“Put an ashtray on that electric bike and you got a deal.”

Ok, maybe I’m a little old school but the new electric bikes coming out are pretty cush. But maybe that’s it. By being so forgiving, they’ll motivate us to ride bikes more and change our pattern of multiple short driving trips. I’ve been sold on [but not dedicated to] riding a bike to run errands for a year now. The dread of certain hills coupled with our dreary weather in the Northwest is a definite deterrent. The weather won’t change but climbing hills with a full load of groceries could be aided with the use of an electric bicycle. And for others just getting back into biking, knowing you have a power assist option of an electric motor might be the last bit of incentive you need to start riding again. The electric motor is there; over time, you’ll probably rely on it less and less.

Yahoo! Green has a nice breakdown of the electric bike models available by type (all-terrain, off-road, tandem, cruiser etc.) and they list the price and range of some of the models. Pricing starts at $499 for the Currie Technologies Ezip Trailz and go to $13,995 for the Optibike OB1. Optibike will only build 24 OB1′s this year – so get your orders in soon!

Besides the Jubbling, another factor that will drive wider acceptance of electric bikes is the future use of quick-charge, light weight lithium-ion batteries. Think of quick-charge lithium ion batteries as “sponges” rather than a tank you have to fill and you’ll get the idea. One source told us the re-charge rate for future lithium-ion based electric bikes could be as short as 5 minutes.

If I were to purchase an electric bike today, the model I’d choose would be Currie Technologies Izip Tricruiser. It has a range of 30-35 miles and has a cool basket on the back for carrying groceries or anything you’d want to lug around. Maybe even a small child although I wouldn’t recommend it (the added weight will reduce your range). The Izip Tricruiser can also attain a speed of 15 mph with the electric motor and I’ll need all of it when I’m being chased, laughed at, and harassed by a group of pot smoking teenagers for riding a 3 wheeler.

But then again, I’m old school. I have to suffer a little to pursue my Jubbling so I won’t be buying an electric bike soon. If you are on the fence about biking again and you want to ease yourself back into it, take a look at the electric bike models available. They don’t look like bikes with a lawn mower engine anymore. The power assist motor and battery pack are nicely hidden but the Jubbling will be obvious.

Here are some links to manufacturers of electric bikes:

1. Ride+ Trek Electric Bikes
2. Pedego Electric Bikes – models include the Classic Comfort Cruiser and Umbrella Bike.

3. E+ Electric Bikes – models include the E+ Elite Mountain Bike and E+ Response EMS bike.
4. eZee Bikes – models include the Quando, Forte and Torq.
5. Currie Technologies – models include the Tricruiser and Ezip Coastline.
6. Urban Mover – models include the Urban Glider and the Urban Cruiser.

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