Electric Assist — Thousand-Mile Review

I've hit 1,000 miles on my Boda Boda since last August, when I had Ferris Wheels put the Bionx electric assist kit on the bike. There's a part of me still marveling at the number — I mean, that is a big-ass number! Did I ever think I'd be a three-season commuter by bicycle?

So that's point one in favor of the electric assist: It got me out of my car: biking my son to preschool and then to work, biking to farmers' markets and CSA pickup sites and the supermarket, biking to go out with friends after work, biking to music festivals with my kids and husband...There really were a lot of bike trips this year that I normally would have taken by car. Either they used to feel too far away or there were too many steep hills or I would have the kids or packages to deal with, and the car used to seem like the only option for those trips. Now I have the electric assist, so I'm more likely to hop on the bike. Last Thursday, I picked up the kids from school and just kept going to the farm share site with both kids on the bike; I put the veggies in the basket and in the paniers and was on my way.

Point number two is that when I'm in a rush, ramping up that assist level to three or four and going 15 to 20 miles an hour is a viable option. A couple of weeks ago, I was running late to a meeting at my office that was taking place in the evening. I had worked from home all day, picked up the kids from school, and made dinner. The sky looked overcast and the radar showed a storm coming. But I thought I'd just make it to the office before the storm hit. I didn't even take a change of clothes. I strapped my laptop bag to the Boda Boda and took off like the wind, with the Bionx on level 4 the whole way. I was going 20 miles an hour up and down rolling hills, watching the darkening sky and loving the air fly around my body. I moved at a pace I have never achieved on a bicycle before — and got there in the nick of time. A minute after I arrived at the office, the sky opened up. I rushed to the conference room — and my colleagues told me I looked "fresh as a daisy." Amazing.

Point three is very simple, and I've made it before so I won't belabor it: I live in an area with a lot of hills. Some of them are pretty steep. So it really helps to kick on that assist — I may not even be on my way to work or hauling a kid or two. I might just be going super slow, because the Boda Boda is a fun, useful bike, but it is not named a "cruiser" for nothing: It sports two-inch-wide tires and a relaxed, upright geometry. Plus, I have noticed that the bike is even slower with the electric assist battery and motor installed (probably because of the increased weight of the bike but also perhaps because of drag). This bike is not going to hit even the respectable mph of my English three-speed going up hills. I have just begun to accept this as a fact and learned to turn on that assist to one or two just to move faster than walking pace (say, 10 mph) up a decent hill (say, a 4% grade).

On the downside, well, there are only two things, and they are both in my head, so they might not really matter, but they're there, so I'll tell you about them. Those two things are guilt and worry.

Guilt, because I am using electrical power instead of only human power. I have to admit that it often feels like cheating. I don't really know the impact on the environment of lithium ion batteries. What does mining for lithium do to the earth? Is it sustainable? The impact of plugging more things into the wall, contributing to global warming, isn't good. Plugging in the battery once a week for three to four hours does not noticeably increase my electric bill, but every time I do it, I feel like a hypocrite: how much energy am I using to power my "green" vehicle. It's better than driving a car the same distance, but not as good as leg-power alone. As I'm riding up a hill with the assist on level three, I think guilty thoughts about going down to two so that I'll conserve the battery a bit.

Worry is less intense, but presents itself occasionally, especially when something goes wrong. I can do basic fixes on a regular bike, such as changing a flat tire (front or back), adjusting rim brakes, and lowering the handlebars. A few weeks ago, my bike started randomly going into regen mode, and I was very frightened. It was riding along smoothly at a good clip and then — wham— I found myself struggling to stay up, as if a sudden headwind had tried to knock me over. The "G" on the console showed me what was actually happening: I was pedaling but not going. I shut the system off and rode to the nearest bike shop (which happened to be Harris Cyclery, and they have some experience with e-assist, so I was lucky) and they figured out that the little magnet under the brake lever had come loose and moved, causing the electrical circuit to break inconsistently. They told me to superglue the magnet back on, and that's what I did. It has been fine since then, but I do worry about other stuff going wrong that might cost more than a tube of Crazy Glue. Or more hassle or damage than a free trip to the LBS.

All in all, though, this year has been The Year of the Bicycle. With only a short break for snow, ice, and temps below 20 degrees (in January and February, mostly) I have ridden over 1,000 miles. I have totally broken in my Brooks saddle, and I have no regrets.