Riide the start-up and Riide the bike...

[Jack Tyler]

The Washington Post just published an article - an update of sorts on their earlier coverage - about Riide the rideshare and also ebike manufacturer. While the article is more 'journalism by google' than insightful or current, it's encouraging to see the coverage. And watching the video associated with the article, I was surprised to see so many bike lanes in downtown DC, another encouraging sign.

Meanwhile, Riide the ebike does now offer some (too brief) tech specs at the bottom of their home page. Price is now $2K, and there's no mention I saw of other models.

One thing I guess we have to accept about this design: It was intended fundamentally to serve as a rideshare product. That means it has to be accessible, in a physical sense, to the broadest possible ridership. That probably eliminated derailer mechanisms, for example. And it also means it has to be as trouble free as possible, in order for Riide (the rideshare company) to minimize disappointed customers and bad word of mouth. Thus, 'simple' and 'minimal features' seems to be at the root of its design. So....when viewing the Riide as an ebike choice, how competitive a product it is depends greatly on how it matches up with our individual requirements. Occasional bike trail use? Hilly contours where we ride? Better energy management via selectable gearing? Individual preferences for displays, hydraulic brakes and such? Despite its qualities in some areas (weight, simplicity, lower maintenance demands), it seems to be the plain vanilla choice. Which probably serves Riide the rideshare company well. For many of us, perhaps not so much.

 

[Cameron Newland]

Great article!

I did see some crazy comments at the bottom of the article from the anti-ebike crowd, and I spent a few minutes composing constructive replies in order to combat some of their false assumptions/false statements about ebikes. I strongly encourage all EBR Community members to read the article and then politely reply to comments at the bottom of the thread there so that we as a community might inform Washington Post readers about their misconceptions about ebikes. There is perhaps no better way to change someone's mind than to tell them your story about how you came to buy an ebike and how well it works for you.

 

[Joris Mossfeld]

I'm not sure why there is mention of "rideshare" with Riide. They sell the bikes, but you can alternatively lease them at $79 per month (minimum year commitment, own after 2 years). I think that leasing is a nifty option for an e-bike, given the high initial investment for buying one new. Riide also throws in theft insurance and a very nice Abus Bordo bike lock, so it's a risk-lite deal. The Riide folks might want to try and sell their bikes to companies in cities as part of a fleet of bikes that employees, or maybe hotel guests, could borrow. That would be innovative. My main gripe about the Riide is that the battery cannot be removed for charging. Otherwise, it's a pretty fun bike to ride in the city. I test rode one last month in D.C (thanks, Erin!).