than a standard bike. The electric assist may even be a welcome addition addition if you are pedaling the bike empty in a hilly place. You can also use your cargo e-bike to haul your kids around town without strapping them into a car.
There are a few different styles of cargo bikes. If you are going to get an E-bike, get one that can carry a big load, you will want a long bike or bakfiets in that case. The Urban Arrow Family Cargo Bike is a premium bakfiets with electric assist, a disc brake in the front to slow down that heavy load and a Nuvinci internal-gear rear hub.
Mountain Biking
Bombing down a sweet trail is a great thrill, but pedaling your long travel bike back up the hill can be a drag. With e-bike technology becoming smaller and more efficient, there is a burgeoning market for motorized mountain bikes to take the sting out of the ascent to the top of the trail. There is some debate whether E-bikes can use certain trails. If you do get one, check your trail accesThe before going hitting the trail.
The Specialized S-Works Turbo Levo FSR 6Fattie is a top-shelf E-mountain bike. It is equipped with parts you would expect on an S-Works mountain bike, with the addition of a motor to provide up to an additional five hundred thirty watts when needed.
Road and Touring
E-bikes are even making an appearance in sport road riding, and it is not for racing. That is clearly illegal. Road e-bikes are for those looking for a little help keeping up or cresting big climbs. This can be especially helpful when loaded touring. Whatever your reason for getting a road E-bike, there are more an more options out there, even from major bike manufacturers.
The Giant Road E+ has the spec of a mid-range alloy road racing bike. That downtube is not aerodynamically shaped, though. That is the battery pack and motor to give you that extra kick out on the road.
The E-Bike For Any Application
Technological advances have made the battery and motor designs cheaper and smaller. This has created a small explosion of available e-bikes for people to choose from. A pedal assist bike is no longer an at-home hack job. It is a fully polished complete bike ready to ride.
