The fine folks over at Brompton took to the tubes in London with a new pitch: ditch the usual commute in favor of a ride on one of Brompton’s lightweight, compact folding electric bikes. Most folks in the world still haven’t ridden on an electric bicycle, which makes the proposal that much more exciting.
Image courtesy Brompton
The resulting smiles echo those I have seen when showing off the capabilities the handful of Rad Power Bikes, Tern, Rayvolt, Swagtron, and CERO e-bikes I’ve toured around town. Electric bikes, or e-bikes, open up possibilities in your mind as soon as you feel the extra power the built in motor and batteries kick into the powertrain. It’s like riding around on an bicycle that’s always going downhill and it almost always summons a smile.
In London, Brompton’s ebike evoked a similar response. The prospect of riding a bike that’s helping you get where you’re going instead of heading down to the Tube for the normal slog to work is just more fun. Being out in the sun, getting a bit of a workout, and breathing in fresh air is so much nicer than any other way to get to work. Check out their experience here:
We had a cunning plan to put an end to your commute chaos… This is what happened next . #BromptonRescueMe pic.twitter.com/aNzDeaIDfW
— BromptonBicycle (@BromptonBicycle) May 30, 2019
Having said all that, e-bikes don’t work for everyone. Some people commute tens or hundreds of miles to work and back each day, it rains, snows, and it’s not always safe. Bicycling brings with it many benefits, and an electric bike further lowers the barrier to getting out of the car or off the train and onto a bike.
For me, I love that the electric motor and batteries take the edge off the hills I live near. They allow me to ride ~10 miles uphill to get my kids from school and still have energy to get both of them, on an ebike, back home again. They allow me the freedom to ride to soccer practice to meet my kids and still have energy to run around with the boys before pedaling back home.
Brompton’s e-bikes are compact and fold down for commuters to make it easy to bridge the last mile from the train or bus to work, home, or school. It’s a key enabler to making fitness more accessible and this video just captures so much of that positive for me. So without further ado, check out the video, then get out there and try an ebike.
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