How a cargo bike replaced the family hauler.
Are you looking for a way to streamline, downsize and cash out on your car-based lifestyle? Be inspired by Amy and John, a couple who recently unloaded their car for a cargo electric bike. It’s perfect for their family’s needs and they love the changes they have made in their lives. Are you looking for a little change? Read on.
Amy and John are like a lot of other American couples. They’re in their thirties, they have two kids and both work outside the house. Their lives revolve around getting the family to and from school, work and whatever activities might be on the agenda for any given day. All pretty normal stuff really.
And just like so many others, they need transportation to connect all the dots and keep their hectic lives going. Until fairly recently they were a two car family. Being somewhat ecologically minded, the couple bought a Toyota Prius a few years back. Most of their trips are the typical around town errands of going to the store, work, dropping the kids off, etc., which didn’t require hauling extraordinary amounts of gear. For them, the Prius gave them just what they needed with excellent fuel economy, but without having to maneuver a bulky SUV.
The second vehicle they used more for out-of-town trips and weekend excursions. They’re an active outdoor family that enjoys going skiing, camping and their annual Thanksgiving Day yurt trip. They rely on a larger vehicle for this because there is an amount of stuff they need to schlepp with them to make these adventures happen, and all-wheel drive does come in handy on occasion. It would be categorized as an SUV, but it’s pretty moderately sized compared to many of the big rigs that share the same moniker these days.
Then one day, the two-car mentality changed. They saw someone roll through their neighborhood on an electric bike pulling a trailer. Here was this woman, clearly a mom with her two little kids in the back, on a bike loaded with groceries and she was plugging along happy as could be. She didn’t seem to mind the enormous payload she was carrying. She clearly wasn’t some super-athlete, and yet she made pedaling this bicycle land train look easy. There had to something to this.
That got them to rethinking their transportation strategy. If this normal woman in their neighborhood could get around town on a bicycle with kids and stuff in tow, then certainly they could handle it. They were totally intrigued by what they saw and the potential difference and ebike could make in their lives, so they got to talking about how they should approach the topic.
They started off by doing some research. First and easiest was stopping their neighbor on her way by. They asked her some questions about her electric bike and what here experiences had been to that point. Then they hopped online. Google is an endless stream of information in our internet-driven society and they found no shortage of products, stats and reviews to read and compare.
After some searching, they found just what they were looking for—the Yuba Spicy Curry.
It’s the ultimate utility electric bike capable of hauling everything they need when going about their daily business. Now instead of pulling the Prius out of the garage, Amy will grab the Spicy Curry to go pick up the boys and swing by the store on the way home. John packs up the boys, one on the back and one in a trailer, and heads down to the river for an afternoon of fishing. They’re not missing the car at all.
The bike turned out to be such a great option that they decided to sell one of their vehicles. With the bike replacing their around town car, they made up their minds to sell the Prius. They were already being responsible with their choice of vehicle, but they really upped the ante by trading the hybrid car for a hybrid bike! Beyond the environmental argument, they also profited from the switch. They came out $15,000 ahead on the deal and they gained a bunch of garage space. Win win!