Ah, another ad disguised as an article. I understand the average person doesn't know how to do bike maintenance and would need to learn about pumps, patch kits, etc; but saying "no one told me I'd also need" a helmet and a bike lock is kinda ridiculous.
this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2025
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micromobility - Bikes, scooters, boards: Whatever floats your goat, this is micromobility
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Ebikes, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, longboards, eboards, motorcycles, skates, unicycles, heelies, or an office chair: Whatever floats your goat, this is all things micromobility!
"Transportation using lightweight vehicles such as bicycles or scooters, especially electric ones that may be borrowed as part of a self-service rental program in which people rent vehicles for short-term use within a town or city.
micromobility is seen as a potential solution to moving people more efficiently around cities"
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It's a little sad that we need to actually say this, but:
Don't be an asshole or you will be permanently banned.
Respectful debate is totally OK, criticizing a product is fine, but being verbally abusive will not be tolerated.
Focus on discussing the idea, not attacking the person.
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I'd say the real ones are:
• A really strong Ulock like the Hiplok D1000, or 13mm+ chain (it should be resistant to portable angle grinders)
• A light vest or harness with multiple reflectors and LEDs, like the Noxgear Tracer vests. Typically, runners use these, but they help make you visible even if you wear dark clothing, which I recommend against anyways. You must be visible to other bikes, pedestrians, and most importantly, cars.
• A cargo rack and waterproof panniers. This makes it significantly easier to carry heavy groceries, locks, waterproof and insulating layers, laptops, beach gear, or whatever else you are carrying. I have two 44L ones, they are about as big as you can get without getting cumbersome. Plus, the ones I have can be rolled up and stuck into the other one when not in use (ortlieb back roller is what I use).
ABUS, Skunklock, and Litelock also make good Ulocks.
My personal favorite is the Skunklock Chemical but it's very heavy. Better for ebikes or maybe moto.
I mean, this guide would be applicable for non-electric bikes as well. Although I would argue that the electric air pump is superfluous, insofar that (e)bike tires should not be going flat on a daily basis. That said, topping up the air is well-advised on a weekly or monthly schedule, depending on how often it's ridden. And with that sort of frequency, using a manual air pump to add 0.3 bar (~5 PSI) is hardly a strenuous task.
For in-the-field repairs, a compact manual pump is lighter, or even a CO2 cartridge inflator. But ahead of even those, many flats can be avoided through tire liners, which can deflect common perils like small nails. For an acoustic road bike, the rotating weight penalty can be substantial, but on an ebike, I think it's a great benefit overall.
Carrying some sort of pump is a good idea, but I opt for a hand pump because I don't trust the battery to keep a charge in those little electric pumps and most of my tires aren't very high PSI
Minimum 2 locks. And the lock featured in the article wouldn't cut it. Or rather it would be cut... and quite easily too.
Possibly even 3 locks if you have a very valuable e-bike. But honestly I would just get a beat up junker bike and ride that instead if you need to park it in iffy places.
I just use one: A skunklock chemical but I also ride a shitty ebike and live/work in areas where theft isn't as huge a problem. Plus I usually lock up in areas I can see so if someone tries anything I can always stroll up and... discourage them from doing something foolish that will result in their embarrassment or injury.
just get a beat up junker bike
Even so I still use a piece of string to tie up my old junker bike. But at least it was free!
Maybe they didn't know you were a naive dumb-shit?
We have a "don't be a dick" rule here, I would encourage you to follow it.
It's kinda funny though, I gotta hand it to em
I don't even disagree with the sentiment entirely, but rules is rules and we try to keep this place friendly.
You do understand I was calling out the author of the article, right? I really don't understand how someone can be ignorant enough to buy a bicycle and have absolutely no idea that they might just need some things to go with it.
Calling them naive is fine, calling them ignorant is fine, but calling them a dumb fuck is dickery - find another way to criticize the legitimate arguments (and by the way, I agree with you, the author is very naive).
criticize the legitimate argument
I don't believe there was any argument. Of course you need accessories for your bicycle (of any kind) unless you're going to just treat it as disposable.
calling them a dumb fuck is dickery
Your community, your call... I do respectfully disagree. That level of naivety for a grown adult is dumb-fuckery and it deserves to be called out. The premise is so incredulous that I suspect they actually just lied about it as a pretext for writing the article with a whole bunch of product placements. The whole article is an advertisement in disguise.
Anyway... I'll try to notice if I'm in your community again and attempt to keep it between the lines for you.
It isn't for me, it's for the community, but thank you.
You can still be a dick even if the person you're being dick towards isn't in the room.
Are you calling me a dick? If you're not, then what value did you bring to the conversation? If you are, then are you not actually being far more abrasive than I was since I'm actually here?
Well, you called the author of this article a "naive dumb-shit," which does indeed make you come across as a bit of a dick - so yeah, I guess you could say I’m calling you that.
However, that wasn’t really my main point. What I’m actually calling out is the flawed reasoning behind your logic suggesting that you're actually not being a dick, simply because the person you're directing it at isn’t part of this thread and can’t even hear your “criticism.” As if that somehow makes it more acceptable. It doesn't.
I'm sure the naive dumb-shits of the world appreciate your crusade to protect them. If you read the conversation with the actual mod, you'll see that I'm really calling them a shill pretending to be a dumb-shit at this point. If the world actually stood up to this kind of stupidity and fuckery instead of protecting it, then the US probably wouldn't have ever had Trump as president. Oh well... best wishes to you.