SANTA MONICA—The Electric Bike Expo took place at the Santa Monica Pier from December 2 to December 4 where people tried out more than 100 different electric bike models in test courses for free.
The Electric Bike Expo was set up to encourage the public and electric bike dealers to learn more about what electric bikes are and how they operate.
“The best way for people to truly understand what an electric bike is all about is to provide them with the ride experience,” said President of the Electric Bike Expo Ray Verhelst in a statement. “That is why we are taking electric bikes to the people.”
The electric bikes utilize a motor, a battery and a drivetrain and are meant to help cyclists when facing a steep hill or other tough terrain by easing the cyclist’s exertion on the pedals, rather than completely taking over all human interaction.
According to the Electric Bike Expo’s website, the test track at the event consisted of a fully fenced track designed with different terrain for users to experiment with, such as a hill structure to test out ascending and descending on the bikes. Corners help determine how the bike handles and straightaways allow for testing top speed and acceleration. One optional terrain includes small hills, bumps and banks for people to test the suspension.
The Expo allowed consumers to gather information for marketing purposes and to better understand the attendee’s preferences to bike riding.
The Electric Bike Expo is a weekend event hosted throughout the country. Other cities this year participating in the event included: Seattle, San Diego, Denver, Houston, and Washington D.C. Cities are chosen based on the level of friendliness toward electric bikes and the economic demographics of those who will attend the event.
“Santa Monica has been one of the most aggressive cities in terms of bike lanes and bike-friendly communities,” Verhelst said. “So there are a lot of electric bike shops as well as traditional bike shops in the area, a lot of cyclists.”
