Looking to get a bike now for the spring

[aml]

...the spring, then the summer and as much of the fall I can manage.

I'm living in suburban New England. I've been eyeing ebikes for a while, and seem about ready to take the plunge soon.

A couple of things have brought me here:

• I have a simple ~8 mile commute that I've long thought about biking (before considering an ebike I was considering driving halfway and parking my car until I could drive it comfortably, then drive less and less of the route.)
• I heard a bunch of Rad Power Bikes ads on podcasts a few years back, and that let me know ebikes existed
• It's looking to me that ebike inventory is tight now, and I can't imagine it getting better when everyone will want to be buying in the spring.
• Being cooped up for the past year, I'm thinking once I'm out and around the world more, maybe once I'm out into the world I should be out in the world, (not just transferring from the little box of my home, the little box of the car, to the little box of the office.)

I have my eye on a couple of bikes, some that are used bikes by private sellers. some are closeout previous closeouts and local bike dealers. My plan is to start to drive around the neighborhood, by spring start using the bike around town (drive to the drug store, hardware store, etc.) and by the time I switch from a 100% work from home to back at the office be confident enough on the road for the commute about 80% of the time depending on weather.

Seem like a reasonable plan?

 

[DaveMatthews]

Sounds good to me!
That being said, I bet when you get your ebike you'll be riding a lot further, way sooner than you think!

 

[Bigal1463]

Welcome to EBR and the wonderful world of e biking. You’ll see many posts where members advise to make your bike purchase fro your local bike shop, because of the support that you will definitely need at some point and like Dave Matthew said, you’ll be riding a lot further than you think. Eight miles is nothing on an e bike. Just remember to wear your helmet and ride safe. BTW, where are you in New England?

 

[DaveMatthews]

My office is about 8 miles from my house and I can do it in about 25 minutes without breaking a sweat.

 

[darksky]

My wife annd I decided to get e-bikes and were also concerned about the market tiightening up come spring and early summer, so we weent ahead and bought two Pedego Boomerang bikes. The experience at our local Pedego store was exceptional. Even though we're still in the middle of a typical wet Oregon winter we're glad we got bikes now so there's no worry about shortages or wait times later on.

 

[Art Deco]

...the spring, then the summer and as much of the fall I can manage.

I'm living in suburban New England. I've been eyeing ebikes for a while, and seem about ready to take the plunge soon.

A couple of things have brought me here:

• I have a simple ~8 mile commute that I've long thought about biking (before considering an ebike I was considering driving halfway and parking my car until I could drive it comfortably, then drive less and less of the route.)
• I heard a bunch of Rad Power Bikes ads on podcasts a few years back, and that let me know ebikes existed
• It's looking to me that ebike inventory is tight now, and I can't imagine it getting better when everyone will want to be buying in the spring.
• Being cooped up for the past year, I'm thinking once I'm out and around the world more, maybe once I'm out into the world I should be out in the world, (not just transferring from the little box of my home, the little box of the car, to the little box of the office.)

I have my eye on a couple of bikes, some that are used bikes by private sellers. some are closeout previous closeouts and local bike dealers. My plan is to start to drive around the neighborhood, by spring start using the bike around town (drive to the drug store, hardware store, etc.) and by the time I switch from a 100% work from home to back at the office be confident enough on the road for the commute about 80% of the time depending on weather.

Seem like a reasonable plan?

Very reasonable, but you might be overthinking this a bit. Have you had a chance to ride a couple of ebikes yet?

 

[AHicks]

Go for a ride the first chance you can do that comfortably, and I'm pretty sure that will be like the drink of Kool Aid the rest of us drank, that resulted in our addiction to e-bikes.

 

[Nomad]

...the spring, then the summer and as much of the fall I can manage.

I'm living in suburban New England. I've been eyeing ebikes for a while, and seem about ready to take the plunge soon.

