If you’ve happened to see someone cruising along on their bike effortlessly, such as up a hill while barely pedaling, they’re pretty likely riding an e-bike.
I joined that group of riders recently when I bought my own e-bike. Assuming it was probably made in China, I bought it in December to get out ahead of any tariff-related price increases. I’ve been waiting and waiting for the weather to break so I could finally get it out. I took a couple of shakedown rides in the neighborhood and around my little town to get used to it but recently took it over to the Cleveland Metro Parks Bedford Reservation for a longer ride. 
Boy was it fun!
I chose a fat-tire mountain bike because I thought I’d probably want to do street, paved trail, and offroad riding. That style has the most versatility and accommodates any terrain, but it’s also pretty heavy and a little cumbersome to transport.
But the Bedford Reservation ride was great! I rode along the all-purpose trail and then went offroad onto the Bedford Single Track Mountain Biking Trail. I’ve hiked a lot of the trails in that park but I’m usually exploring through the beautiful, wooded areas, so it was unique to see the park from the all-purpose trail. I enjoyed the visuals of the winding trail coupled with the smooth, low-effort ride. 
Offroad was a completely different experience though!
The winding path through trees and fields and over small, muddy stream beds required serious attention. Not to mention the tree roots and rocks on the path! But the bike handled the trail perfectly. The fat tires and adjustable shock absorbers allowed me to navigate the trail very easily. Although a couple of tight spots through close in trees were a little anxiety inducing.
However, while I’m familiar with a lot of the hiking trails and generally know where I am on most trails, not so on this offroad trail. The Single Track trail is one direction, so once you get going you have to continue in that direction until you come to one of the connectors to the all-purpose trail. I wasn’t in any danger of getting lost, but I had no idea where I was going to come out! And as it happened, I was waaaay down the road from where I’d originally parked and started my ride.
But with the e-bike, getting back was no problem and didn’t require an exhausting return ride.
I’m definitely looking forward to hitting up this park and others as the weather and scenery improve into the summer and fall. Especially looking forward to fall rides when the parks around here are stunning.
I’m certainly not an e-bike expert but I’d share a couple of pieces of advice:
- Research your options and think about the kind of riding you’d like to do: roads/pavement versus a variety of conditions. Just like pure pedal bikes, there are different styles based on the type of riding one is planning.
- Consider class of bike (1, 2, or 3), the class of bike varies with the speed and functionality of the bike. Class 3 bikes are fairly restricted in their use within the state and most park systems.
- Understand e-bike rules in the major, area parks (Cleveland/Summit/CVNP); each has their own guidelines governing the use of e-bikes within the park and they’re a bit different. For example, e-bikes are permitted on mountain bike trails in the Cleveland Metro Parks, but NOT in Summit Metro Parks or CVNP.
- Wear a helmet!
I’m looking forward to many more rides and enjoying our amazing park systems in a new way this year and beyond!
