Bike riding for the non-athletically inclined

[HeidiO]

   First, a huge thank you to MMM and Mrs MMM - I love your site.  And Bakari and Arabelspy and everyone else who makes these forums so excellent.  I have learned so many things already.  But the biggest change is my wife (the less-mustachian of the two of us) has started reading the articles and has started making big changes.
  We started riding our bikes, but we aren't in great shape (legitimate health issues and generalized laziness) so we would get tired quickly.  Also, we live in a rather hilly area, so I have arrived at meetings red-faced, sweating, and not enjoying the ride.  Then my wife decided she needed a pedal-assist electric bike.  At first I didn't want to pay $470 plus tax (Walmart.com) for a new toy (ezip bike.)  But she convinced me that this could help get us down to 1 car after our son graduates.  So we went for it and I LOVE it.  Very fun, plus I have no worries about going longer distances with it - places I probably wouldn't have biked with my other bike.  We still pedal, so it is more exercise than driving, and less costly (battery plugs into a regular outlet.)   As long as this bike turns out to be reasonably durable, I  can easily see going down to 1 car. 
  So, not as mustachian as a regular bike - but, a lot better than a car.  And I've already biked several errands I normally would have driven.
Heidi

[arebelspy]

Congrats on making progress!

Too many people try to go whole hog and make drastic changes and then it doesn't stick.  Making changes in steps makes it much more likely you can stick to it.

The wife and I have electric bikes also, and the main thing I like about them is that it doesn't let you make excuses.  With an electric bike, it's a lot easier to tell yourself "it's an electric bike, I can't wimp out."

I often ride with the motor off, so I am doing all the pedaling, then switch it on when I get tired to have it pedal assist.

[HeidiO]

I really like it for crossing intersections.  If I am starting from a full stop, I get a little anxious about how slow I am going across the intersection, this way I can speed up much faster.  I rode it to a meeting today and a friend was tellig me how impressive it was to be riding.  I said,"Not really, it's an electric bike."  And he said, "Still, you're riding a bike and it is 100 degrees out!"  I had no idea, I was so comfortable.
Heidi

[darkelenchus]

Great to hear! And just think, as your fitness and stamina increase, you'll be able to do more & travel further, becoming even less dependent on your car for transportation. Greater cycling ability ⇒ greater independence!

[twinge]

I've thought about one of these--mainly because a morning time crunch involving being home while one kid leaves for school and then getting the other to daycare and starting work at a reasonable hour--I can't make it happen via bike  without being super sweaty and exhausted from riding like a demon.  But if all the power weren't mine...it might work.   The only issue is that I didn't know if it would work pulling a child in a bike trailer (e.g., is the motor loud?, does the motor block your ability to hook up a bike trailer? ).  So my first question for someone who has the ezip (which I saw as the cheap entry route in) would be if you have attached a trailer and then also if you have attached a trailer with a child in it? 
One other option I could see would be to have the trailer with my daughter in it but only use the power when she wasn't in it (or maybe just on the one killer hill en route to the daycare:) ).  But is the ezip unpowered a lot heavier than a regular bike?  My body can just barely handle pulling the trailer with my daughter in it (and I've been doing it awhile so my strength growth only seems to just match her body weight growth :) ), so if I added to that burden by having to pull a heavier electric bike unassisted while she's in it it would probably defeat the purpose...

[happy]

I live up a large killer hill, that separates me from the local village and any biking for the purpose of errands would require me to bike back up the hill. I've been thinking about one of these electric bikes...thanks for the feedback.  I've also been unkeen to leap in and buy one due to the cost since this mmm trip is supposed to be about spending less ...think I should really get my bike muscles going regularly and then reconsider.

[Bakari]

So my first question for someone who has the ezip (which I saw as the cheap entry route in) would be if you have attached a trailer and then also if you have attached a trailer with a child in it? 
One other option I could see would be to have the trailer with my daughter in it but only use the power when she wasn't in it (or maybe just on the one killer hill en route to the daycare:) ).  But is the ezip unpowered a lot heavier than a regular bike?  My body can just barely handle pulling the trailer with my daughter in it (and I've been doing it awhile so my strength growth only seems to just match her body weight growth :) ), so if I added to that burden by having to pull a heavier electric bike unassisted while she's in it it would probably defeat the purpose...

Another option is to get a kit, instead of a whole bike - preferably a wheel with the motor built in (you can also get one that drives the tire, like the old headlight generators in reverse, but they will wear out your tire faster)
Those are frequently less expensive, (since your not also paying for a bike, which you already have - kits on Google shopping and ebay from about $200 and up), and then you know that your existing trailer hitch will work.

They are all pretty quiet.  You can hear them indoors, but not always over traffic.  Some models are probably louder than others I'd assume, but I'd be surprised if any where what you would call "loud".

Yes, the battery and motor are fairly heavy.   Somewhere in the range of 20-50lbs, depending on the size and type of battery.  So it may more than double the weight of the bike, even the bike + trailer (although another way to look at it is still less than the weight of the two humans you're moving around)

[HeidiO]

   It's pretty quiet.  I don't have a trailer yet so I don't know how easily they attach.  I think we're gonna use it a lot.  Today was my wife's first ride to work, no problem. I'm just sad I can't use it today.  We want a second one already!  I can't wait to compare how much we are paying for gas.
This is gonna be a lifestyle changer for us.
Heidi 

[happy]

The e bikes I was looking at are 21kg...not sure how much a bike normally weighs but I'm betting its less than that.

[grantmeaname]

21kg is 46 pounds.  A normal bike would be somewhere in the 20-30lb range (9.1-13.5 kg), towards the top end if it's older or built-up for touring or hauling.

[twinge]

Another option is to get a kit, instead of a whole bike - preferably a wheel with the motor built in (you can also get one that drives the tire, like the old headlight generators in reverse, but they will wear out your tire faster)
Those are frequently less expensive, (since your not also paying for a bike, which you already have - kits on Google shopping and ebay from about $200 and up), and then you know that your existing trailer hitch will work.

Thanks, Bakari--that's a good point...although I guess the motor could end up blocking the hitch anyway...I think I'll just work on my strength and maybe convincing my eldest to get ready and get to the bus stop 15 min early so I have less of a time crunch.