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Hey everybody. 
Welcome back to the Elon Musk 

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Podcast. 
This is a show where we discuss 

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the critical crossroads that 
shape SpaceX, Tesla X, The 

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Boring Company and Neurolink. 
I'm your host, Will Walden. 

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So did you ever think that E 
bikes would become such a big 

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deal? 
It's kind of like Back to the 

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Future when Marty McFly was 
awestruck by all the future 

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technology. 
Now, back in 2021, the House of 

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Representatives passed the Build
Back Better Act, including a 

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$4.1 billion provision in tax 
credits aimed at promoting 

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electric bikes. 
Now, this is a sector where even

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Elon Musk has not ventured yet. 
Now E bikes have rapidly 

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transitioned from a novelty to a
mainstream mode of transport. 

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I see them all over the streets 
and they provide significant 

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benefits to delivery workers 
during the pandemic times and 

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commuters now who prefer not to 
arrive sweaty at their 

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destinations. 
They don't want to ride a 

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traditional bicycle, so now they
have E bikes to zip around the 

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city. 
And despite some derision over 

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the supposed purity of cycling, 
with E bike riders accused of 

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taking shortcuts, these electric
assists have been instrumental 

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in encouraging people to engage 
in healthy exercise. 

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This is particularly true for 
older or less practice cyclists 

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who might otherwise avoid biking
due to dotting hills or long 

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distances. 
Or they're just out of shape. 

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And E bikes are helping to make 
cycling accessible and enjoyable

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for a broader audience, pushing 
more people off the couch and 

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out of the streets. 
However, high-powered class 3E 

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bikes, which can reach speeds of
over 40 mph, have caused 

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friction busy urban areas like 
New York City. 

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Now these models raise important
discussions about the future of 

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urban mobility, suggesting that 
E bikes could free up St. space,

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get the cars out of there, offer
alternatives to cars, and reduce

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energy consumption and 
emissions. 

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Now, California's Air Resources 
Board recently allocated about 

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$10 million in rebates for E 
bike purchases. 

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It's a small scale version of 
tax incentives offered for EVs, 

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like the $7500 government 
federal rebate for EVs at this 

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time. 
But the surgeon E bike 

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popularity has spread innovation
with new tech ideas emerging 

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such as rain proof cargo bikes, 
pavement embedded wireless 

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charging and automated 
stabilization systems for senior

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riders. 
City Q is taking pre-orders for 

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a four wheeled cargo bike 
marketing as providing a Tesla 

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feeling for cyclists. 
They've already started shipping

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those by the way. 
This burst of creativity is 

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transforming the E bike industry
and expanding its potential for 

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all users. 
So back in 2020, about 500,000 E

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bikes were sold in the US 
compared to 210,000 plug in 

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cars, according to estimates. 
And market research firm NPD 

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Group reported that the pandemic
led to a 145% increase in E bike

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sales from 2019 to 2020, more 
than doubling the growth of 

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traditional bicycles. 
Now, industry analysts predict 

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this trend will continue, with 
global E bike market expected to

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grow from 32.5 billion last year
to $53 billion over the course 

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of 2025. 
Now that's a growth rate of over

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10%. 
Now, even in Europe, known for 

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its cycling culture, E bikes 
sales increased by 23% in 2019. 

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Now, by 2023, there will be or 
there were over 300 million E 

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bikes on the roads. 
Now it's a significant shift 

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from the normal transportation 
trends of regular bikes, with E 

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bikes playing a crucial role in 
urban mobility and 

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sustainability efforts going 
forward. 

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Now there's two main types of E 
bikes though, hub motors and mid

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drive motors. 
Now hub motors are built right 

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into the wheel center and are 
available in two types geared 

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hub motors, which use internal 
gears to operate efficiently at 

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high RPM, and gearless hub 
motors which link the motors 

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strata directly to the bike 
axle, reducing the mechanical 

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wear of the system. 
Now these motors are affordable,

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low maintenance and widely 
produced, making them a popular 

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choice for E bike manufacturers.
Now despite these benefits, hub 

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motors have limitations though, 
particularly when it comes to 

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hill climbs and handling. 
They typically offer a single 

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gear ratio which is not ideal 
for steep inclines and can make 

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a bike kind of feel unbalanced. 
Now, changing tires on hub motor

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equipped bikes can also be 
challenging due to the wheel 

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mounted motor. 
Now mid drive motors on the 

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other hand, which are located 
inside the bike frame between 

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the pedals, offer a completely 
different approach. 

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These motors transfer power 
through the chain drive to the 

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rear wheel, providing 
significant torque for climbing 

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hills or starting from a 
standstill. 

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It allows for more efficient 
power delivery, although it can 

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put additional stress on the 
bike's chain of gears. 

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But it's not too bad. 
Now, the main advantage of mid 

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drive motors is their ability to
deliver sustained power on long 

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climbs. 
However, this constant power can

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wear off chains faster, not too 
fast, and E bikes with mid drive

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motors are often equipped with 
stronger chains to handle the 

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increased load anyway. 
And if the chain breaks, the 

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bike becomes inoperable, much 
like a traditional bike. 

