Area cyclists eager to try e-bikes - #lakewoodnews

Colorado is a bicycle-friendly state.

Bernedette Saccomanno of Denver has been riding mountain bikes for about 20 years. Then about a year ago, she started with road bikes.

And on June 17, she got on an electric bike for the first time. Not just one, in fact. Saccomanno tried out six different electric assist bicycles.

The Electric Bike Expo took place June 17-19 at the Colorado Mills Mall and hundreds of people came to try out the new trend in cycling.

"Electric bikes are a new form of recreation and transportation," said Pete Prebus, marketing director of the expo. The expo, he added, came to Jefferson County to raise awareness that electric assist bikes exist, and to give people an opportunity learn how an electric bike could fit into their lives.

Plus there were more than 100 different models available to test ride.

"We're getting a good representation of the whole industry," said attendee Matt Hanson.

Hanson lives in Lake Tahoe, but was unable to attend the electric bike expo local to him, so he planned his trip to Colorado to make it to this one. But there was another purpose for including bicycles on the trip --; Hanson was visiting his friend Devin Lenz of Fort Lupton who manufactures mountain bikes with Lenz Sport Performance Mountain Bikes.

"Electric bikes are pretty cool," Lenz said.

And Hanson added, "I always knew I wanted one, but now that I've ridden one, it's a 100-percent done deal."

But electric bikes aren't just for people who are avid cyclists, said Ken Miner, director of sales for Haibike.

"The e-bike segment allows the cycling industry to expand to people who aren't traditional cyclists," he said.

Wandering around the venue among the bike enthusiasts was Kevin Fahrner, informing people about Boomerang CycloTrac.

It's got a GPS tracker and a Verizon radio, he said, but the main feature is the alarm.

"The purpose is anti-theft," Fahrner said. "The vision is to be able to take our nice bikes wherever we want --; freedom without the fear of bike theft."

Ethan Smith of Denver has owned his electric assist bicycle for about a year. He enjoys it so much, in fact, that it inspired him to start studying electrical engineering. But his friend Siham Boulezzaz had never ridden one before.

"I wanted to show her around," Smith said.

So the two test rode some electric assist bicycles.

"I loved it," Boulezzaz said. "They're fun to ride."

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