E-bikes are Good for the Sport
One of the newest technologies to hit in the mountain bike world is the e-bike. E-bikes are essentially your regular mountain bike, but they have a battery that is attached to the frame and has a small motor as a part of the drive train. There is no throttle so it is not an electric motorcycle. You actually have to pedal in order to make the bike move. When you pedal, the motor gives a little push which takes a little pressure off of how much effort you have to put in. It is essentially like having somebody pushing your bike just a little bit to make it so you aren’t pulling all of the weight on your own.
The e-bike is loved by some and hated by others. It is quite a controversy in the biking community because traditional bikers say that you have to “earn it.” They have worked hard to get into the shape they are in so everybody else should have to do the same thing. While other people think that if an e-bike will get more people into the sport and outdoors then bring it on.
The big controversy is if these pedal assist mountain bikes should be allowed on mountain bike trails or if they should be banned to places where motorized vehicles are allowed. If you think about it, the e-bike has a motor, therefore it is a motorized vehicle and should be restricted to have access on motor vehicle trails but not on non-motor vehicle trails. But the other side says it’s not powered by the motor. It is assisted. If the person doesn’t pedal the bike, then it won’t go anywhere. Motorized versus non-motorized trails were established when there wasn’t a possibility of having a pedal assist bike. So that cut and dry definition is a little out dated.
Rob from ebike-mtb.com stated the following,
“Land management agencies have held fast to the off-highway vehicle (OHV) definition, which, we believe, incorrectly groups Type I, pedal-electric bikes (with a maximum power-assist speed of 20-mph) together with gas-powered dirt bikes and ATV’s. These two are horses of an entirely different color. Some fear that allowing Type I e-MTB’s on MTB trail systems lets the genie out of the bottle and that the gas-powered OHV sector may campaign to secure expanded trail rights on MTB-only trails. Others fear a rollback of existing MTB trail access. We don’t want to see either of these highly improbable prospects occur but changes to the OHV definition regarding e-MTB’s needs an update.”
Others have said that e-bikes aren’t real mountain bikes because there is a motor and you don’t have to do any work, you don’t get the exercise like you would normally.
Berne Broudy with bicycling.com said,
“A new University of Colorado Boulder study says that regular e-bike usage has health benefits. Though they’re pedal assist, a e-bike can still give you a workout, improving your cardiovascular health, fitness, and aerobic capacity. The results were most prevalent in previously sedentary riders.”
Pinkbike is probably the most widely used mountain biking website. There was an article recently posted about e-bikes where Wragg states,
“If you've worked in an office for any length of time, you will probably have had to endure someone collecting to run a marathon. Earnestly going from desk-to-desk, to raise money for whatever good cause is in fashion this week to raise enough sponsorship to fulfill a lifetime goal of running a marathon. Yet if we as mountain bikers take a step back and consider what a marathon actually is, the simplest answer is around four hours of cardio. Now think of a four-hour ride, that's four hours of fairly comparable cardio. Most of us would be pretty tired afterwards, but it's not a lifetime ambition for most mountain bikers, it's merely a good day's riding. In our little bubble we forget that most people find the idea of doing an hour of sustained exercise deeply intimidating - something as simple as a 10km ride round easy trails may look like an ordeal to a good percentage of the general population. In steps the e-bike. By vastly reducing the fitness barrier, that opens the door to more and more people coming to do what is pretty much mountain biking (certainly they won't give a crap about our moral concerns of whether it is motorized or not). Think this is pure theorizing? It is to some extent, but seeing as virtually every major manufacturer now sports an e-bike in their range, it seems to be a theory some smart people are buying into too…”
Berne Broudy with bicycling.com said,
“A new University of Colorado Boulder study says that regular e-bike usage has health benefits. Though they’re pedal assist, a e-bike can still give you a workout, improving your cardiovascular health, fitness, and aerobic capacity. The results were most prevalent in previously sedentary riders.”