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Now, newer mid drive motors are 
smaller and lighter, often 

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integrated into the bike frame 
to maintain a sleek, stealthy 

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appearance. 
Now both hub and mid drive 

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motors use sensors to detect 
pedal force for wheel rotation, 

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activating the motor to assist 
the driver or the rider. 

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And mid drive motors typically 
use torque sensors for smoother 

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power delivery. 
With hub, motors often rely on 

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cadence sensors, which can lead 
to less consistent motor 

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assistance. 
Now, battery range is a 

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significant consideration for E 
bike users. 

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While some companies claim 
ranges of up to 100 miles, real 

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world conditions often resert in
much lower figures. 

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Variables such as rider weight, 
wind resistance, and also the 

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terrain you're riding on can all
impact battery for performance 

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just like any other electric 
vehicle. 

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But generally E bikes with about
750 Watt motors and 480 Watt 

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hour batteries can go about 20 
miles on battery power alone and

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up to about 32 miles with pedal 
assist. 

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So that's pretty good, 20 miles 
on a battery charge. 

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You just have to charge it up 
when you get there. 

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That's not too bad, it's good 
for zipping around town too. 

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Now the added weight of E bike 
battery is usually between 6 and

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8 lbs. 
Not really heavy, but over time 

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it feels it and it also affects 
the handling and requires more 

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effect or more effort from the 
rider when the battery is 

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depleted. 
Battery placement also impacts 

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the bike's balance. 
Rear rack mounted batteries are 

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easy to access but can make the 
bike feel top heavy. 

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Down to mounted batteries are 
more balanced while integrated 

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down to batteries offer the best
aesthetic and also handling. 

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Now the three class system 
promoted by people for bikes 

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categorizes E bikes based on the
resist type and maximum speed. 

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Class 1E bikes providing pedal 
assist up to 20 mph. 

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Class 2 is 20 mph but include a 
throttle for motor only 

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propulsion. 
Class 3E bikes are pedal assist 

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only but can reach speeds of up 
to 20 mph. 

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Systems help. 
They help standardize the 

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regulations and guide consumers 
and choosing the right E bike 

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for their needs. 
Now class 3E bikes are the 

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fastest. 
They're typically restricted to 

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roadways and bike lanes, 
avoiding multi use pass shared 

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with pedestrians. 
In Europe E bike E mountain 

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bikes are EMT. 
BS are generally accepted on non

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motorized trails, but in the US 
federal agencies like the Forest

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Service and National Park 
Service classify EMT BS as 

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motorized vehicles, limiting 
their trail access. 

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Now E bike prices vary widely. 
You can get them for anywhere 

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from I've seen them for $400.00 
on sale at Best Buy and Walmart.

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Things like that. 
They could go up to ten, $15,000

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too. 
So it depends on what you need 

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it for and also your price 
range. 

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So you want to be aware of how 
powerful your motor is, what 

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kind of connectivity you have, 
luxurious components like is the

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seat really soft? 
Are you going to take a long 

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ride? 
What kind of seat do you want? 

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Does it have a a storage 
compartment? 

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Is it four wheels or two wheels 
or three wheels? 

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It's up to you. 
And of course paint. 

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And are you going to commute 
with it? 

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Is it going to be a a short 
commute where you go, you know, 

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5 minutes, 10 minutes, maybe 20 
minutes? 

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Or are you going to take longer 
rides for 30 minutes to an hour?

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That's all up the question and 
how much you going to pay for 

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it? 
So giant Trek, specialized in 

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Schwinn, they've all embraced E 
bikes and BMW has also made E 

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bikes. 
Porsche has a majority stake in 

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Gray, PA high end bike company 
powered or founded by electric 

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hypercar entrepreneur, signaling
the automotive industry interest

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in E bikes. 
I mean, I don't, I do understand

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why they're doing it, but 
somebody like Porsche doesn't 

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really need an E bike. 
They have wonderful cars, so 

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they don't really need E bikes, 
but it's a good way to diversify

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their portfolio I guess. 
Now, E bikes, of course, are 

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very popular now. 
You see them everywhere. 

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They're becoming an integral 
part of urban transportation 

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solutions. 
I see them all over the place 

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now. 
And as more people adopt E bikes

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for commuting, recreation and 
delivery services, the benefits 

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of reduced emission, lower 
energy consumption and improved 

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accessibility are becoming 
increasingly evident. 

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Now remember there's three types
of E bikes so far, the three 

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class systems. 
So 20 mph and that's for 1/2 is 

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20 mph for motor only propulsion
in class three are pedaled 

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assist. 
So choose wisely when you go out

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there and grab an E bike 
anywhere from 400 ish 4 to $500 

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to 10,000 you can get them 
really tricked out. 

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So yeah, that's it for E bikes 
today everybody. 

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Thank you for listening. 
Hey, thank you so much for 

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listening today. 
I really do appreciate your 

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support. 
If you could take a second and 

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hit the subscribe or the follow 
button on whatever podcast 

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platform that you're listening 
on right now, I greatly 

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appreciate it. 
It helps out the show 

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tremendously and you'll never 
miss an episode. 

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And each episode is about 10 
minutes or less to get you 

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caught up quickly. 
And please, if you want to 

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support the show even more, go 
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And please take care of 
yourselves and each other. 

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And I'll see you tomorrow.