I would like to respond to Chris Brossard’s letter to the editor in regards to banning e-bikes from the Valley Trail (Pique, Sept.23, “Should e-bikes be banned from Valley Trail?”).
I am very sorry to hear Chris was injured by an e-cyclist and required paramedic attention. However, from what he has written about the 77-year-old cyclist (“ ... had [she] not hit me, she would have gone straight into the swamp”), it seems to me it was the cyclist out of control, and not the fact that she was on an electric bike, that was the issue.
There seems to be a misconception that e-bikes have unlimited power and speed. This is not the case. All e-bikes in Canada are regulated to cut power when a speed of 30 kilometres an hour is reached. This may sound fast to you, but I, as a fit, mid-40s woman, have no problem at all reaching and exceeding speeds of 30 km/h on my road or non e-mountain bike on the Valley Trail.
I try to be respectful of others on the trail and not go too fast, but with the hilly nature of the trail it can be hard not to.
I myself have been a pedestrian on too many occasions when, not unlike on the slopes, a pack of young guys goes racing past at breakneck speeds. Speed is the issue, not the bike.
It is now very common for people to use an e-bike instead of a car to get around for a number of reasons. Shall these e-bike commuters, often with kids along in trailers, be relegated to the busy highway?
I have also noticed a tendency in Whistler to “hate on” e-bikes, and scorn those who ride them. Not everyone is a fit, young, able- bodied person. E-bikes get people out on bikes that otherwise would opt for the car, and e-bikes allow people to commute, haul a heavy payload, and go farther distances.
Shouldn’t we be doing everything we can to encourage people to get out of their cars and get on a bike, of any kind?
If your true concern on the Valley Trail is safety of all its users, then perhaps consider mandating speed control.
Trudel Kroecher // Whistler
