Spring and summer are the seasons for adventure, which makes it an ideal time to pick up a new habit. And while most of us learned how to ride a bike as kids, learning how to ride an e-bike can feel like an intimidating new experience.
There’s a battery pack, a motor and a display screen to keep your eyes on?! Yeah, we get why hopping on an e-bike can feel a bit more involved than your traditional two wheels, but don’t let that discourage you. Bluejay bikes are designed to suit riders of all levels, from the thrill seekers who want to go as fast as possible (which is up to 28 MPH on the Bluejay Sport) to the more casual cruisers who don’t mind sticking to pedal assist Level 1 while soaking up the sights (for you, we’d suggest the Premiere Edition).
Regardless of your cycling ability level, we’ve pulled together this five-step guide on how to ride an e-bike. If your Bluejay is fully assembled, skip to step one. But if your e-bike is still in its box, we have a hot tip for you: Take your unassembled wheels to your local bike shop. While you could put it together on your own, the pros will not only get it set up quickly, they’ll also be able to offer additional tips and tricks on how to ride an e-bike. And they can show you how to use your display and those state of the art brakes, while giving you some expert advice on how to improve your form while pedaling.
How to Ride an E-Bike
1. Ride Your Bluejay Without Any Power
Here’s the thing: You might be really intimidated by your new e-bike, but when the battery pack is turned off, it rides just like any regular bike. So, to squash any of your nerves, get out there (on a traffic-free street or a quiet bike path with few riders) and get a feel for how your new bike rides—and keep it totally manual. Go ahead and hit some turns, tackle some hills and pedal as hard as you can. Test out all of the gears, making sure you know when to use each one. And yes, stop on a dime, too. This is a great time to make sure your seat is situated just so and that you feel super comfortable with the height of your handlebars.
Once you feel confident on your bike, it’s time to turn on the power.
2. Start Slowly On Pedal Assist Level 1
Okay, but not too much power. You’re going to want to test out how a Bluejay e-bike feels by starting with Level 1 of pedal assist. First up? Turn on your display! You’ll find the power button on the left side of your handlebars, press that until the screen lights up. Once the display is powered up and you’re ready to ride, simply press the (+) button once. This button controls pedal assist and gives you more power, while the (-) will give you less power and bring you back down to the lower levels.
In order for pedal assist to start working, you actually need to pedal. The motor will kick in after just a stroke or two, and you’ll feel a light boost. You’ll still have to pedal to keep that power going, but you’ll find that you need to exert much less energy. And just like that, you’re riding an e-bike!
Now, let’s get onto the riding.
3. Get Comfortable Riding (and Braking) With Pedal Assist
But now it’s time to really get familiar with riding your electric bike. So test out using pedal assist at Level 1 while approaching hills or when your bike path hits the curvy section of the road. Try turning on pedal assist while you’re riding…and then turning it back off, also while you’re riding. Using this function in the middle of your ride won’t make it any less smooth, but it will make those sneaky inclines much easier to climb.
Definitely get familiar with how the brakes feel while pedal assist is on. All Bluejay e-bikes have hydraulic disc brakes, so they’ll stop instantly no matter how fast you’re traveling or what level you’re powered up to. But feeling comfortable while you come to a quick stop is really important.
4. Try Out Some of the Higher Pedal Assist Levels
Once Level 1 feels like a breeze (or, perhaps, too slow) go ahead and repeat number 3 with all the levels of pedal assist, working your way up to Level 5, which hits max speeds of 20 MPH on the Premiere Edition and 28 PM on the Bluejay Sport. Not comfortable with those speeds? No sweat. The beauty of an e-bike is that you can go just as fast as you feel comfortable. There’s no need to go any faster.
5. Practice, Practice, Practice
The very best way to build up your confidence on an e-bike is to just keep riding. The more you ride, the more comfortable you’ll be and the more power you’ll be able to maintain over your bike.
Want to learn more about Bluejay Bikes? Visit our website here. We also offer plenty of info on how to maintain your bike and best practices for riders on our Owner’s Portal, found here.
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