I took the afternoon off from politics because it is all so grim and it isn’t going anywhere for a couple years if ever, so there is no fucking need to waterboard myself with sewage every fucking day. I understand that as a white straight male this is not a luxury everyone has, but I do and I am going to use it. At any rate, Joelle and I decided that this was the trike she wanted, so we drove up to Phoenix and bought it.
The list price of the bike is 1600 bucks, which is more than I spent on my first two cars, but they did tell us that sometimes they have discounted models if they are scratched, so we asked and sure enough they had one. And the discount was ridiculous and I couldn’t even find the scratches, so with the discount and 50 bucks off for a veterans discount, and it came to 849 dollars, which is extraordinary and we feel very lucky to get a brand new bike for half off. By the time we sell the current bike she owns, it will be down to only putting out 5-600 bucks or so, so I am super jazzed about that.
Oh, and we got the Lectric:
I like the baskets so she can schlep things to work and back. We’re both pretty excited at the deal we got.
Quaker in a Basement
That is a craaaazy discount. Way to go!
Another Scott
Sweet ride and a great deal!
Maybe put a bunch of flags and lights on it so folks that are playing Warhammer 80000 and making TikiToki videos while driving will still see her anyway??
:-/
Good luck!
Best wishes,
Scott.
Suzanne
Man, you shop like I do. It feels like winning. Enjoy.
Gloria DryGarden
My mom had a pedal trike, used to go on longer bike rides w my dad. In their 70s, before her disability got too progressed. Thanks for the memory of it.
Leto
Awesome! That’s definitely a great deal you scored, and agreed on the baskets. I hope she pops in from time to time to let us know what she thinks of the bike, and all the new shenanigans she gets into :)
Anthony
Congrats! I think we’re a similar age, first car was a 77 Buick Skylark for $350, second a 85 Pontiac Grand Am for $1000.
Martin
My ebike was 9 grand, to contextualize the range for these things. But I got more than 9 grand for the 16 year old car the bike replaced, so I came out ahead.
If you don’t have a mirror on it to see cars behind you, add one. Helps a lot.
frosty
Nice discount! Ms F and I love our eBikes. There’s nothing like riding down a hill and knowing you don’t have to kill yourself going back up it when you return.
SpaceUnit
Nice. And to me that trike puts out some serious No Fucks Left to Give vibes.
Enjoy.
Jane2
What a deal that’s the one I’m looking at so await a report on how it rides.
Avalune
Leto has spring fever, so we got new bikes and have been biking around. Mine is called Lello and I love her. Rode about 70 miles last week.
something fabulous
I’ve never been on one, bi- or tri. How do they work, basically? You pedal like normal and it gives a boost so you go faster? It’s an override so you don’t have to pedal at all when you don’t wanna? something else? I literally have no idea, it finally occurs to me!
Avalune
@something fabulous: depends on the bike. There are different classes. Class 1 is minimal torque and only goes when ya pedal and usually shuts off at a certain speed. It’s described as a “gentle tail wind” so just feels like someone is giving you a gentle push. Some have a throttle and more torque and do not require pedaling to go – so more like baby moped.
frosty
@something fabulous: Generally, you pedal normally, but the bike goes faster than usual because pedaling activates the motor that moves the chainwheel. You do part of the work, the motor does part of the work. The fraction is adjustable with a controller on the handlebars.
Most eBikes also have a throttle, a little lever you push with your thumb. It activates the motor without any pedaling so you go down the street/trail without doing any work. Kills the battery faster, though.
something fabulous
@Avalune @frosty: : Thank you! Felt so dumb to realize that I had never really even thought about what they actually, you know, do!
satby
Very cool. Second the flags and review mirror.
frosty
@Avalune: What I described above with the throttle is a Class 2 or 3. A Class 1 has no throttle and I’ve never seen one of those for sale. Funny because a lot of trails and parks only allow Class 1. I think the Route of the Hiawatha we rode last summer was one of those. I was busy figuring out how to disable the throttles before we left – because the website said they’d check. They didn’t check.
SpaceUnit
@something fabulous:
Yeah, pretty much what the other commenters have said. My e-bike offers pedal assistance and so you have to pedal to move, but there are different settings. You can choose the highest setting and pretty much cruise up a super steep hill with minimal effort but that will certainly drain the battery more quickly.
I live in a steep and hilly area but still try to keep my assistance level to a minimum. It’s sometime nice to have the option though.
