The Future of eBikes: How Fast is Too Fast?

[DaveMatthews]

I don't go for the jerseys with all the sponsor logos, just solid hi-vis colors for safety. But if fantasizing about riding in the Tour de France adds joy to someone else's riding, I say go for it. After all, bikes are first and foremost joy machines.

Yup... Ride a bike... Don't care what it or you look like, just enjoy it and don't be a d!ck...

 

[kevinmccune]

The roadie hate here is annoying. The irony is that the way many people here complain about roadies is pretty much exactly how many other user groups talk about ebikers. Entitled, shouldn't be on the trail, go too fast, etc etc.

I've been riding the local MUP for 23 years now. No group really owns the "worst group on the trail". Its human nature to notice bad behavior from groups you don't like and not notice or ignore bad behavior from groups you belong to.

its called "nepotism"

 

[kevinmccune]

I see that kind of roadie behavior here sometimes. Ebikers seem less likely to block the road or hog an entire MUP but can be reckless jerks in other ways.

Seems like we could all agree that every cycling style — and sport for that matter — has its jerks and yahoos and unite around the joy and utility of cycling in spite of them. We'd have a lot more clout together.

Jeep marketers came up with the "Jeep wave" a few years back. The idea was to promote a brother/sisterhood of Jeep owners by harnessing the warm feeling a friendly wave from a stranger can bring.

No idea if it actually increased Jeep sales, but a friendly wave and smile to our non-jerk fellow cyclists of all stripes costs nothing and couldn't hurt.

the stupid ass jeep commercials( and the crappy product") turned me away from jeep.

 

[mschwett]

...For most riders, it seems more a of a statement...

sure, a statement that they don't want to be hot and chafed and stinky and uncomfortable while exercising.

i never see people who aren't exercising on a bike wearing spandex or lycra or other technical fabrics. when i ride for sport, i wear the appropriate clothes, and when i ride to work or errands or to pick up the kids, i ride in whatever i'm wearing. i have observed this behavior all over the world and seriously wonder if it's some sort of shared internet delusion that there are packs of misbehaving fat men in spandex terrorizing the MUPs and Bike Lanes of america at high speed. or rather, at low speed, since the clothing is just a "statement."

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

sure, a statement that they don't want to be hot and chafed and stinky and uncomfortable while exercising.

Well put. All sports have their posers and gear junkies. Those aside, wonder how many other sports politicize attire? Do runners happy to run in anything and those who prefer running-specific performance gear have the same silly rivalry?

 

[jabberwocky]

sure, a statement that they don't want to be hot and chafed and stinky and uncomfortable while exercising.

Shunning lycra while riding a bike for exercise is more of a statement than actually wearing it. Wear what you like, but most people who actually go out and exercise on a bike (electric or not) wear it because its the best thing to wear if you're riding a bike for exercise.

 

[mschwett]

Shunning lycra while riding a bike for exercise is more of a statement than actually wearing it. Wear what you like, but most people who actually go out and exercise on a bike (electric or not) wear it because its the best thing to wear if you're riding a bike for exercise.

absolutely - often the people who make it a point to hate something are the ONLY ones making a statement … but it’s not the statement they think they’re making. you see this behavior in a lot of spheres, people being anti-nice things or anti-expertise or anti-popular things. i mean… i’d never step foot in a starbucks but i don’t base much of my identity on my dislike of something so basic

 

[Mr. Coffee]

... Those aside, wonder how many other sports politicize attire?

I'd argue nearly all outdoor sports do to one degree or another.

Take hunters and camo. They even wear camo under the bright orange vests they are required to wear to avoid being shot by other hunters who might mistake them for a duck.

A lot of outdoor sports have a pretty specific dress code. If only to tell the members of the tribe from the posers and the clueless newbies.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Do runners happy to run in anything and those who prefer running-specific performance gear have the same silly rivalry?

Ask a marathon runner and they will bore you to death discussing their running shoes
Or, the Nordic Walking sticks for mountain hikers...

The same way you can set a maintenance log for your bikes you can also create an inventory of your shoes on Strava

Now, I wear cycling clothes for any e-bike activity because I need efficient pedalling (proper shoes), I don't want to sweat (proper clothes), a helmet (obviously) as well as cycling gloves to protect my hands. My shortest grocery shopping route is 4 miles, and it is 15 km for any bigger shopping. The clothes for the cold season I wear differ in the type of the jacket I wear and which would be too warm for a performing cyclist.

