We caught up with longtime Amego Customer and daily commuter cyclist Gina to find out more about her story and what brought her to an E-Bike.
Gina is a healthcare professional. She began cycling to work in 1988 in an effort to get some exercise and maintain her health. Initially, she was a fair weather cyclist but with each passing year she expanded the criteria for safe cycling to the point that cycling throughout the year was the norm. She began to ride longer distances, but her usual commute was under 10km.
In 2011, life circumstances resulted in the need to move to the outskirts of the GTA. A distance of 30 km each way seemed like it was far too much for her. As cycling is an integral part of her life, the thought of not being able to cycle on a daily basis was devastating, and she had to find an alternative.
She looked at a bunch of options, such as: driving and then cycling part way, cycling to a GO station and taking the train, riding a touring/road bike to allow for greater speed or trying an electric assisted bike.
She tried and considered all of her options, and found out that an E-Bike was the most economical, fastest and fun method for her on a daily basis. With that in mind, she has a BionX kit installed on her bike. She expected all of these, but she was surprised that
- Distances that could be travelled in a day increased to over 65 km (from Lakeshore and Royal York to Sheppard and Yonge and back)
- Using studded tires to ride in the winter was possible as the added resistance was no longer a limiting factor.
- Being able to always take 40 min for a ride of 15 km because regardless of the head wind the electric assist allows for a constant speed
- Adjusting the amount of assistance turned every ride into a workout.
Thanks to her E-Bike, it has ensured that cycling remains the main mode of transportation for Gina to work whatever the season, and it has opened numerous opportunities for cycling in the large city of Toronto (regardless of my age and gender).
As a healthcare professional, riding her bike to work is hugely important to Gina. We asked her to give us some reasons why everyone should ride.
Exercise:
Building regular exercise into your day is the best way to keep muscles strong, maintain good exercise tolerance and ensure good weight management.
Mental Health:
While focusing on riding, you are able to clear your mind from the stresses of the day
Traffic Stress:
Getting to where you want to go in a timely manner is always guaranteed with a bike. The ability to get around traffic jams or slow moving traffic is easy, especially with an E-Bikes
Get where you need to be on time:
No public transportation delays to stop you from getting to work on time.
Global warming:
The CO2 produced by a human cycling is less than by a human walking the same distance, and definitely less than automobiles. CO2 is a large contributor to global warming, so as a cyclist, I’m part of the solution.
Gina has put over 10,000km on her BionX assisted Norco over the last eight years. Here she is fully decked out in winter cycling gear, ready for any Toronto snowstorm!
Thank you Gina for sharing your story with us. We’re happy to make stories like hers’ possible. If you have a testimonial or story you want to share with us, feel free to reach out to us, either in store or online via email.
