I see more and more e-bikes and e-scooters on the trails here in Colorado Springs...and most seem to be the fat tire suspension type, both 20-inch folders and 26" MTB style, and so many not being used in assist mode, but rather as straight on electric scooters. I think in past years these riders would have been on the streets on mopeds and motor scooters. And with the growing local trail infrastructure I'm also seeing more mopeds and motor scooters on the trails as well, although most of the ICE machines I see seem older, whereas the e-bikes and e-scooters look newer.

When I was a kid in Chicago in the 1960s , so many older kids were riding lawn-mower-engined mini-bikes on the side streets and through the school yards. After a long hiatus I'm seeing that kind of thing again except it's cheap-ish electric scooter/light e-motorcycles. And they're so much more dangerous as they are quieter and quicker.

At 64, I'm still bike-commuting 4-days a week with weekend rides and errands. I do it for fitness, so I'm happy with my non-assisted bikes. But I can see a day in the future where I will seek e-assist for failing knees, or general loss of strength and stamina, just as I wear glasses, need arch supports in my shoes, rely on a couple of pharmaceutical prescriptions to enjoy a more normal day,may need hearing aids, etc.

But until then, there is nothing more intoxicating to me than moving solely under my own power on a bike, and generating my own warmth in the colder months. I hope I can keep it up.