For those of you new to this blog. I am JJ Hoffman, avid cyclist, recently hit with several health problems. I am 48, riddled with arthritis, overweight, high blood pressure, and other issues that left me on my couch and miserable. Then I discovered electric bikes about a year and a half ago.
Electric bikes have turned back time for me. I feel 20 years younger and 100 pounds lighter. I am pleased to say that not only am I enjoying electric bikes, but I have been able to pay it forward and give my friends an opportunity to drink from the Fountain of Youth, also known as, Electric Bikes!
Thanks to electric bikes, I am exploring Los Angeles again on my bike. I go up hills, nothing is out of bounds for me and my electric bikes
My health is much improved and I have lost 60 pounds and am still losing.
As fun as it is to ride these bikes, one thing I was missing was the ability to ride with friends. My usual riding buddies don’t have electric bikes and are old, and out of shape farts like me, so I either have to slow way down or push them hard to keep up with me
Recently I purchased the IZIP E3 Dash electric bike or “The Dasher” as I have been calling it as I love it so much. And I rewarded myself with an upgrade to the IZIP E3 Protour. This way, I can let my friends ride The Dasher while I enjoy the Protour.
And oh how I am enjoying it! The Protour is very like the Dasher. The controls and display are identical, however the Protour has a slightly more elegant design as the battery is integrated into the downtube, as opposed to sitting on top of it like it is in the Dash.
One big difference that I am still learning and am excited to tell you all about in future blog posts is the battery has a much longer life than the IZIP E3 Dash.
I love riding with friends, and as part of my job working with the nonprofit SAFE (Streets Are For Everyone) making the roadways safer for all users, I often find myself riding in group rides and I am usually asked to ride with the slower beginning group of riders to help and encourage them along. I love this responsibility and I take it very seriously. I always want to encourage new riders. Biking is great and everyone can do it.
This last Sunday, August 7th, I helped with a group ride that rode around Griffith Park and the LA River Bike Path. I brought my Dash electric bike so my friend Erik could experience the Fountain of Youth that I have been lucky enough to enjoy.
We rode with about 50 cyclists, most of them wanted to tackle the big hills and go fast, but there were about 15 beginning cyclists and in particular, a family of three who were complete novices.
After a brief meet and greet with everyone, we all took off together and rode through Griffith Park. Well, we weren’t on the road very long when one of our new riders had some trouble. my friend and I stopped to help and found ourselves far behind the group. Once we got the new riders bike up and running again it was decided that I would ride fast and catch up to the other riders to let them know what happened. I turned the juice up to level three and was back with the group in no time. Once we we reached trash truck hill, the super dooper tough riders split off from us and we took the newer riders onto the River Path. We had left the really new riders and my friend Erik on the Dasher way behind. I wondered if we would ever see them again. The River path never disappoints. I had an amazing time enjoying the beautiful wild birds that live in the river and encouraging the woman I was riding with. We were about 15 miles in when she told me that she had never ridden this far in her life.
When we were almost at the end of the River path, surprise! My friend Erik had caught up to us! He had said goodbye to the family of three who after about 10 miles had gotten a good work out and were happy and ready to go home, then he turned up the juice and caught up to us. It was wonderful to see him and especially see the smile on his face. We were doing what we do best and doing it pain free.
By the time the official ride was over, my friend was down to one bar which equals one fifth of the battery life,and we had ridden about 30 miles.But I still had four bars or four fifths of the battery left after the same amount of riding while riding on the IZIP E3 Protour electric bike.
I was so psyched to discover this, that all I could think about was my next ride where I would challenge myself to a much longer ride. I hope you will continue reading and let you tell me all about my rides and my journey to better health and great times!