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If you think fast cycling "Lance Armstrong wannabes" are bad, wait until the trail is taken over by 30mph eBike riders that not only aren't experienced enough t

If you think fast cycling "Lance Armstrong wannabes" are bad, wait until the trail is taken over by 30mph eBike riders that not only aren't experienced enough to ride safely at that speed, but they bolted on the eBike drive to a bike that was not intended for that speed.

jdavis703 5y ago
Unless you’re on a major downhill, there’s no street legal e-bike doing 30 MPH.
- sokoloff 5y ago
  That depends on the jurisdiction. In MA, it’s a point of ambiguity, but I think that’s resolved in favor of e-bikes being treated as mopeds today (with a max of 30mph): https://www.massbike.org/ebikes https://www.massbike.org/ebikes
- Johnny555 5y ago
  I didn't say they were street legal, but it's not hard to find a 30mph capable kit: https://www.electricbike.com/cheap-electric-bike/ https://www.electricbike.com/cheap-electric-bike/ http://myelectricbikemotor.com/category/30mph/ http://myelectricbikemotor.com/category/30mph/ https://www.amazon.com/Folding-Electric-Bike-Adults-Endurance/dp/B09BKZ1NQ7/ref=sr_1_3 https://www.amazon.com/Folding-Electric-Bike-Adults-Enduranc...
  - jay_kyburz 5y ago
    I haven't seen it in the comments yet, but it will only be a matter of time before these ebikes will need to be registered, have a number plate, and can receive speeding tickets. Right now there is no way to identify a speeding bicycle, no matter how fast its going. You could be doing 50 in a 40 zone and there is no way to issue a fine.
    - jdavis703 5y ago
      Bikes are frequently pulled over for speeding. I don’t know where you live, but cops like to set up bicycle stings at the bottom of hills in the Bay Area. Not to mention giving out tickets for things like missing bike bells. Oh, and if you don’t register your bike with the police good luck having them help with recovery.
      - Johnny555 5y ago
        I have a friend that got a speeding ticket on the back side of the Marin Headlands - it was a moving violation, he went to driving school to keep it off his record. Where in the Bay Area are bells required? I've never heard of police there ever enforcing equipment requirements, not even lights at night.
fennecfoxen 5y ago
Wait until you live in NYC and they go this speed in the wrong direction on a one way street and want you to brave the traffic so as to let them by.
notlion 5y ago
30mph is often needed to keep up with cars in areas where the bike infrastructure is poor or nonexistent. If you can't maintain the speed of traffic, cars will try to pass creating a more dangerous situation for the ebike rider.
- tomcooks 5y ago
  I fail to find the connection between speed and safety, especially from a completely unshielded pilot point of view. It's not a bike's job to maintain safety and traffic speed, but the opposite.
  - joshuaissac 5y ago
    > It's not a bike's job to maintain safety and traffic speed, but the opposite. It does not matter whose job it is. If increasing speed improves safety for the cyclist, in this case by reducing the incentive for car drivers to overtake, then a good number of cyclists will do it.
    - Johnny555 5y ago
      I'd like to see the proof that increasing speed improves safety for the cyclist. There's no road I commute on (including 25 mph city streets) where a 30mph bike would keep up with traffic, riding a skinny tire 40 lb bike at 30mph in the road shoulder that passes for bike lanes around here sounds hazardous. If I wanted to keep up with car traffic so I can ride in the road, I'd get an e-scooter or e-motorcycle that's designed for higher speed. But then I couldn't ride in bike lanes.
      - joshuaissac 5y ago
        > in the road shoulder that passes for bike lanes Bike lanes do not exist in most places. The poster had said that their comment was about: > areas where the bike infrastructure is poor or nonexistent If there are bike lanes, then being overtaken by cars is not as much of a problem. But in most places, cyclists have to use the same lanes as motorised traffic, so it is more important to be able to keep up.
sudosysgen 5y ago
I built a 35mph capable ebike from a lot on a MTB with dual disc brakes and the best s-pedelec tires I could find and I'm pretty stressed out already at 35kph. I can't imagine doing 50kph much less on a bike that isn't intended for it. You really would have to be almost suicidal. I have to say though being able to keep up with cars when I can't have a bike lane is pretty nice.

