I’m now a few days into using an electric cargo bike (a Tern GSD) as my primary form of transportation. It’s…awesome.
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@inthehands @tim_lavoie We have stayed a 1-car family despite having two kids in elementary school with all their activities largely thanks to the GSD. We had a 9 year old Mazda 3 until a few months ago when it was totaled in a wreck (everyone is fine). So we've switched to an EV now. We had been planning to keep the Mazda till EOL, just the EOL came a little sooner than we expected
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@inthehands multiple keyed-alike Abus locks. Runs to some dollars. Also security nuts on wheels and seatpost.
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@dr2chase done and doing. Also a Bikebac.
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#BikeDiary I notice after a week with the cargo bike as primary transportation that I'm getting a •lot• more sun — which isn't great news for this pale-skinned redhead with a family history of skin cancer.
Anyone out there have opinions on bike helmet brims / visors / sun shades? It matters to have 360° of shade, not just the front. “Da Brim” looks promising. Anyone have experience with it? Other recommendations?
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@inthehands My only suggestion is lots of sunblock.
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#BikeDiary An important reminder here for all of us bicycle advocates from the ever-thoughtful @grimalkina:
https://mastodon.social/@grimalkina/113261303557693460All these different forms of climate action are about each one of us doing what is possible for •us•, taking advantage of the choices we’re individually privileged enough to have. At the societal level, we need to find ways to make more choices and better choices accessible to more people — not to squeeze people into choices they don’t have.
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@michael_w_busch
Story of my life -
Paul Cantrellreplied to Paul Cantrell last edited by [email protected]
#BikeDiary I chatted with my parents yesterday about the new bike. As usual, they’re delighted that I’m delighted. We all wondered whether there’s a similar option for them: in their 80s, and very healthy considering, but…energy, back pain, and •extreme• danger from a fall are all showstoppers for them. My 111-mile week last week was very much a product of my middle-aged health and good fortune.
What would a world look like where they could do their errands on…an e-trike, maaybe? A golf cart?
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#BikeDiary “Mass transit!!” is the obvious response, but Ft. Collins isn’t even in the outer limits of the urban density universe where mass transit could be robust enough to really serve their needs. We can lament the past century of sprawl-based urban planning, and try to correct for it as we move forward, but that’s a solution on a timescale of…what? 20 years? 50 years? more?
Decarbonization means finding “never replace the old car” choices that my parents could wholeheartedly embrace •now•.
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the bus lane enthusiastreplied to Paul Cantrell last edited by
@inthehands no personal experience, but i've heard good things about this brand: https://sunseeker.bike/
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@inthehands my dad has an e-trike! You do have to learn how to ride it, it’s different than a twowheeler. But it’s given him so much independence back. (He hasn’t been allowed to drive a car for decades because of traumatic brain damage and he was getting insecure on his two wheeler and staying home because of that.)
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@inthehands complete aside, but 111 miles this last week? That's excellent, must be doing wonders for your health.
I haven't regularly ridden since I was a late teen. I'm in a similar middle aged boat and I should really treat myself to that new bike I've been threatening for years. It can't replace the car, we pay lip service here by "sharing the road" with bikers, which I'm astonished doesn't cause more injuries to cyclists. But we've got miles of trails I need to avail myself of.
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Paul Cantrellreplied to the bus lane enthusiast last edited by
@t54r4n1 From recumbent e-trike to golf-cart-like vehicle, I think there are a lot of light electric vehicle options that could work for folks like them — particularly if they had very comfortable seating / posture and good weather protection — if only there were more routes available to them truly protected from car traffic.
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@venite That’s really awesome! Thank you for bringing up the “independence” factor. It’s huge. And it’s not only a source of incredible harm for people who have to stop driving, but also a factor that keeps people in cars when they really should not be. My dad has ordered me to tell him when he’s not driving safely anymore. If that day comes, it’s going to be a tough conversation, even though he did ask.
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@tehstu I mean, yeah, it does have me feeling fresh — but also 111 miles with electric pedal assist feels much more like “I got 30-45 minutes of walking in every day” than “I did a tough workout every day.”
I •can• ride it with low or zero assist if I want a real workout, but in practice, having the low-effort ride is what gets me on the bike in the first place, especially when I’m groggy and tired and in a hurry and just moving sounds hard.
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@inthehands I pedaled 8 miles to work and 8 miles back for years. But I was in my 30s. Eventually I shifted to the bus, then retired. Did drive the farm truck for awhile after that, but finally gave it away. I seldom get off the premises now. But the garden keeps me moving. For travel, there's Mastodon.
A friend who is in his 80s has one of these and loves it, but the company is always on the brink of going belly up.
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@shonin That looks awesome! I wish we had more choices in that kind of range — and more infrastructure that favored them.
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@inthehands are these a thing in the US? (Mobility scooters)
All over the UK. Pavement legal. Top speed varies between 4-15mph depending on various things.
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@inthehands just seen the electric trike elsewhere in the thread and that looks way better though
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the bus lane enthusiastreplied to Paul Cantrell last edited by
@inthehands yeah; again with the 20-50 year timeframe on that.