Leto
@frosty: the e-bike we bought her is a class 1: Salsa Confluence. We bought it at our local REI. I was considering one about 4 years ago from Orbea, but as I’ve noted before I’m not allowed to get one ( :P ). You’ve probably seen class 1’s without realizing it. The downtubes are only slightly larger in diameter, so unless you’re really looking, and know what you’re looking for, it’s easy to overlook it. Also how many people are paying attention to the rear hub where the motor is located?
Needless to say, she’s now able to keep up with me.
am
“Waterboarding with sewage” is well said.
That is some excellent shopping on the bike. Nice work.
Sure Lurkalot
It’s been dry in Denver with plenty of warm enough afternoons to bike but the fucking wind picks up right around noon so I’ve yet to get out. Bicycling is the bomb for me, I pretty much top out at a 20-25 mile ride these days (I have a human powered hybrid), but it’s both great exercise and relaxing. I’m lucky to have access to bike paths from my house. That was a big factor when I bought the house almost 3 decades ago.
mrmoshpotato
Rolling to work – no sweat! It’s a dry heat!
MCat
Congratulations on the bike. I hope Joelle will let us know how she likes it.
KrackenJack
@Leto: Nice bike! Confusingly, a company named Salsa makes a (non-electric) tandem model called the Powder Keg – also sold at REI. A tandem is the old-fashioned way to make sure your over-achieving partner doesn’t drop you on a ride. Had a Burley Rock ‘n Roll and a Co-motion Mocha over the years.
Ohio Mom
How do you secure that bike when parked? But I grew up in NYC where vehicles of all kinds were always at risk of being stolen.
Avalune
@Leto: Hey hey I had no assist for most of our last ride 😜.
@frosty: I was intentional with getting my class 1 because I wanted minimal assist, for it to be rideable without any assist (higher classes are like dragging a piano when the battery is done and no thanks), and to avoid any fussing about where I go with it.
I love my Lello Salsa! Riding without assist is great and I can turn it on and do a top gun fly by on Leto on the way home. Muwahahaha.
kindness
Nice bike. Looks like it’ll be more an electric beast than pedaling one though.
frosty
@Avalune: @Leto: Dead thread, but here’s what we’ve got. I wanted a folder for travel and couldn’t find a good one, so I bought a Tern Node D8 and had Philly Electric Wheels (now out of business) put a Bafang motor, controller, and battery on it. Nice compromise.
Ms F tried a few folders, fell once too often, then we decided to electrify her recumbent CatTrike with a Bafang. Giant Cycle of Bridgeport near Philly did the work. She loves it!
Pricey, but we got what we wanted. Mine was less than Avalune’s. The trike was a bit more.
Fair Economist
I got an Ebike 2 1/2 years ago and I couldn’t be more pleased. In spite of living in a suburban city, I can get almost all my errands done on my bike now. Today I took some mail to the post office and then got groceries.
Bruce K in ATH-GR
Wear the new vehicle in good health! By coincidence, $1600 was what I paid for my first car, a beat-up 1983 Plymouth Turismo, but those were 1988 dollars, which bought about as much as $4200 would buy today. (Those were also the days when $3990 would buy you a new Yugo.)
Martin
@frosty: The majority of ebikes sold are Class 1.
Gloria DryGarden
@Sure Lurkalot: so intensely windy!
Divadias
What a great deal! You are going to love it. I bought an electric cargo bike this year, similar to yours with 2 wheels. If it’s not raining, I’m riding. I live in a very hilly area, and still get lots of exercise even at high gears. 2 really good locks are worth the money to keep it safe.
lowtechcyclist
@Divadias:
Tell me about it! I’ve been thinking of buying an e-bike for local errands – the grocery, the hardware store, etc. are all within 3 miles of the house, but the ride’s too much of a PITA to do on a regular bike. But obviously I’m thinking of transporting a couple bags of groceries on the way home along with me, so I’d like to know about cargo bikes. So what can you tell me about yours?
Motivated Seller
Power-assist bikes are awesome, but just be ready to find replacement batteries. Proprietary batteries, despite being “reusable,” are frequently engineered to degrade quickly. I was an early adopter, and I was really disappointed. Eventually I built a 4-stroke motorized bike myself from a kit. Runs 130 miles to the gallon. Still looking/hoping for a robust electric equivalent, but haven’t found it yet.
JustRuss
Welcome to the Lectric club. I bought mine at auction last summer. Didn’t do any research and thought I got a deal for $750. Price new: $800. Oops. But it was barely used and came with extras, so didn’t do too bad. Ride it almost every day.
JustRuss
@lowtechcyclist: If you’re just getting a couple bags of groceries, you probably don’t need a cargo bike. Normal bike with a rack and panniers should work. That said, more is better, if you can afford it. Cargos tend to cost a bit more.