Popularity of e-bikes skyrocketing as people continue to head outdoors during the coronavirus outbreak
Until you try them “you don’t realize how fabulous they are,” daily e-bike commuter says
By John Meyer, The Denver Post Aug 16, 2020, 6:00 am
Guide Alan Watkins leads an e-bike tour demo organized by the Pedego dealership in Boulder along Highland Avenue and 8th Street on Thursday, Aug. 13. (AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)
When her husband suggested she consider getting an e-bike three years ago, Audrey Irwin scoffed and insisted she wasn’t interested because riding a bicycle with the assist of an electrical motor seemed like “cheating.”
But not long after that, when a friend told her how much she loved hers and urged Irwin to give it a try, she gave in and quickly became a convert. Over the past 2½ years, she has ridden 6,800 miles, mostly commuting to work from her home in south Boulder to Interlocken,11 miles each way via the bike path along U.S. 36. Now she and her husband own four e-bikes, including a tandem.
“Until you try it, you just really don’t know how fabulous they are,” said Irwin, 58. “It literally has been a life-changer. I’m not an athlete, but I’ve got myself set up to bring my computer and whatever I need for the day. In the winter I have battery-powered gloves that heat up, and I have insoles that heat up. Colorado is so beautiful, I want to be outside all the time. I’ve lived here over 30 years, and every day I’m coming back toward Boulder, looking at the mountains, I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, I get to live here. This is incredible.’ ”
Irwin and her husband are part of a growing cadre of e-bikers, a trend that has gotten a boost this year because of the pandemic as people explore alternative forms of recreation and exercise. Tina Moses, who owns Pedego e-bike dealerships in Boulder and Golden, describes the market as “crazy strong” and said she’s had a hard time keeping the bikes in stock.
“Even though COVID shut down our rentals and our tours for awhile — we’re back doing them now — that kind of dwindled our sales, and then our sales peaked,” Moses said. “People started talking to each other, like, ‘What are you doing to get out of the house?’ People were hearing from other people that there is freedom in these bikes. There’s an ability to get out to experience a freedom that we haven’t had, because we’ve been stuck in our houses.”
Moses sold an e-bike this week to a mother who bought a second one for a daughter in her 20s. Another mom bought one for herself and one for her son as a high school graduation present. They came straight from the ceremony. He was still dressed in his suit.
“It’s this cross-section of people rediscovering that freedom we all had when we were children, when we weren’t afraid of a hill, or we would be out all day on our bikes,” Moses said.
Pedego employee Bekah Baker explains e-bikes to Linda Howes during a demonstration tour that started outside the store in Boulder on Thursday, Aug. 13. (AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)
Houshmand Moarefi, the owner of eBikes USA in Cherry Creek, said there are four main categories of buyers these days:
People who are not cyclists but who have reached a stage in life when they are looking to stay active. “E-bikes allow them to get out and exercise while making it a little easier on them,” Moarefi said.
Husbands and wives, especially avid cyclists with partners who are not as physically strong and want to ride together.
Commuters who use their e-bikes primarily as a means of transportation. “This year, that is an area of growth,” Moarefi said. “People are trying to be socially distanced by not taking public transportation. E-bikes are filling that void for them.”
People who need accommodations.
E-bikes come in a variety of types. Some are better for commuting. Some are “cargo bikes” that allow riders to use them for shopping trips — Irwin has been known to bring home several boxes of seltzer from Costco in a trailer attached to her bike — and there are all sorts of e-bikes designed for mountain biking.
Moarefi carries 10 different brands ranging from $999 to $12,000. Most of his buyers are looking for something in the $1,200-$2,500 range.
E-bikes tend to be much heavier than regular bikes, with the battery accounting for much of the additional weight. The typical non-electric road bike weighs 20-22 pounds, but most e-bikes weigh 45 to 75. E-bike tires are wider, too. The tire on a traditional road bike is usually less than 1 inch wide, but e-bike tires generally run 1½ to 2½ inches for road bikes, 3-4 inches for mountain bikes.
Like traditional bikes, e-bikes have multiple gears. They also have multiple levels of electrical assistance, usually four or five, so the rider gets to choose how much of an assist the bike provides. Being able to ride longer and farther with assistance is a strong selling point for those buying into the trend.
Linda Howes rides down an alley during an e-bike demo tour organized by the Pedego dealership in Boulder on Thursday, Aug. 13. (AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)
“I’m 61 years old, and I get to ride Pikes Peak every summer,” Moarefi said. “For me to experience Pikes Peak or Mount Evans, it would have taken years of training (otherwise). I’m in pretty good shape, but not that good to be able to do those rides. I’ve got the equipment, the technology, to do it.”
Moarefi bristled when he read news reports about the accident that television personality Simon Cowell suffered this past Sunday in Malibu, insisting that Cowell’s bike actually was not an e-bike but a pedal-assisted motorcycle. Cowell reportedly hit the throttle, unintentionally pulled a wheelie, fell on his back and broke three vertebrae. He later tweeted that he should have read the instructions.
News reports said Cowell’s bike was a 27-horsepower vehicle capable of speeds in excess of 60 mph. For e-bikes to be legally classified as bicycles on city streets, they are limited to 1 horsepower with a maximum speed of 28 mph, Moarefi said, and most are programmed to stop delivering electrical assist at 20 mph. Moarefi’s concern is that people who hear about Cowell’s accident might think e-bikes are more dangerous than they are.
“He wasn’t riding a standard electric bicycle,” Moarefi said. “The vehicle he had an accident on is a 20,000-watt electric motorcycle. These bikes have nowhere near that amount of power, so they are a lot safer.”
According to a University of Colorado study in 2016, riding e-bikes delivers health and fitness benefits, especially for people who were previously sedentary. Researchers saw improvements in aerobic capacity and blood sugar regulation.
Cathleen Canier, 56, bought an e-bike three weeks ago to get in better shape after seeing how much her friends enjoyed using them for exercise and group fun. This past Sunday she rode 20 miles in 97-degree heat. She said she had enough leftover energy to have lunch with her friends and do the laundry when she got home.
“This, honestly, has completely changed my life,” said Canier, who lives in Northglenn. “You’re still riding your bike. You have an (electrical) assist. I rode a regular bike before, and I couldn’t do a lot of long distance, so after a couple of miles I was ready to turn around. This allows me to ride longer. I still pedal. It’s an amazing transformation. Now I can ride all day long.”
Guide Alan Watkins prepares to lead an e-bike tour from the Pedego dealership in Boulder on Thursday, Aug. 13. (AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)