395 Bike&Battery #1

Spotted an interesting trend outside UCSF hospital last week: all of the three ebikes parked outside had their branding removed. I'm guessing for security. This appears to be a Rad Rover Step-thru, $1700.

If one were to do a blog about electric bikes, how would one go about it, without any electric bike experience?

I'm not sure what this one was, it's not by Rad, and it's not the Lectric. I think it could be the Ecotric, $850.

Maybe just be honest? There seem to be two flavors of electric bike website right now, outside of the actual retailer/rebadger/manufacturer sites. The first is a legit review site that has actual hands-on experience. There seem to be a couple of those, Electrek and Electric Bike Reviews. There may be more.

Pretty sure this is a Sondors, the Fold X, which is $1300.

The other type of site tends to assume an air of authority, and combines that with some generalized writing about the bikes' specs, and talk about which is better, but you get the sense that they haven't actually ever ridden any of these bikes. 

That's what I'd like to avoid, but I also have no experience. So, for right now, my blogging about electric bikes might stick to fanboy territory, just talking about the whole scene. And if I ever get around to buying an ebike, maybe I would document that process.

And related news, like street closures. It's awesome how residents have supplemented the city's pylons with homemade signs, tinsel, and plants. There's a Les Miserables quality to the whole endeavor.

Maybe even cover stuff like this visionary mural painted by Mona Caron back in 2004. I love this piece of art, it's a history lesson and hope all tied up in one.

Most of it is in the past or 2004's present, but the last panel is the future. 

 She included sea-level rise and pod-bikes, but missed out on parklets! (Although, to be fair, there still aren't any on mid-Market, which is depicted in the mural.)

There's Homes4All and the San Francisco Swapping Center. 

And of course Chris Carlsson was part of it.

How much money could you save by riding an ebike instead of driving? About $700 per month, if you ditch your car entirely. (Rat and pool noodle are free.)

This number seems low to me, especially since most of the happening ebike brands sell direct to consumers.

"But what about parking?" Is the number one question of drivers. Well, here's an answer for retailers. One car parking spot turned into bike parking increases the sales dollars associated with that spot from $30/hr to $100/hr.

Personally, I don't know what kind of ebike I would want. The long tail extended bikes like Xtracycle and Yuba pioneered were my early favorite, but they're pricey ($4000+). Then the Rad Wagon made that category accessible ($1700), but... They're big and heavy, and I live in an apartment up a flight of stairs.

This Hauladay cargo bike from Bike Friday is pretty lightweight, under 40 lbs (although that might be the non-electric version). I can't say I'm nuts about the looks, but maybe it would grow on me. It's about $2800.

Then there's a whole world of bikes that are good for off-road. Long term, that might be something I'm interested in, and considering I've had my current bike for thirty years (well, including a rebuild), long-term is something I'm thinking about.

This looks like it might make a comfortable way to cross America off-road. Did you know there is a route for that?

Not sure about charging, though. Although I've seen trailers like that with solar panels on them.

And then there are the moped/minibike style, which say nothing to my practical side, but pretty much have my 70s child enthralled.

So there we have it, Bike&Battery #1. Will there be a number 2? Stay tuned!