Pinkbike is probably the most widely used mountain biking website. There was an article recently posted about e-bikes where Wragg states,
“If you've worked in an office for any length of time, you will probably have had to endure someone collecting to run a marathon. Earnestly going from desk-to-desk, to raise money for whatever good cause is in fashion this week to raise enough sponsorship to fulfill a lifetime goal of running a marathon. Yet if we as mountain bikers take a step back and consider what a marathon actually is, the simplest answer is around four hours of cardio. Now think of a four-hour ride, that's four hours of fairly comparable cardio. Most of us would be pretty tired afterwards, but it's not a lifetime ambition for most mountain bikers, it's merely a good day's riding. In our little bubble we forget that most people find the idea of doing an hour of sustained exercise deeply intimidating - something as simple as a 10km ride round easy trails may look like an ordeal to a good percentage of the general population. In steps the e-bike. By vastly reducing the fitness barrier, that opens the door to more and more people coming to do what is pretty much mountain biking (certainly they won't give a crap about our moral concerns of whether it is motorized or not). Think this is pure theorizing? It is to some extent, but seeing as virtually every major manufacturer now sports an e-bike in their range, it seems to be a theory some smart people are buying into too…”
Many people just don’t have the physical fitness or time to put into it to be able to get out and go mountain biking. If they could have an e-bike that gives them a little assistance then they can get out and ride a bike without having to be in tip-top physical shape. It gives more people the chance to get out and ride a bike by taking the fear out of it.
In an article posted on Dirt Rag, Gary Fisher stated the following,
“The fact is that a lot of people don’t ride mountain bikes because getting themselves and the bikes up and over some hills and other obstacles is just too difficult.”
As for right now, there isn’t any evidence that e-bikes are the reason for a loss of trail access. They are still so new to the market that everything is speculation and opinion based off ideas everybody has thought up.
In an article posted on Dirt Rag, Gary Fisher stated the following,
“The fact is that a lot of people don’t ride mountain bikes because getting themselves and the bikes up and over some hills and other obstacles is just too difficult.”
As for right now, there isn’t any evidence that e-bikes are the reason for a loss of trail access. They are still so new to the market that everything is speculation and opinion based off ideas everybody has thought up.
If you are going to buy an e-bike or a traditional bike, you still have to play by the rules. The rules might change from what they currently are that will allow a little more access for e-bikes or to ban them from more areas. It could also go the other way and by having an influx in mountain bikers who ride e-bikes out on the trails, they might start to get over crowded. In this case, cities and states might put a little more funding into building new trails in order to accommodate the number of people getting out and riding.
In the end it looks like e-bikes are coming. They are a hot item, so we all need to plan and make a decision on where they will be allowed. Will they will be banned to motor-vehicle trails only? Or will the United States follow in the footsteps of Europe and allow them on all mountain bike trails? Only time will tell.
In the end it looks like e-bikes are coming. They are a hot item, so we all need to plan and make a decision on where they will be allowed. Will they will be banned to motor-vehicle trails only? Or will the United States follow in the footsteps of Europe and allow them on all mountain bike trails? Only time will tell.
Works Cited
"What Are Electric Bikes? How Do They Work?" EVELO. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Opinion: E-Mountainbike Trail Access in the US." E-MOUNTAINBIKE Magazine. N.p., 02 May 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Broudy Donohue Photography." Broudy Donohue Photography. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"13 Things You Need to Know About E-Bikes." Bicycling. N.p., 04 Oct. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Fitness." Bicycling. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Mountain Bike News, Photos, Videos and Events - Pinkbike." Mountain Bike News, Photos, Videos and Events - Pinkbike. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Elephant In The Room: The Great E-Bike Controversy." Dirt Rag. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Gary Fisher." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Mar. 2017. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Point: E-Bikes Are Good for the Sport." Pinkbike. N.p., 23 Feb. 2017. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"What Are Electric Bikes? How Do They Work?" EVELO. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Opinion: E-Mountainbike Trail Access in the US." E-MOUNTAINBIKE Magazine. N.p., 02 May 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Broudy Donohue Photography." Broudy Donohue Photography. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"13 Things You Need to Know About E-Bikes." Bicycling. N.p., 04 Oct. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Fitness." Bicycling. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Mountain Bike News, Photos, Videos and Events - Pinkbike." Mountain Bike News, Photos, Videos and Events - Pinkbike. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Elephant In The Room: The Great E-Bike Controversy." Dirt Rag. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Gary Fisher." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Mar. 2017. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
"Point: E-Bikes Are Good for the Sport." Pinkbike. N.p., 23 Feb. 2017. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.