Just joined the forum. My wife and I are on a 9 month cross country trip with our travel trailer. While in South Dakota we were hiking one of the Rails to Trails trails and feeling the challenges we now have at our ages (mid 70's) which limits our range more than we would like. Along come a lot of bikers, mainly much younger on road and mountain bikes...but then...a number of folks our age on E bikes just cruising with little effort and the light bulbs lit up over our heads. E bikes proved hard to actually find but not wanting to miss out on biking in general we opted to pick up folding Dahons for now while continuing to explore E bikes. Found a pair of E bikes to test ride in Ohio that was not a good fit and was a bad experience for my wife (just re-learning to ride after 40+ years since last ride) and left her skeptical of E bikes in general. Kept looking and exploring on line. Then while in a shop in Maine we spotted a pair of Momentum LaFrees. Test rode and we BOTH liked them as being what would meet our needs...at least the concept of step through, mid drive, etc. so, planning to continue exploring while on the trip, but plan to order whichever from a local shop when we get back home in order to have local support.
Newbie to the forum
- Thread starter JimmyG
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Just a thought if you've figured out what you want or when you should contact your local shop for availability as there maybe a wait time. Don't rush your purchase but when you figure out what you want get the wheels turning lead times can be long.
Thanks, Nomad. That's exactly how we are trying to go about this. Still looking online at some possibilities, but so far it's been hard to tell without actually seeing other bikes and test riding them. Still focused on the LaFree since we did get to test ride and liked them and have located a LBS not far from home that sells them. We want local service and support since we know that many shops won't even look at an e bike unless they sold it. Plan to continue looking, but if nothing else is presented then as soon as Momentum announces next years models we will order from that shop. Since we won't be home from this trip until February that should (hopefully
) be enough lead time.Merle Nelson
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Pedego bikes have lots of shops with rentals if you have a Pedego dealer in your area.
Alternate idea to waiting if you test ride and are clear on which bike you want might be to have your local dealer ship bikes to a shop you know you will be near when they arrive. Yes, pay an extra reasonable fee to have them assembled and gone over but so worth it (for me) to be riding today.
Welcome to EBR JimmyG.
Alternate idea to waiting if you test ride and are clear on which bike you want might be to have your local dealer ship bikes to a shop you know you will be near when they arrive. Yes, pay an extra reasonable fee to have them assembled and gone over but so worth it (for me) to be riding today.
Welcome to EBR JimmyG.
alphacarina
Active Member
- Region
- USA
You might want to order them now - Then the shop might have them in by January . . . .
Don
6zfshdb
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Northeast Pennsylvania
Welcome to the forum! I envy your extended trip. My wife and I are pretty much grounded due to Covid since we don't have an RV. We are also in our mid 70's and rely on airlines, hotels & restaurants when we travel. Our doctor advises against travelling at this point.
We have Pedego bikes, which we both love. FWIW, our local dealer can provide delivery on most Pedego models in about 10 days.
You have the right idea about testing e-bikes before buying. We tested more than a dozen models before buying our Pedego's. If you pass a dealer in your travels, take one for a spin. Their quality, and service after the sale are second to none.
We have Pedego bikes, which we both love. FWIW, our local dealer can provide delivery on most Pedego models in about 10 days.
You have the right idea about testing e-bikes before buying. We tested more than a dozen models before buying our Pedego's. If you pass a dealer in your travels, take one for a spin. Their quality, and service after the sale are second to none.
Merle Nelson
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Great, great, advice on test rides. My wife and I also rented ebikes for the day 4 or 5 times before buying our first ebike. One bike I rented we drove a significant distance to where we were to take off on bike trails. One mile in I profusely apologized to my wife and asked if I could quit the ride and return bike - it was that ill fitted to my body mechanics.
john peck
Well-Known Member
It´s good to be a bit skeptical when looking for an ebike. Doing the research to find one that best suits one´s
needs is an important part of the process. This is why the reviews in the EBR site are such a valuable tool.
I would never purchase an ebike without 1st looking into the specs & capabilities found in EBR. Once
chosen, it´s important to learn as much as you can about how to maintain your bike. There are d ozens of
useful tutorials on Utube & loads of helpful advice to be found right here,
P.S. The only this that i don´t care for on the Lafree is the lack of throttle. While I use mine less than 1%
of the time, it provides a handy boost when crossing an intersection or picking up speed going into a hill.
Should you get a sprain or other injury a throttle can help you get home.
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