41–50 of 61 posts
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Most electric bicycles only enhance your own pedaling. This makes you faster, but it won't make you sweat less as you can still exert the same force (only to greater effect). In other words, if sweating is the problem, ride slower. Personally, I ride slowly to work, and fast back .
You do not peddle the bike that the article was discussing.
Frankly, I don't see the point of electric bicycles. I have not seen any electric bicycle that offered any real advantage to a normal muscle-operated one. As a matter of fact, bicycles are one of the oldest and most refined technologies available to us. They are marvelously efficient, they are light and versatile. Adding an electric motor and battery makes them heavy, limits your range and decreases the amount of con…
Actually, pedelecs are getting rather common right here in the EU. In addition to still requiring pedaling oneself, I think most countries restrict the power output somehow; here it's max 250W and turns off at 25km/h. And sure, you probably shouldn't embark on a 100km ride but the batteries are certainly sufficient to last a daily commute, One thing I, as a racing-type cyclist, suffered from was the feeling that it w…
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> Show me another widespread technology that exists since the late 1800s and that has not been completely replaced by another technology. There have got to be hundreds. Traffic lights and air brakes, 1868 Four-stroke internal combustion engine, 1876 toilet paper, 1880 Rayon, 1884 Steam turbine, 1884 Gas-powered automobile and motorcycle, 1885 dish-washer, Coca-cola (is that an invention?), 1886 radar, contact lenses,…
What did people use before 1880?
Pretty much anything. Of course some of these methods are still in use today, depending on where you look.
In other news, it might be time to reread Cialdini. ;)
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This makes no sense. I've seen women in skirts blasting up a hill by my house with a kid in a bike seat that would leave me huffing and puffing at any speed. They don't even have to get off the seat. The enhanced pedaling makes you stronger not just faster. That means less sweating.
In that case it is more of a motorcycle anyway. Where is the point in cycling if you don't have to use your own muscles to ride?
Where is the point in cycling if you don't have to use your own muscles to ride?
Because sometimes you have the energy and sometimes you don't. Sometimes you're ok with sweating and sometimes you aren't. Some days are 100F degrees and some are 60F. Maybe you're not strong enough to maintain your speed up a hill by your house but you're ok for the rest of the trip. It might lower that one part of the trip from "too hard" to "doable" and it's one more person getting more exercise and driving less.
It's good if everyone bikes more but the whole point of a commuter bike is that the exercise part is secondary. First is getting from point A to point B daily and conveniently.
It'd feel awfully strange riding a bike without my hands out in front of me. Also: * My crappy commuter bike probably costs between 1 and 5% of the price of this thing. * How's it deal with rain/dirt? * Sometimes I do want to just lock it up. Imagine going to the grocery store... at 22 pounds you don't want to haul it around inside. I have a lot more peace of mind locking up my cheap commuter bike outside. Still, it…
It was either going to be you or I who responded ;) My biggest concern when I saw this originally was the emergency braking scenario. Which basically involves doing a face plant and using your nose and forehead to slow you down by embedding it in the floor. One of the selling points mentioned in the article is, "you can jump forward off the bike in a crisis; there’s no hardware in your way". Which seems strange as ev…
As for speed, many cyclists will go considerably faster than any of these things, especially if it goes downhill. It might spoil some of the fun to be regularly overtaken by muscle-powered bikes...
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What did people use before 1880?
People wiped themselves with writing paper, wool, hemp, seashells, corn cobs, sponges, stones, small wooden planks, moss, snow, and their own hands. Pretty much anything. Of course some of these methods are still in use today, depending on where you look.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
What did people use before 1880?
People wiped themselves with writing paper, wool, hemp, seashells, corn cobs, sponges, stones, small wooden planks, moss, snow, and their own hands. Pretty much anything. Of course some of these methods are still in use today, depending on where you look.
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IMHO the foldability part is the main point. The typical usage seems to be home -> bus or tube stop -> public transport -> office. Here in UK you can't take bycicles in buses or tube. There are indeed foldable bikes ( http://www.brompton.co.uk/ ) but they are a pain to (un)fold and they are not electric. Still, price and limited autonomy are real issues. At 1K$ and 20 miles of autonomy I would probably buy one.
As a ridiculously happy Brompton owner and fanboy (how's that for a disclaimer!) let me assure you that they are no pain at all to fold or unfold. I have challenged a dozen people to get their bikes locked to a post in the time it takes me to fold the Brommy. No one has succeeded to date.
So how long are we talking about? The video links by the next commenter shows it taking about 20-30 seconds.
I manage to lock up my bike with a simple 4 digit combo chain in less than 10 seconds, but I can get away with locking it to itself in Tokyo :)