Motorized E Bikes allowed on lakefront path?

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Permalink Reply by yaco boobies on April 21, 2017 at 11:21pm

Bought an e-bike for my elderly father (in his mid 80's) back when Schwinn first came out with one which would be maybe 10-12 years ago. He was having trouble with hills. The thing was sluggish and the dealer had no idea how to fix as this was the first one he sold. The guy who designed the electric part was pretty famous (I can't remember his name) but I got a hold of him at his design firm out in CA. Don't know if this is still true, but he told me that in order to avoid the license and insurance issue the bikes could go no faster than 20 mph or else they would be listed as mopeds which have a motorcycle license. He was a great guy and sent me detailed instructions for rewiring the bike. On a flat surface with no head wind it will do 20 mph. But not for long as that really depletes the battery. Now the newer/lighter bikes with the new lighter batteries might be able to do better but the owners would have to eliminate the electric governor - which would void the warranty and could land you in a weird legal predicament if a cop were smart enough to figure it out if you got stopped for some reason as it is illegal to do so (or so I was told).  My dad passed away a few years ago and so I have the bike. I can see why it would appeal to many people BUT it drives me insane. I ride maybe 3,500 to 5,000 miles a year at a 20-22 average and riding an electric (especially uphill) will drive a real cyclist nuts as even with the assist you're pedaling furiously and still going half as fast as I can on my road bike. I should sell it as I never use it. Rather self pedal myself around town.

Electric bikes aren't allowed on the IPP (for that matter electric or gas vehicles of any type aren't allowed and that includes electric wheelchairs and segways). As far as gas bikes go -that was a popular thing back in the 1930's - 1950's. You can easily build one that will do 40 mph. They are noisy as all get out - and the home built ones I've seen offer a good way to get yourself a nasty manifold burn. They belch smoke and the handling is horrible due to the weight and placement of the engine. Not to mention that I've yet to see one that modified the brakes to handle the extra speed and weight of the engine. It also seems that the bikes themselves tend to be low end bikes to begin with. They are accidents waiting to happen IMHO. They will go like crazy though - just be prepared when something suddenly crosses your path - bad hilarity is likely to ensue. 

My first post on chainlink!

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Permalink Reply by Brian Marquis on April 21, 2017 at 11:33pm

Thanks for this post! I've never heard of the cadence issues with electrics. Do you know if that's still an issue, or if it's just that earlier model of schwinn? Also what is the IPP? I'm planning on buying my wife an eBike.

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Permalink Reply by yaco boobies on April 22, 2017 at 12:33am

The IPP is the Illinois Prairie Path which follows the path of the old interurban route of the Chicago & Aurora Elgin aka The Roar-in Elgin. It is a 66 mile crushed limestone bike route in the Western suburbs. It starts in Maywood and splits in Wheaton with one route going to Elgin and the other to Aurora (it splits again on this line with one route going to Batavia and the other to Aurora). Both ends are then connected by the Fox River Trail (which is asphalt paved) which runs along the Fox River from Aurora to Elgin (which itself is another 43 miles). It is the old Fox River interurban route. The path actually passes a 7 mile part of that route which is still active with the The Fox River Trolley Museum where you can step back in time and ride an interurban from a hundred years ago.

Schwinn has changed hands a couple times since this bike was bought and I have no idea what they currently offer. The last time they went bankrupt I believe a Chinese company bought the brand name. I do know there are some really slick electrics out there. And there are different systems - some power the rear wheel, some the crank and some the front wheel. The types of batteries (and shapes) are all over the place as well. I saw one bike that the battery was in the down-post. There are pluses and minuses to all these things and you would really want to delve into it before buying. Your budget will also be a limiting factor. With the old technology in the bike I bought for my dad it uses a lead acid battery.  The bad news is it's boxy & heavy & takes a while to charge versus some of the lithium batteries. The good news is it is really cheap to get a new one and they are common as they are used in trailers for the brakes. Plus it's proven old technology and won't start on fire by itself. ;-) But I would guess nobody is using them in electrics today. I did replace the steel wheels with lightweight aluminum Cane Creeks I had as extras from one of my MTBs and replaced a lot of the components with stuff out of my parts bins. The problem with many electrics is they are built for people that think a bike seat should be the size of a bar stool and the components reflect that as well. 

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