A couple of things have brought me here:

• I have a simple ~8 mile commute that I've long thought about biking (before considering an ebike I was considering driving halfway and parking my car until I could drive it comfortably, then drive less and less of the route.)
• I heard a bunch of Rad Power Bikes ads on podcasts a few years back, and that let me know ebikes existed
• It's looking to me that ebike inventory is tight now, and I can't imagine it getting better when everyone will want to be buying in the spring.
• Being cooped up for the past year, I'm thinking once I'm out and around the world more, maybe once I'm out into the world I should be out in the world, (not just transferring from the little box of my home, the little box of the car, to the little box of the office.)

I have my eye on a couple of bikes, some that are used bikes by private sellers. some are closeout previous closeouts and local bike dealers. My plan is to start to drive around the neighborhood, by spring start using the bike around town (drive to the drug store, hardware store, etc.) and by the time I switch from a 100% work from home to back at the office be confident enough on the road for the commute about 80% of the time depending on weather.

Seem like a reasonable plan?

First off you should do it! Second is figuring what to get for a bike? I ride to work 6 day a week it's 5 miles. I live in northern NH and do it year round, I'm not suggesting you do year round like me I'm a little crazy ok ok some people say I'm nuts! As far as shortages of ebikes that true and not true shop around plan ahead and for the most part you can get the bike you want.

 

[aml]

Very reasonable, but you might be overthinking this a bit. Have you had a chance to ride a couple of ebikes yet?

I gave the used ebike I'm considering buying a test ride. I haven't been to the local bike shop (or rather closest store in a small regional chain.) but I've been viewing the inventory online. As for overthinking and having the commute as the goal. it just that there are a couple of spots that I think might be tricky (driving past highway on/off ramps, left turns on multi-lane roads that I'm concerned enough in a car, let alone a bike) And since the office is closed right now and I'm 100% work-from-home, its fine making it a long range goal because it won't happen short term anyway

 

[aml]

My office is about 8 miles from my house and I can do it in about 25 minutes without breaking a sweat.

The office has a gym with showers, so breaking a bit of a sweat wouldn't be too bad.

 

[Nomad]

Your talking about driving past not on the freeway?

 

[aml]

Welcome to EBR and the wonderful world of e biking. You’ll see many posts where members advise to make your bike purchase fro your local bike shop, because of the support that you will definitely need at some point and like Dave Matthew said, you’ll be riding a lot further than you think. Eight miles is nothing on an e bike. Just remember to wear your helmet and ride safe. BTW, where are you in New England?

I'm a bit southeast of Boston. The commute to the office that I'm talking about (once it opens) would be roughly Stoughton center to Blue Hills.
If I buy the used bike I'm figuring taking it soon to a local shop and giving it a lookover/tuneup and start to get to know them that way. And since I'm seeing some reasonable options at the local shop, I'm leaning more towards getting something there than from mailorder only places like Rad Power or Sondors.
(more evidence that I'm overthinking things: I'm figuring if I buy from a shop, I can put it on a payment plan. If I buy used, I have to pay more upfront, but will probably be replacing brakes, tires, etc. sooner. Both ways are spreading out the cost of ownership. The used bike I'll probably get closer to my purchase price if I decide its not for me)

Your talking about driving past not on the freeway?

Yes, past (not on) the freeway) There is even a marked off bike lane, but people are heading off the cloverleaf onto the state road at a pretty good clip.

 

[Art Deco]

I gave the used ebike I'm considering buying a test ride. I haven't been to the local bike shop (or rather closest store in a small regional chain.) but I've been viewing the inventory online. As for overthinking and having the commute as the goal. it just that there are a couple of spots that I think might be tricky (driving past highway on/off ramps, left turns on multi-lane roads that I'm concerned enough in a car, let alone a bike) And since the office is closed right now and I'm 100% work-from-home, its fine making it a long range goal because it won't happen short term anyway

It sounds like although the commute is short ish, it's not so simple. And that is worth a lot of thought. See if you can rent an ebike and try out the route that you expect to take. Many Trek and Giant shops will credit a rental against a purchase. There are places you won't want to ride any bike, but often there are good alternative routes. Good luck with your quest.

