6 ms·

A good amount of “legacy” bike advocates are actively hostile to e-bikes, equating them to “cheating”. It’s gatekeeping bullshit. Anytime someone asks me bike

A good amount of “legacy” bike advocates are actively hostile to e-bikes, equating them to “cheating”. It’s gatekeeping bullshit. Anytime someone asks me bike buying advice, my only reply is “go to your local dealer and talk with them”. That relationship and taking a few test rides are far more important than any spec on a sheet.

mauvehaus 4y ago
... and if the first shop you visit isn't vibing with what your goals and/or personality are, try another. Shops that cater to commuters and transportation cyclists are very different from ones that cater to hardcore road or mountain bike riders.
fluoridation 4y ago
The thing about bikes is that if you want to go fast, you have to put in kilometers on the saddle. That trains not just your body, but also your mind, and teaches you how to behave on the road. An electric bike allows someone with little training to go much faster than they would be able to otherwise. Now imagine that you're an experienced rider going at a cool 35 km/h and as you're about to pass a newbie on an electric bike they swerve into you because they don't yet have the habit of looking back before moving sideways. Yes, it's a mistake of that particular person alone, but it's a mistake they were able to make because e-bikes exist.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- tiahura 4y ago
  Children master bike riding in a few days. Let’s not overcomplicate things.
  - LAC-Tech 4y ago
    Learning to ride a bike and learning to ride one on public roads with traffic are two different skills.
  - wl 4y ago
    There's a huge difference between being able to handle a bike at 5 mph, 15 mph, and 28 mph.
  - fluoridation 4y ago
    Oh, they master it, do they? So, you'd let a child who's been riding a bike for a week or so ride with heavy traffic, right? They've mastered it, so there's nothing else for them to learn.
  - burnished 4y ago
    20 year old me who just ate pavement because they didn’t know how to safely navigate street car rails would disagree.
    - toast0 4y ago
      That was 40 year old me a couple years ago. Street car rails are terrible, bad for bikes and pedestrians, a lot of expense, and doesn't provide much more than a bus.
    - eythian 4y ago
      You should have watched this video: https://youtu.be/sEON08d76oE?t=112 https://youtu.be/sEON08d76oE?t=112 it nicely explains the importance of things like tram rails, and keeping a potato in your pants.
  - 1letterunixname 4y ago
    Dumbest comment I've read in a while here. Most Americans can't seem to "master" bike riding and so they all need to wear helmets. The Dutch don't and aren't the world capital of TBIs.
    - defrost 4y ago
      Dumbest comment I've read in a while here. (high five, it works both ways). The Dutch have a bicycle culture and bicycle friendly streets where cars are outnumbered and don't despise cyclists in the manner of Sydney, Australia or Mean City, USA. The Dutch also live in a flat country and don't extreme cycle down the side of Big Sur, etc either.
- farnsworth 4y ago
  Wait til you find out who's driving the cars on the road
  - fluoridation 4y ago
    Cars at least are less able to swerve unpredictably, and drivers have to complete training in order to be allowed on the road.
    - lostlogin 4y ago
      The standard they once met (which might have been 70 years ago) is not that good a measure of people’s driving skill today.
    - skeeter2020 4y ago
      ...and yet car-on-car accidents are still a major source of premature deaths, to mention nothing of when the cyclist is the victim. The potential to do great harm has to be the overwhelming factor when assessing road risk.
  - donw 4y ago
    There are civil, if not criminal, penalties for suddenly swerving into another car without justification.
    - crispyambulance 4y ago
      > There are civil, if not criminal, penalties for... Not really, or not enough at least. Drivers can and do cause horrific accidents because of inattention, bad judgement, intoxication, and road rage. There aren't enough penalties and, it seems, the situation has been getting worse and more chaotic lately, at least where I live in the Northeastern US.
    - scrose 4y ago
      Justification is easy in the USA This is a short list of a few common get out of jail free cards for traffic violence: 1. I couldn't see them 2. The sun was in my eyes 3. I had a medical emergency 4. The car was in my blind spot 5. They came out of nowhere 6. My car lost control 7. My brakes didn't work
- sideshowb 4y ago
  Pretty sure almost anyone can go faster downhill on an analog bike than the 25kph that Ebike pedal assistance is limited to
dahart 4y ago
E-bikes are great for bike advocacy - what I’ve noticed is that a lot more people are biking because of them. I bump into lots more older people riding canyon roads than I used to, and people going grocery shopping or out to the pub on e-bikes. Friends who have been indoor people and not fit are buying e-bikes and getting out. This has nothing but positive effects on local traffic laws and bike lanes, and local trails and bike paths. I don’t have an e-bike yet, but I will get one eventually, maybe when my interest in climbing wanes, or maybe sooner just to increase my range.
mihaaly 4y ago
My over middle aged colleague got into and enjoying cycling again with an e bike. And he gives no dammn if this is cheeting according to some condescending self righteous hole of excretion. Did not even hear about those poor people. He just likes to move more and that's it.