No traditional gravel rider would wear this attire for a race. My privilege as an e-biker was to wear whatever kept me warm and dry on that difficult cold and rainy day.

 

[stompandgo]

Well put. All sports have their posers and gear junkies. Those aside, wonder how many other sports politicize attire? Do runners happy to run in anything and those who prefer running-specific performance gear have the same silly rivalry?

Yoga has Lululemon, for example. No uppity first class suburban mom would dare show up at Equinox in anything but Lululemon.

On the Tesoro, I ride in whatever cycling clothes I own, because I own them. I don't ride in my racing kits as I've outgrown most of them and gave them away. I'll wear a charity ride jersey, or a special jersey from a special place. If it has sponsor logos on it, who cares? I don't ride in racing shoes anymore, as I prefer the MTB shoes with cleats. Soon I'm going to start to try trail shorts with liners.

 

[MrHyak]

Because back then, we wore wool shorts with real leather chamois and wool jerseys. Ask me how I know.

I have never seen anyone wear wool shorts or jerseys?? I'm no pro, but I did well when I did race in some local events. I have almost no pics of my races, but this one was from 1987 at end of my 25 mile ride in a Bi-Athlon and it represents how I usually dressed. Sometimes with no shirt and I'd just attach my number to the back of my shorts. Maybe it was partially because I also played in an alternative/punk band in the 80's and we were kinda anti-main stream....but it worked for me. My first race was 1985 and last was 2004 when I was talked into riding in a team event. I blew my rear tire, never stopped and rode the last 5 miles on a flat....it was the last time I was ever on that bike and its still hanging in my garage.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

There is a lot of technical gear nowadays that uses wool. While it isn't as stinky I find even the very best wool to be a lot less durable, especially for very thin or very light layers.

 

[ChuteTheMall]

.... The idea was to promote a brother/sisterhood of Jeep owners by harnessing the warm feeling a friendly wave from a stranger can bring.

No idea if it actually increased Jeep sales, but a friendly wave and smile to our non-jerk fellow cyclists of all stripes costs nothing and couldn't hurt.

I smile and wave at nearly everyone I encounter on my rides, including ebikers, cyclists, motorcyclists, dog walkers, stroller rollers, cops, pedestrians, zombies and stray animals. Smiles and waves are cheap. I do ignore most children however.

 

[6zfshdb]

I smile and wave at nearly everyone I encounter on my rides, including ebikers, cyclists, motorcyclists, dog walkers, stroller rollers, cops, pedestrians, zombies and stray animals. Smiles and waves are cheap. I do ignore most children however.

I do the same. I even wave to spandexers. I don't care what others wear, it's what they do while wearing it that matters.

 

[Chargeride]

I wear jeans trainers/sneakers and a top for whatever weather, have been known to go out in said attire straight after ride.
Im lucky that I dont stink with mild exercise, but you will find me scraping mud splashes off..
I was exactly the same in my dirt bike days, oh and skiing as well.
In fact Ive ridden a jetski in the same outfit, never waterskiid in it though.

We bought a weird vintage Rotax powered jetski thingy.
Put it in the lake, me fully clothed, opened the throttle and the handlebar grips came off and ejected me off the back, luckily it was a warm day.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I have never seen anyone wear wool shorts or jerseys??

Merino wool (mixed with modern synthetic fabric) is the main material used in modern winter base layer clothes. it does not smell bad.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

Merino wool (mixed with modern synthetic fabric) is the main material used in modern winter base layer clothes. it does not smell bad.

Well, precisely, some modern winter base layers.

I often think that merino wool is as much marketing hype as technical performance.

Merino wool, on the average, can absorb more water than synthetic technical fabrics and sometimes takes much longer to dry out when it does become wet.

Merino wool is much less durable, particularly when wet and particularly when the fabric is made very light and thin.

 

[MrHyak]

Merino wool (mixed with modern synthetic fabric) is the main material used in modern winter base layer clothes. it does not smell bad.

It makes sense for winter based clothes, but I was thinking of back in the 80's where stompandgo said they were wearing wool pants and shirts. I just never saw that, but then again I didn't pay close attention to what others were doing.

 

[jabberwocky]

I've known people who swear by wool jerseys, even year round. I've always hated the texture of wool so have never tried them. But they are reasonably popular; some of the bike clubs near me do a wool option for their jersey occasionally.

 

[stompandgo]

Retro jerseys were a "thing" some years ago. The local clubs all used that simple, logoless style. Some were wool.