1 year car free in Florida an ebike story

[LittleFritter]

TL;DR 1 year taught me that vehicles can be really mean. US road riding is offensive regardless of having bike lanes. Ebike battery range way less than I assumed so if getting one adjust how far like 80 down to 20 miles was my actual range. Budget ebikes will require a lot more tuning, adjustments, repairs, then I expected. Positive experiences I had was increased my mental health 10 fold. Physical health, weight loss and stamina energy all that is way beneficial. Ebikes can be really fun and has benefits with health. Buy a trailer it is super helpful when needing dog food or a rake whatever it comes in handy all the time. Learn how to repair and understand basic works of the bicycle or you will have a bad time.

My first year without a vehicle in Florida.

Simply put, I wanted to share what I have experienced with going car free and how my lifestyle changed. I am not suggesting anyone needs to adopt minimalism or simplify their life like I did. You can totally go car free without completely overhauling everything. Just my story if any cares or is curious for fun.

Background of how I got to here-

ill try to be short but its unlikely that I wont ramble so either skip or settle in because we are taking a trip. At 32 ish yo I made a choice and that was to completely change my life in almost every way. Reason was simple. I asked myself "Am I happy?" No. "What is within my control that I could do to benefit me?" Quit working 60 hr weeks. Stop chasing financial freedom by making more money. Instead change how much it costs to live (or exist within reason for me personally).

Well radical as I am made a lot of changes. Why should I expect to be happier if I keep doing the same shit? To summarize I lived in northern Minnesota and chose Florida as my destination simply for purpose of taking care of my mother and I'm going to leave at that. So I sold my house, sold vehicles besides one truck, all my stuff pretty much. Bought a camper and hit the road south with a leased pickup 6 year old camper I paid in full. So no I didn't buy a trailer that cost 50k with a loan. I bought a little 29ft for 10k was plenty for me.

Actual point of this post my 1 year worth of ebike up down and learning of repairs and more.

Lets fast forward to 1500 miles cross country and I landed in Florida. Leased truck is turned in. But issues I call life happened, I am really broke. So I didn't have money for a car at all let alone a payment. So I bought an ebike instead. Mostly my fault in case anyone wondering. I did have a shit job in Florida to pay for some stuff.

The best ebike I could afford after research came out to cost about 1200 bucks tops to spend. Bike of choice was the Lectric XP 3.0 yeah baby. Sure I wish and should of bought a 2 or 4k dollar ebike since I would be using the shit out of it. But reality bites this is where I am.

Ok finally got to the bike part so...... Here are some challenges that came up.

Commute to work and back was 20 miles a day. Luckily Battery was good enough to make it just barely there and back. So I charged at work and it was totally fine. Must point out that I was traveling as fast as I could average about 22 mph. If I went slower sure I could get more range but I don't slow anything. Was naive thinking ebike ranges advertised were anywhere near actual result. A big reason I purchased the XP was for 80 miles range. Silly me not knowing better but actual result was about 20ish miles per charge.

Traffic not surprising is not impressed with cycling at all especially on the road. I do have a bike lane on this commute which super grateful for as its a highway and nuts 100% crazy stuff always. I mean they fucking hate bikes entirely. I cant make that clear enough. In Florida it is legal to operate any bike on the sidewalk. I come from many years of road cycling and where it was illegal to cycle on the sidewalk. Which I personally agree for pedestrians to have a safe place to walk. Anyways technically the rule is no faster than 12 mph and stop at roads cross walks driveways etc. None follows any of these rules and it makes for unpredictable scenarios everywhere. It really creates a dangerous problem everywhere.

If considering a bike as main way of travel please prepare for the following issues.

People will yell "get off the road" honk or sometimes throw things etc.

Get way too close when passing even in 4 lane slow travel roads.

Bike lane helps but still they shout "get on the sidewalk"

You will be passed and then they will make right turn into you for driveways, entrances etc.

Other stuff too but whatever point is there are vocal obnoxious people without a care towards both your safety or that you are a human being. Sorry to say it like that. Specifically this area I am in is way worse than I have ever experienced. Doesn't mean all places everywhere are terrible. But it messes with you brain for even wanting to go ride. Honestly we have a right to be on the road and that's not going to get better if we just don't ride or choose sidewalk etc.

Too much use for such budget ebike created many repairs or tuning often.

400 miles a month I wore out this bike quiet fast the repairs include the following..

1st. Needed tire liners and sealant I found out really fast that this area has a lot of road debris and flats happen to me at first every day. Bought Tanus liners and Bakcou sealant and it fixed everything. Went from flat every 5 miles to 1500 without any flat. To clarify I still gotten screws and staples that punctured the tubes but I just removed the item and air up the tire and way I go. Highly recommend the portable electric air pumps.

2. Bike started to wear out parts. I wore out the following in the first 3 months of ownership. Freewheel, 2 rear tires, chain, derailer broke my fault though crash, front fork slop forwards back just wears dumb, brake pads (normal), stock pedals terrible that was 1st actually, issues with front wheel bearings (tightening and grease needed) bottom bracket bearings meh from factory so not yet replaced but unexpected issue within 1500 miles. Others things I forget but point is constant retightening of everything is required. Fine for me but everyone should know there are a lot of parts that require tuning or maintenance that often goes without. Motor and controller for Lectric has been working really great.

3. Water is real. I was caught in a few downpours and lived. But ebikes not actually that water proof. I did have a cover from lectric which also sucked but i didn't have anywhere to keep it but outside in the elements. So put it to the test and so far it didn't die or get too wet. It did get really hot I measured with a temp gun and showed 130+ degrees Fahrenheit. Some might freak out but it didnt explode or cause damage to the battery yet. I did intentionally test the limits just for fun.

Fun add ons I did and positive stuff

Foremost I added a dual battery. Range went from 20 miles to 40 miles at wide open riding 20 to 25 mph. Maximum range estimated to be 80 to 120 miles at speed of 12 to 18 mph.

I lost a lot of weight. Feel way more energetic. If i need to go anywhere but feeling lazy I don't have to pedal hard. Most days I make sure to exercise but its nice to not have to always.

Most days its super enjoyable to get out and ride even just for fun. Helped more with my mental health than I can put to words. But seriously most improvement I've ever experienced if one exercises close to every day.

Laundry oh no I live in a trailer and need to go to the laundromat. Bought a trailer and honestly that thing is sweet. Max payload is 150 pounds. I load it up with way more laundry than I should. At risk of being teased still going to say that I carry 9 loads at a time. 1 basket and 2 laundry bags all 3 loads in each. Laundromat is a mile away which isn't too bad but ebike assist I have to admit comes in handy here.

Groceries and any kind of shopping having the trailer is nice for just the option to carry things that are weird. Like I had to buy a rake. So like how tf do I carry a rake on a bike? Well trailer and bungies is the reasonable choice here. Also I have pannier bags on the rear. second battery is on front rack. Rear basket holds an amazing amount of stuff. Paired with bungie net makes for little when getting basic groceries.

Well so if you still there I am sorry you went through that, I could keep blabbing on but I believe this is long enough but if anyone wants to ask anything I'm totally open to writing or clarifying all things whether its bike repairs or mental health all things I'm an open book. Just wanted to share for something different then same questions or complaints that seem to be everywhere. If you don't care for it totally cool.

Did this get too long? Fuck, I don't know how anyone explains shit without this happening. If I offend anyone sorry but going without a car has helped my life in many ways. I think others give it a fair shot could see benefits as well. Stay kind or not its all up to you. Peace.