so much that he bought another and
now wants to carry electric bikes at his
shop. When he heard about the expo,
he immediately planned a trip to the
San Diego expo. We caught up to him
on the third day after he had literally
ridden every possible moment of the
event: “I’ve always loved two wheels—
ever since I was 5 years old—and still
haven’t lost my affection for it! It could
have a motor or just pedals—whatever.
I’ve done about 35 years’ worth of
motorcycle road racing, too, so I have a
lot of fun on two wheels!
“This is my first time trying out a
bunch of different brands to find out
some of their idiosyncrasies—what’s
good, what’s bad. I’ve been looking
into opening an e-bike shop for the last
five years, so I’ve been watching the
technology and prices, and it’s finally
here. I think people will spend $2000–
$4000 on a really good bike, whereas
five years ago they’d spend more than
that and get just kind of a so-so bike.”
I spent some time riding the track
with Pete, trading bikes and talking
more, and he was definitely one of
the most knowledgeable riders that
I ran into. Every level of rider was
represented on the track—from older
folks who hadn’t been on a bike in
years to highly skilled riders who rode
everything from cars to older or home-
brewed electric bikes to solar-charging
electric recumbents.
TRACK-TACULAR
The riding tracks that Pete and Ray
have designed are amazing. Since the
events are held in parking lots, they use
steel crowd barriers to mark the outside
and inside of the course. There’s a
small wooden “hill” in the back straight
that serves to let people see what the
bikes can do on an incline, and a set of
wooden humps for experts, specifically
for mountain and fat bikes.
There are cargo bikes, and some
people bring their kids to let them ride
around on the back. Most are surprised
that, with the power available, some of
those long cargo bikes ride nearly the
same as a regular-length bike.
One rider came out, appropriately,
on his Zero SR to test ride some
electric bicycles.
Felt built this cargo bike on the
success of their Bruhaul with a
slightly shorter frame and Shimano
STEPS drive system. The result is a
handsome cargo bike that feels like
a normal bike.