jdavis703 5y ago

Unless you’re on a major downhill, there’s no street legal e-bike doing 30 MPH.

sokoloff 5y ago
That depends on the jurisdiction. In MA, it’s a point of ambiguity, but I think that’s resolved in favor of e-bikes being treated as mopeds today (with a max of 30mph): https://www.massbike.org/ebikes https://www.massbike.org/ebikes
Johnny555 5y ago
I didn't say they were street legal, but it's not hard to find a 30mph capable kit: https://www.electricbike.com/cheap-electric-bike/ https://www.electricbike.com/cheap-electric-bike/ http://myelectricbikemotor.com/category/30mph/ http://myelectricbikemotor.com/category/30mph/ https://www.amazon.com/Folding-Electric-Bike-Adults-Endurance/dp/B09BKZ1NQ7/ref=sr_1_3 https://www.amazon.com/Folding-Electric-Bike-Adults-Enduranc...
- jay_kyburz 5y ago
  I haven't seen it in the comments yet, but it will only be a matter of time before these ebikes will need to be registered, have a number plate, and can receive speeding tickets. Right now there is no way to identify a speeding bicycle, no matter how fast its going. You could be doing 50 in a 40 zone and there is no way to issue a fine.
  - jdavis703 5y ago
    Bikes are frequently pulled over for speeding. I don’t know where you live, but cops like to set up bicycle stings at the bottom of hills in the Bay Area. Not to mention giving out tickets for things like missing bike bells. Oh, and if you don’t register your bike with the police good luck having them help with recovery.
    - Johnny555 5y ago
      I have a friend that got a speeding ticket on the back side of the Marin Headlands - it was a moving violation, he went to driving school to keep it off his record. Where in the Bay Area are bells required? I've never heard of police there ever enforcing equipment requirements, not even lights at night.

fennecfoxen 5y ago

Wait until you live in NYC and they go this speed in the wrong direction on a one way street and want you to brave the traffic so as to let them by.

notlion 5y ago

30mph is often needed to keep up with cars in areas where the bike infrastructure is poor or nonexistent. If you can't maintain the speed of traffic, cars will try to pass creating a more dangerous situation for the ebike rider.

tomcooks 5y ago
I fail to find the connection between speed and safety, especially from a completely unshielded pilot point of view. It's not a bike's job to maintain safety and traffic speed, but the opposite.
- joshuaissac 5y ago
  > It's not a bike's job to maintain safety and traffic speed, but the opposite. It does not matter whose job it is. If increasing speed improves safety for the cyclist, in this case by reducing the incentive for car drivers to overtake, then a good number of cyclists will do it.
  - Johnny555 5y ago
    I'd like to see the proof that increasing speed improves safety for the cyclist. There's no road I commute on (including 25 mph city streets) where a 30mph bike would keep up with traffic, riding a skinny tire 40 lb bike at 30mph in the road shoulder that passes for bike lanes around here sounds hazardous. If I wanted to keep up with car traffic so I can ride in the road, I'd get an e-scooter or e-motorcycle that's designed for higher speed. But then I couldn't ride in bike lanes.
    - joshuaissac 5y ago
      > in the road shoulder that passes for bike lanes Bike lanes do not exist in most places. The poster had said that their comment was about: > areas where the bike infrastructure is poor or nonexistent If there are bike lanes, then being overtaken by cars is not as much of a problem. But in most places, cyclists have to use the same lanes as motorised traffic, so it is more important to be able to keep up.

sudosysgen 5y ago

I built a 35mph capable ebike from a lot on a MTB with dual disc brakes and the best s-pedelec tires I could find and I'm pretty stressed out already at 35kph. I can't imagine doing 50kph much less on a bike that isn't intended for it. You really would have to be almost suicidal. I have to say though being able to keep up with cars when I can't have a bike lane is pretty nice.