What Riding an Electric Bike Taught My Daughter About Life
What Riding an Electric Bike Taught My Daughter About Life
My 11-year-old was biking home from school by herself, riding my husband’s electric bike.
If you’ve never been on an electric bike, there’s a reason people riding them have huge smiles on their faces. Getting that electric boost—especially when you’re cycling uphill—feels like the hand of God reaching down from Heaven to help you along.
My husband’s electric bike (from a company that sadly isn’t making them anymore) is only a little heavier than a regular road bike. James used to be a fixie guy. And we’ve always been a biking family. I used to think electric bikes weren’t “real” bikes. Now I know better. We bought the electric bike after he was diagnosed with a life-threatening heart condition. The healing process was exhausting and James was physically very restricted. When he was so sick he couldn’t even go for a walk, he could ride the electric bike, in first gear and with full electric power boosting him along. It really was a godsend.
My daughter took the bike path. There was a group of older kids biking in front of her so she shifted to boost mode.
“On your left!” she cried as she flew past, grinning.
She biked at breakneck speed. But when she got close to home, she had to stand up on the pedals to get up the steep hill. That’s when my daughter realized that she’d forgotten to turn the bike’s power switch on.
She’d sailed past the older kids on the path, mistakenly thinking the electricity had pushed her along. But it wasn’t the electricity that made her go so fast, it was her belief that the electricity was on.
Our brains are powerful. The brain itself is not a muscle but it can move mountains. That’s what my daughter learned that day: that if she believed in herself, she could do anything.
About the author:
Jennifer Margulis, Ph.D., is an award-winning science writer and book author. She has produced radio features for Jefferson Public Radio, published articles in the New York Times, and is currently a contributing writer at The Epoch Times. Support independent journalism by becoming a paid subscriber to Vibrant Life, which costs $5, less than the price of an organic cuppa Joe.
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We too were a biking family until an unexpected (and potentially avoidable, had the medical folk been using their critical thinking and curiosity rather than being confined to thinking in Guidelines) health condition sidelined my husband two years ago. I never considered an electric bike. I wonder if he would be interested.
How much energy does one need to expend on flat terrain on an electric bike, say, compared to walking?
Thanks!
Oh wow! What a beautiful and inspiring story. She must have been so proud of herself! What a boost of confidence for an 11 year old girl! It's so good to hear these positive, heartwarming stories.