mauvehaus 4y ago

... and if the first shop you visit isn't vibing with what your goals and/or personality are, try another. Shops that cater to commuters and transportation cyclists are very different from ones that cater to hardcore road or mountain bike riders.

fluoridation 4y ago

The thing about bikes is that if you want to go fast, you have to put in kilometers on the saddle. That trains not just your body, but also your mind, and teaches you how to behave on the road. An electric bike allows someone with little training to go much faster than they would be able to otherwise. Now imagine that you're an experienced rider going at a cool 35 km/h and as you're about to pass a newbie on an electric bike they swerve into you because they don't yet have the habit of looking back before moving sideways. Yes, it's a mistake of that particular person alone, but it's a mistake they were able to make because e-bikes exist.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
tiahura 4y ago
Children master bike riding in a few days. Let’s not overcomplicate things.
- LAC-Tech 4y ago
  Learning to ride a bike and learning to ride one on public roads with traffic are two different skills.
- wl 4y ago
  There's a huge difference between being able to handle a bike at 5 mph, 15 mph, and 28 mph.
- fluoridation 4y ago
  Oh, they master it, do they? So, you'd let a child who's been riding a bike for a week or so ride with heavy traffic, right? They've mastered it, so there's nothing else for them to learn.
- burnished 4y ago
  20 year old me who just ate pavement because they didn’t know how to safely navigate street car rails would disagree.
  - toast0 4y ago
    That was 40 year old me a couple years ago. Street car rails are terrible, bad for bikes and pedestrians, a lot of expense, and doesn't provide much more than a bus.
  - eythian 4y ago
    You should have watched this video: https://youtu.be/sEON08d76oE?t=112 https://youtu.be/sEON08d76oE?t=112 it nicely explains the importance of things like tram rails, and keeping a potato in your pants.
- 1letterunixname 4y ago
  Dumbest comment I've read in a while here. Most Americans can't seem to "master" bike riding and so they all need to wear helmets. The Dutch don't and aren't the world capital of TBIs.
  - defrost 4y ago
    Dumbest comment I've read in a while here. (high five, it works both ways). The Dutch have a bicycle culture and bicycle friendly streets where cars are outnumbered and don't despise cyclists in the manner of Sydney, Australia or Mean City, USA. The Dutch also live in a flat country and don't extreme cycle down the side of Big Sur, etc either.
farnsworth 4y ago
Wait til you find out who's driving the cars on the road
- fluoridation 4y ago
  Cars at least are less able to swerve unpredictably, and drivers have to complete training in order to be allowed on the road.
  - lostlogin 4y ago
    The standard they once met (which might have been 70 years ago) is not that good a measure of people’s driving skill today.
  - skeeter2020 4y ago
    ...and yet car-on-car accidents are still a major source of premature deaths, to mention nothing of when the cyclist is the victim. The potential to do great harm has to be the overwhelming factor when assessing road risk.
- donw 4y ago
  There are civil, if not criminal, penalties for suddenly swerving into another car without justification.
  - crispyambulance 4y ago
    > There are civil, if not criminal, penalties for... Not really, or not enough at least. Drivers can and do cause horrific accidents because of inattention, bad judgement, intoxication, and road rage. There aren't enough penalties and, it seems, the situation has been getting worse and more chaotic lately, at least where I live in the Northeastern US.
  - scrose 4y ago
    Justification is easy in the USA This is a short list of a few common get out of jail free cards for traffic violence: 1. I couldn't see them 2. The sun was in my eyes 3. I had a medical emergency 4. The car was in my blind spot 5. They came out of nowhere 6. My car lost control 7. My brakes didn't work
sideshowb 4y ago
Pretty sure almost anyone can go faster downhill on an analog bike than the 25kph that Ebike pedal assistance is limited to

dahart 4y ago

E-bikes are great for bike advocacy - what I’ve noticed is that a lot more people are biking because of them. I bump into lots more older people riding canyon roads than I used to, and people going grocery shopping or out to the pub on e-bikes. Friends who have been indoor people and not fit are buying e-bikes and getting out. This has nothing but positive effects on local traffic laws and bike lanes, and local trails and bike paths. I don’t have an e-bike yet, but I will get one eventually, maybe when my interest in climbing wanes, or maybe sooner just to increase my range.

mihaaly 4y ago

My over middle aged colleague got into and enjoying cycling again with an e bike. And he gives no dammn if this is cheeting according to some condescending self righteous hole of excretion. Did not even hear about those poor people. He just likes to move more and that's it.