Originally Posted by
shelbyfv
Missed opportunity? If someone isn't impaired, lots of good cycling can be had during those years. Also the fitness gained by suffering up hills and into headwinds likely benefits us as we age.
The type of e-bike the OP is riding allows you to suffer as much as you choose. You just go a bit faster for a given effort. It also allows more flexibility in terms of riding terrain.
Your talk of “missed opportunity” is quite ironic actually. You clearly have a fixed mindset here that prevents you from seeing it from a different perspective. I have a friend who rides both normal bikes and an e-bike (similar to the OP’s). He uses his e-bike for fast, hilly group rides where he wouldn’t be able to keep up otherwise (he’s not a natural climber) and for a long 50 km commute ride to make it into a practical training ride. He uses his normal road bike for competitive timed event rides where an e-bike would be inappropriate.