@Mike leroy you can theorize ebikes forever but you won't ever know until you dive in. Few things in life are a sure thing! Trust me you will not be able to evaluate your needs by where I ride.
I started thinking about ebikes in the fall of 2013, just thinking! Half the time I would see an ebike while on my bike I thought e-bikers were "cheating", in retrospect I have no idea what they would have been cheating at. But I warmed to the idea and started reading, not contributing, reading. Specs, stories and advise. I watched Court's and Pet's videos and a couple other reviewers too.
I got to this community around late spring of 2014 and somewhat followed people here. People I thought had experiences I thought were valuable. Members like
@Brambor @Shea N Encinitas @EddieJ @PowerMe @86 and still kicking @George S. @Court . And a few others here that are very honest, analytical and have experiences I can identify with. Follow these members, they will share their experiences. PowerMe doesn't even own an ebike but she is intelligent the way she goes about her research. Mind you I still was not a member here, just a reader.
I purchased an ebike early Fall, 2014 for the upcoming cold weather commuting season. That's when I joined this community and started to contribute and ask questions. I didn't get my ultimate dream ebike, I didn't know what that was anyway. I knew I could research ebikes forever and never get the perfect one. I've worked in commercial design, engineering and manufacturing for more than 30 years so I know there will always be something better. I figured I would get my feet wet and get a good yet moderately priced ebike and ride it for a year.
I continue to research and shop but I ride while doing it. For good or bad I'm hooked on ebikes now. I will continue to ride my road and mountain bikes but my X3 is there when I want a 35 mile blast with a couple thousand feet of climb. I'll have a better ebike this time next year (hopefully) because e-biking is a lot of fun, doing it, not reading it. Life is no good without some fun!