Lazmo
Old and hopeless
Recently I’m starting to feel like I’m the weirdo for riding a bike that involves pedalling solely by the rider, without battery/motor e-assistance.
My LBS, who I went out of my way, to give him the recent insurance claim (99 bikes was supposed to get the sale) tells his e-riding mate, as I enter his shop, that here’s a guy who is still in denial about e-bikes.
At Blores Hill a few weeks ago, a local we know there, was pushing his e-doctrine to some dudes as we climbed to where they were chatting, I heard his self justifying e-pitch. Not long after that, we had to pullover, to let him pass (he surprise surprise e-climbed quicker than us) and then magically on our downhill run back to the car, he managed to stop my wife, I was well gone, and convince her to ride his e-bike back to the carpark. She’s just got a fricken brand new bike she’s loving and this e-knob is trying to upsell her on his $20k battery bike.
Friends new to the sport have e-bikes and they constantly ask why we don’t do the same.
For all of them, the rave is … you can go further, you get just as fit, you can ride the next day and you have more fun.
OK…
You can go further… likely true, as long as your battery is good and range anxiety doesn’t take over … … We are not just mtb park riders and often do rides that randomly take way longer and go further than we expected. As long as we’ve got water and a Mars Bar or two, we can take all day.
You get just as fit… … Bullshit.
You can ride the next day… … if you got just as fit riding your e-bike you’d be as fucked as the analogue rider, so the next day would be out. Regardless of this BS argument, we can always ride the next day, just maybe soften it up a bit.
You have more fun… … Fuck off, how dare you tell me, I’m not having fun. That’s why I ride you knobhead.
The tide is turning… there is nearly as many e-bikes as pedal bikes in most car parks at any given time.
That we analogue riders have to justify why we don’t e, is a total pain in the arse.
My LBS, who I went out of my way, to give him the recent insurance claim (99 bikes was supposed to get the sale) tells his e-riding mate, as I enter his shop, that here’s a guy who is still in denial about e-bikes.
At Blores Hill a few weeks ago, a local we know there, was pushing his e-doctrine to some dudes as we climbed to where they were chatting, I heard his self justifying e-pitch. Not long after that, we had to pullover, to let him pass (he surprise surprise e-climbed quicker than us) and then magically on our downhill run back to the car, he managed to stop my wife, I was well gone, and convince her to ride his e-bike back to the carpark. She’s just got a fricken brand new bike she’s loving and this e-knob is trying to upsell her on his $20k battery bike.
Friends new to the sport have e-bikes and they constantly ask why we don’t do the same.
For all of them, the rave is … you can go further, you get just as fit, you can ride the next day and you have more fun.
OK…
You can go further… likely true, as long as your battery is good and range anxiety doesn’t take over … … We are not just mtb park riders and often do rides that randomly take way longer and go further than we expected. As long as we’ve got water and a Mars Bar or two, we can take all day.
You get just as fit… … Bullshit.
You can ride the next day… … if you got just as fit riding your e-bike you’d be as fucked as the analogue rider, so the next day would be out. Regardless of this BS argument, we can always ride the next day, just maybe soften it up a bit.
You have more fun… … Fuck off, how dare you tell me, I’m not having fun. That’s why I ride you knobhead.
The tide is turning… there is nearly as many e-bikes as pedal bikes in most car parks at any given time.
That we analogue riders have to justify why we don’t e, is a total pain in the arse.
