Originally Posted by
freeranger
A friend, and road rider, told me he had purchased a new bike. Would not tell me what it was, said I'd see it on the next ride. Seeing as he is 79, and has had knee surgery, and just recently gotten rid of the brace he had to wear, I figured I'd see an e-bike. Well, no e-bike! It was a hybrid-not a top of the line, lightweight model either. It has some weight to it. I told him I thought I'd be seeing a new e-bike. He replied that it's going to be a long way off before he might buy an e-bike. Sounds like eventually is a bit down the road for him.
You friend is wise, but too many others use age as an excuse to count themselves out long before it truly is necessary. When I got to a point where I couldn't pedal straight and level despite my best effort then I'd see the need for an e-bike.
Now that's just for the physical part. I'm not against e-bikes, just at the idea of an"its better than nothing" substituent for true exercise. An e-bike can still be ridden for fun, transportation, etc. so that its not about the supplanting exercise and health benefits.
Originally Posted by
350htrr
The same thing that stopped the mopeds from being considered a bicycle... Too much power/speed, and not really needed to be pedaled to be operated as a bicycle,... After a certain amount of time, and the number of people riding them increased to be a problem, the
Laws caught up, and were changed...
BY the way, Bicycles and Legal E-Bikes, compared to SUV's are not in the same category, not even close…
Not a good analogy. Mopeds fell out of favor because they were loud, messy, unreliable, and had an uncomfortable design. They were also heavy so you couldn't put them on a bus rack. And because of their fuel tank, you most certainly couldn't take them on a train. E-bikes on the other hand, are quiet, look like conventional bicycles, and environmentally clean and safe.