HappyNaturalist
Member
- Region
- USA
Hello - and thank you to everyone who contributes to this forum! After just being curious about ebikes for years, I recently had an opportunity to ride someone’s and now I’m totally sold on having my own.
We are a one-car, empty-nester couple. I want an ebike to use for daily commuting & running errands (pretty much all within a 3-10 mile radius) along with recreational riding; my husband is on the fence about getting one for himself. He has been a cycling enthusiast all his life (he grew up commuting by bike); I am a less experienced rider. (After a spectacular wipe out at age 9 that wrecked my banana-seat beginner bike (and left me with two dead teeth), my well-meaning parents gave me a too-big 10-speed with the encouragement “You’ll grow into it” - not realizing what a hit my confidence and enthusiasm would take trying to ride what was to me a behemoth.)
Ever since meeting him, hubby has done an amazing job helping me rebuild my confidence and rediscover the many joys of cycling. (An early gift was a mountain bike he found at a police auction (one that fit me!) - which he then completely disassembled, cleaned and reassembled. I was aghast when I came home to all the parts spread across our tiny apartment floor, lol - and all the more enamoured with him when he presented me with my “like new” ride.
My favorite bike ever was a Bianchi Volpe - an early hybrid model with drop handlebars and slightly wider, treadier tires than a road bike. I think I loved it partly because it just fit me so well - I could balance incredibly easily on it (loved doing a “flying mount/dismount” - what a confidence booster it was to discover I could actually do that!), and I never felt out of control on it. Alas, it was also a very efficient bicycle and since we weren’t in a position to have a “quiver of bikes” when our children were young, I replaced it with a more family-friendly model. It’s been a reliable ride but I’ve never loved it and haven’t felt the pull to want to use it; it's mostly sat in the garage since the kids moved on.
Today, I’m wanting to cycle again - for transportation and as a means of staying active and fit, but also simply to enjoy cycling again. (Cycling for transportation and fitness is great - but that's not what motivates me to actually get the bike out of the garage.) Now that I’m older (and maybe not as agile or strong as I used to be), I believe an ebike is the best choice for both functionality and fun. From the brief experiences I've had, riding an ebike gives me the confidence not to worry about being “too tired” to make it back home (or up that next hill), as well as to ride on suburban streets that lack bike lanes (a sad reality for my route to and from work). Plus they’re just - so much fun! (A feeling I'm hoping will last.)
Choosing which ebike is the best option for me is proving to be a bit more complicated than I anticipated - which is where all the amazing insights and comments in these forums are so helpful! I love reading and learning from everyone’s experiences - newbies and veterans alike! I’ll post specific details and questions about my search in the “Help Choosing a bike” forum - I just wanted to say hello and thank you here.
We are a one-car, empty-nester couple. I want an ebike to use for daily commuting & running errands (pretty much all within a 3-10 mile radius) along with recreational riding; my husband is on the fence about getting one for himself. He has been a cycling enthusiast all his life (he grew up commuting by bike); I am a less experienced rider. (After a spectacular wipe out at age 9 that wrecked my banana-seat beginner bike (and left me with two dead teeth), my well-meaning parents gave me a too-big 10-speed with the encouragement “You’ll grow into it” - not realizing what a hit my confidence and enthusiasm would take trying to ride what was to me a behemoth.)
Ever since meeting him, hubby has done an amazing job helping me rebuild my confidence and rediscover the many joys of cycling. (An early gift was a mountain bike he found at a police auction (one that fit me!) - which he then completely disassembled, cleaned and reassembled. I was aghast when I came home to all the parts spread across our tiny apartment floor, lol - and all the more enamoured with him when he presented me with my “like new” ride.
My favorite bike ever was a Bianchi Volpe - an early hybrid model with drop handlebars and slightly wider, treadier tires than a road bike. I think I loved it partly because it just fit me so well - I could balance incredibly easily on it (loved doing a “flying mount/dismount” - what a confidence booster it was to discover I could actually do that!), and I never felt out of control on it. Alas, it was also a very efficient bicycle and since we weren’t in a position to have a “quiver of bikes” when our children were young, I replaced it with a more family-friendly model. It’s been a reliable ride but I’ve never loved it and haven’t felt the pull to want to use it; it's mostly sat in the garage since the kids moved on.
Today, I’m wanting to cycle again - for transportation and as a means of staying active and fit, but also simply to enjoy cycling again. (Cycling for transportation and fitness is great - but that's not what motivates me to actually get the bike out of the garage.) Now that I’m older (and maybe not as agile or strong as I used to be), I believe an ebike is the best choice for both functionality and fun. From the brief experiences I've had, riding an ebike gives me the confidence not to worry about being “too tired” to make it back home (or up that next hill), as well as to ride on suburban streets that lack bike lanes (a sad reality for my route to and from work). Plus they’re just - so much fun! (A feeling I'm hoping will last.)
Choosing which ebike is the best option for me is proving to be a bit more complicated than I anticipated - which is where all the amazing insights and comments in these forums are so helpful! I love reading and learning from everyone’s experiences - newbies and veterans alike! I’ll post specific details and questions about my search in the “Help Choosing a bike” forum - I just wanted to say hello and thank you here.
