Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the May edition of IFN Monthly.

BY PRESSLY MATTOX

Who doesn’t know how to ride a bike? Who doesn’t need to get a bit more exercise? Who isn’t concerned about climate change or the price of gasoline at the pump? Why not buy an e-bike and solve some of those issues?

Those were the things I started thinking about as I considered buying an e-bike. In the past, I did not hesitate to hop in the car and crank it up to go a mile to the grocery store, the half-mile to my part-time job or even the half a block to the convenience store near my house. I realized that I spend the overwhelming part of my life within five miles of my home. Why not take the car out of the equation?

I must confess, my part-time job is at Crossroads Cycling Company in Downtown Statesville. I am an avid cyclist. I have ridden over 8,000 miles each of the past two years on my road bike. I have been selling bikes, including e-bikes, for over a year. As I read more and more about climate change and the auto industry’s push to convert to electric cars, I started doing research on e-bikes.

I “test rode” several of the e-bikes in the shop. I discovered that not only could an e-bike be practical for errand running, but it was also lots of fun. So I bought one, along with a rack that holds a bag that has fold-out saddlebags. It changed my life in two weeks.

I had been walking to work, but my bad knees hurt when I did, and it took about 12 minutes. Now, I get to work with no knee pain in less than three minutes. I have made trips to the grocery store and filled up my saddle bags with groceries. I recently rode my e-bike to a doctor’s appointment. I have decided to use my e-bike for all types of errands, barring inclement weather.

Most e-bikes are pedal-assisted bikes. That is, they have no throttle. If you do not pedal, you get no assistance. That’s where the exercise component comes in. With the assistance of the motor, hills are no challenge. You can casually pedal up a steep hill without breaking a sweat.

Most e-bikes have three levels of assistance that affect how fast and how far you can go. The bikes will travel between 25 and 75 miles per charge, depending on whether you are in eco-mode or turbo-mode. All of the assistance stops at 20 mph on most bikes, but at 28 mph on some. You can purchase auxiliary batteries to extend your range.

E-bikes come in cruiser styles, city or hybrid styles and mountain bike versions.

The cruiser-style bike, like the one I bought, is best suited for errand running. It is very upright, comfortable and has flat-foot technology, which allows you to set the saddle height in a position that also allows you to put both feet on the ground when you come to a stop without having to slide off the saddle, lean over or tip toe. It is a bike for any person, even the person who has not been on a bike in a while. There are even “step-through” versions with slanted or dropped top tubes, that make getting on the bike easy. Yes, men buy them too.

Ultimately, I am thinking if it doesn’t rain for a week, I may just have to crank my car and let it run a bit each week to keep the battery from dying. I will be getting more exercise, have fun while running errands and I will be doing my small part to help with climate change.

Pressly Mattox lives in Statesville.