So there am I on the morning commute, barreling down the expressway bike lane at about 21 mph dressed in spiffy bike shorts and jersey and dreaming of a win in Paris. Ahead I see a lone cyclist: anorak, bucket helmet, panniers, flat bar town bike etc. However, he's pedalling like crazy and proving very hard to catch. He makes it through a set of lights and I get caught, then resume the chase, all set to congratulate him on an excellent pace. Only when I get enough speed up to begin passing do I notice the hub motor and battery pack, mostly obsured by that sneaky pannier....

Ed

should have pushed him over

Chacun a son goût

Frame pump through the spokes would've sent the message across clearly.

that's funny

edit: the OP that is.

I've done that before. I was all like "holy crap, that guy is really motoring on that fat-tire xtra-cycle." But no, the motor was motoring.

I too have been commutered by someone with a motor. She kept up with me up a hill, which surprised me. Then she blew by me doing close to thirty. I was baffled. I caught up at a light a few miles later and saw the motor. A memorable commute to say the least.

What is wrong with a little electric assist?

I am trying to get my wife to use her bike more for commuting, but she only does it about every 10 days due to the distance (12 miles). If I had the extra $800 for an electric pac for her bike, she would use the bike most of the time. We could even go on longer weekend rides too...

It might be worth it with $4/gallon gas

Nothing, in fact I was somewhat relieved to see that the rider in question was not riding under their own steam - I was about ready to announce my retirement

Just think! More powerful than a.......12V motor

Nobody's going to say it? What's a motor-bike doing in a bike lane?

I think the restriction (or the line) between a two wheeled vehicle qualifying as a bicycle and a two wheeled vehicle qualifying as a motor vehicle is a throttle. His bike likely had no throttle, but simply applies power when he applies power.

Given that it's probably a whole half horsepower, or less, I see no reason to fret over him. It may not be quite as efficient (or ecologically friendly), but it's still very efficient.

I had a similar encounter once, and the dude was fast as hell too !

=)

Same thing here - I couldn't figure out how a fat guy on a fat tire bike was catching up to me on a hill. I know I'm not the fastest guy up a hill, but I'm still faster than most people on my commute, but this guy keeps catching up, so I put her into hammer gear and start really pumping. Long story short, he caught me and it was then that I saw the motor ... phew!

Yes, it's silly. You need to update your dreaming scenario. The ride through Paris is largely symbolic. The real racing is done in the earlier stages. Alas, if only people could dream more correctly...

PS. Thank you for not being a boxer.

I always wonder if they pig out after a commute due to all the work they did

Here in Massachusetts, the law says scooters may use the bike lane provided they have engines smaller than 50cc. A coworker of mine rides such a scooter but was pulled over the other day for using the bike lane - go figure!

Thats easy, how about a V12 motor

Actually it was an electrically assisted bicycle, not a motor bike. I think these can be used legally in the bike lane.

...this illustrates my struggle with (English) English in the USA. Motor, to me, usually implies an electric motor. An internal combustion power source would be an engine, probably consuming petrol

Yes I know, just wanted to add a little sarcastic cycling colour to my post. Perhaps it was an early stage time trial, I forget now

In AZ the law for motor assist bicycle is 48cc max, speed must remain at 20mph or less and can use bike lanes, but are not allowed to use bicycle paths.

https://azbikelaw.org/blog/moped-and-...es-in-arizona/

Al

So you're allowed to go faster without a motor than with one? Awesome.

This sounds like something that happened to my friend and me on one of our Wednesday night rides. We're stopped at a light to cross Rt 35. A young lady rides up a an electric bike. The light changes green we all go. She accelerates quickly for the first 100 ft. She thinks she has dropped us. My friend and I pass here and her smile drops as we drop her. We didn't we could catch her but we did. :-)

Try catching someone on a Crystalyte 5304@48v, some of these motors could shred professional roadies.. Not really a fair comparison though.

I have an e-assist motor kit, which is actually sitting in my basement unused. They're very useful for hills and for cargo, but dealing with the extra fuss of the battery is a pain, and they reduce the bikes overall ability when not in use.