10 Reasons to Go E-Powered with Cycleboredom
Recently our friend Chris over at Cycleboredom – experienced cyclist of all types and totally rad dad – shared with us his take on the 10 Reasons To Go E-Powered with a cargo e-bike. As a self proclaimed eBike convert myself, I can say that these are all so spot on! Take a look to see: is a Bosch powered EdgeRunner right for you?
10 Reasons To Go E-Powered
1) It finally becomes a true replacement for your automobile. I find myself only using the car to make longer trips or when conditions are adverse enough to compromise safety. The following points below detail why.
2) Everything becomes easier. As easy as using the me-powered EdgeRunner was, it still was you powering a massive 50lb bike sometimes with a kid, sometimes with groceries, and sometimes all those things. The motor on the cargo e-bike removes that mental and literal weight from the decision process.
3) It removes a large percentage of the decision process between car or bike (if you have both) because the e-power is so easy. Taking the bike requires a certain level of mental and physical fortitude. We’re not always up for the challenge, even if it’s our sole source of transportation for those who have gone car-free. E-power removes that stress from the equation—so much so that I look for reasons to use the powered version.
4) Distances considered for the bike are greatly extended. A majority of us who commute by bike are capable of traveling great distances. This changes when your bike is huge and capable of hauling up to 400lbs (total weight). The electric motor virtually removes this from the equation. My longest commutes with my daughter have been just around 5 miles, one way. That’s about the limit of what we want to do by bike. Here in Arlington, we start to see less infrastructure the further from the “core” we travel making some of the routes uncomfortable to ride on even when e-powered.
5) Terrain isn’t a consideration any longer. This one’s obvious—hills disappear with the Bosch motor. Granted, you still find yourself assisting from time to time enough to get some exercise, but you could completely back off and still make it up steep hills with minimal effort. So that hill you’d face coming back from the park isn’t an issue any longer.
6) It allows you to string destinations/errands together. Since it’s so quick and your energy expenditure is nothing compared to me-powered it makes it feasible to do multiple things in one trip. I regularly hit Costco, Whole Foods, then pick up my daughter from school—a 6 mile round trip taking roughly an hour with 30 minutes of that as trip time. I’m extremely quick at Costco, BTW.
7) Starting from a stop is EXTREMELY fast. For me this important because it allows you to take command in complicated traffic situations. Too often with our me-powered Edgerunner, motorists would take our right-of-way if we didn’t get off the line fast enough, despite my high skill level in dealing with these situations.
8) Starting from a stop is EXTREMELY stable. My me-powered Edgerunner is incredibly balanced. However, with the acceleration of the Bosch motor, there’s a massive difference from foot-down-stopped to balanced and safely on your way when compared to me-powered.
9) It puts you in command. Once up to speed, it puts you in command or magnifies your presence in many traffic situations (especially on 25mph side streets) with your speed. It changes the perception of you as a vehicle moving at a decent pace rather than an impediment a motorist has to decide to pass or not.
10) It doesn’t feel or appear stressful. From a psychological standpoint, and this might not matter to all, it feels better to not struggle or show that your struggling or that commuting by bike isn’t an arduous task and you’re some warrior outlier that’s crazy for doing this thing. It’s a small thing but it can definitely affect your decision as to whether you use the bike or not.