E-bike commuting and errand running.

Have I mentioned how cool my e-bike is? ;-)

This week I rode to work and back on a couple of occasions (it's just shy of 60KM round-trip). It's amazing to me how quickly I'm making progress. On each trip I get a little faster, and yet feel less tired when I arrive.

I have to use level 3 assist on the way to work, as it's more uphill. All the hills are relatively gradual, but the dirt roads have been graded recently, which makes them soft and tricky as well as power-robbing. I can use level 4 (max assist) on the way home as it's more downhill. This is nice because I can arrive home and not be completely bagged. I still feel like doing things in the evening.

When I bought my bike, I let the salesman talk me into a mountain bike style. I had big plans for hitting the trails and doing real "serious" mountain biking. Turns out, I was just kidding myself -- I did about 5 technical rides in 10 years.

So I finally decided that what I really needed was a bike that I was comfortable going relatively long distances on - in short, a commuter. So I set about "commuter-ing" my mountain bike. Off came the knobby tires and on went semi-slicks. It got fenders, a more-upright handlebar, a rear-view mirror, the BionX assist kit (which I love), lights, kickstand, rack and pannier baskets. In short, all the things it needed to make the bike USEFUL.

Today's ride home from work included a side-trip to the grocery store. It makes me so happy to be able to pick up some stuff on the way home. :-)

Here's what my useful bike looks like:


Here I am after a 30K+ ride in 30C+ temperatures:


And one final shot of Jordan getting some lovin' with flower petals in her fur.


Ahhhhhhh. :-)

Grant