 

[Nomad]

I'm a bit southeast of Boston. The commute to the office that I'm talking about (once it opens) would be roughly Stoughton center to Blue Hills.
If I buy the used bike I'm figuring taking it soon to a local shop and giving it a lookover/tuneup and start to get to know them that way. And since I'm seeing some reasonable options at the local shop, I'm leaning more towards getting something there than from mailorder only places like Rad Power or Sondors.
(more evidence that I'm overthinking things: I'm figuring if I buy from a shop, I can put it on a payment plan. If I buy used, I have to pay more upfront, but will probably be replacing brakes, tires, etc. sooner. Both ways are spreading out the cost of ownership. The used bike I'll probably get closer to my purchase price if I decide its not for me)

Yes, past (not on) the freeway) There is even a marked off bike lane, but people are heading off the cloverleaf onto the state road at a pretty good clip.

If you like riding your iron horse from time to time u'll love riding your ebike if you get the right one for you. Keep in mind some dealer sell both online and brick & mortar.

 

[Bigal1463]

I’m from W Bridgewater. I generally ride in R.I., where there are some nice long trails.. Not that Massachusetts doesn‘t have nice trails. I ride some there as well. You will find yourself on lots of different trails once you get the time. The bike will be easy to get used to and it does get addictive at times. In the summertime, the Cape Cod Canal is a beautiful ride on either side. Good luck.

 

[Dallant]

Yes, from what little you’ve told us, it’s a reasonable plan. So what used bike are you looking at? Do you plan/are you capable of working on your ebike? What’s the high end of your budget? Age, any health issues, etc. can help us help you.

 

[PedalUma]

Are there any (Covid-safe) group rides of electric bikes in the Boston area? We do one here in Petaluma, CA on Thursdays. Talking to people and seeing a bunch of bikes at once is great. In a group ride you see the differences.

 

[Art Deco]

Are there any (Covid-safe) group rides of electric bikes in the Boston area? We do one here in Petaluma, CA on Thursdays. Talking to people and seeing a bunch of bikes at once is great. In a group ride you see the differences.

Try searching the "ebikes gangs" in title of a thread of ebr group riders by location

 

[aml]

Yes, from what little you’ve told us, it’s a reasonable plan. So what used bike are you looking at? Do you plan/are you capable of working on your ebike? What’s the high end of your budget? Age, any health issues, etc. can help us help you.

The used bike is an IZip E3 Vibe+, Although I think I have the general mechanical skills for working on the bike, and may start learning simple things, I do plan on making good use of a local bike shop. For budget, if I need to pay for it outright maybe $1400 or so, but if I can arrange a payment plan with the bike shop then maybe $2800 would be the high end of my budget. No direct health issues, but a middle aged guy who probably weighs more than he should and is less active than he should. (and even that "middle-age". At this point if it means that I'll live twice the age now its probably an slightly optimistic estimate)

 

[Dallant]

The used bike is an IZip E3 Vibe+, Although I think I have the general mechanical skills for working on the bike, and may start learning simple things, I do plan on making good use of a local bike shop. For budget, if I need to pay for it outright maybe $1400 or so, but if I can arrange a payment plan with the bike shop then maybe $2800 would be the high end of my budget. No direct health issues, but a middle aged guy who probably weighs more than he should and is less active than he should. (and even that "middle-age". At this point if it means that I'll live twice the age now its probably an slightly optimistic estimate)

I wish you well in your search. The IZip E3 Vibe+ is an unknown to me. The idea of an ebike as a new source of exercise has been embraced by most here on this forum. Many have general mechanical skills and make use of a local bike shop. Many are well beyond 60 and are damn happy we bought one or more ebikes.