Class 1 as best type of ebike for teens

[ebikemom]

In my area, ebikes are, happily, proliferating! And, I see more and more teens on them. A surprising thing I've noticed is "throttle only" riding by some teens who appear to be quite able bodied. A kid I saw yesterday was riding, standing on the pedals, throttle only. But, throttle-only riding misses out on the *active* transportation potential of an ebike.

When I started my son out on ebiking (he was 16), I had Pedego remove the throttle. This allowed him to become habituated to pedaling his ebike. I had the throttle connected/installed after about six weeks ... where we live there are steep hills and the throttle is extremely useful if one must start on a hill. He doesn't ride "throttle only" though.

I point out the throttle-removal possibility because some bikes DO come with throttles and they CAN be removed. For my son's bike that meant simply not connecting it, not installing the throttle lever, and using a longer handgrip.

Anyway, this is just something to consider if getting an ebike for a teenager, if you want your teen to be active.

For those who are unaware ...
Class 1: pedal assist, no throttle, assist up to 20mph
Class 2: pedal assist, throttle, assist up to 20mph

Pedaling onward and upward!

 

[trailerguy52]

I will be 67 next month and have use the throttle only mode once, just to see if it worked. I went 12 miles today mostly in the low assist mode as I find that part of the fun is not just in riding but keeping the whole body moving. I suppose that if I ever twist an ankle or hurt something while I am out that I will be glad to have the throttle to get me home. I agree that teens don't need to throttle the bike.

 

[ebikemom]

part of the fun is not just in riding but keeping the whole body moving

I completely agree! I only use the throttle for starts if I'm on a hill, need to start fast, or if my knee is bothering me.

 

[JRA]

Although I have throttles on all 3 of my bikes it bugs me no matter what age person I see using just the throttle exclusively while underway. Happened just the other day out on the 101 a guy was just tooling along on a Radrover.

Definitely does not represent the spirit of the law regarding eBikes as I see it but unfortunately the barn door is wide open regarding its legality no matter if you are 16 or 61.

Perception by even those in the eBike community is that throttles are bad and their exclusive use isn’t helping any nor a good look to those outside the community. But I still maintain that they are of use for those that have them and use them responsibly to suit their riding needs/requirements.

 

[ez3putt]

I disagree. I think a throttle makes an e-bike safer for anyone. Especially in slow speed maneuvers on a crowded trail. Just put a computer on it that limits the throttle only speed to 5 mph. No teen is going to throttle along at 5 mph when PAS with little effort gets them to twenty. It will still get them started on an incline.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

I switched from an e-bike with a throttle (Pedego Interceptor) to one without (R&M Charger) about a year ago and absolutely do not miss the throttle.

Personally I believe that with smarter pedal assist software (e.g. software that detects high torque and low cadence situations) would make throttles superfluous 99 percent of the time.

 

[Cowlitz]

I like the throttle for getting started up hills and for rocketing out of the intersection of doom here in town. The quicker you get through that, the safer you are.

 

[ebikemom]

Just put a computer on it that limits the throttle only speed to 5 mph

That's an interesting idea. There are some people with disabilities who need to go faster with a throttle, though ... it's tough because though some people really need throttles in order to use ebikes, they are easy for kids to abuse...

 

[PDoz]

Ever watched a kid on a flow track? No pedalling, but very much actively engaged in riding a bike.

There's a lot more to riding a bike than spinning cranks, and quite frankly - bums on bikes beats thumbs on phones

 

[PDoz]

knew I had some photos

 

[PDoz]

Even a decent gravity track - I doubt we pedal for more than 2 minutes on this 15 minute descent , yet we're STUFFED by the bottom. A great work out, and fantastic to see kids out enjoying a semi natural environment.
( the bike is unassisted )