Last week, someone in a car with a road bike strapped to its hitch drove past and yelled “you’re cheating!” as I was riding my ebike along the bike lane in my neighborhood.

It’s not an uncommon insult hurled at ebikers: that we’re somehow cheating.

But…cheating at what, exactly??

If I was using an ebike in a human-power-only bike race, that would be cheating. But shit, I’m using an ebike instead of a car. Yes, I’m getting a bit extra assistance from the pedal-assist motor, but I’m still pedaling. The bike does nothing if I don’t pedal.

Gears give you a mechanical advantage too, but you don’t hear many cyclists complaining about cheating if you’re on a road or mountain bike and not using a fixed gear bike. And besides, isn’t biking itself just cheating at running? I mean, you’re using a mechanical advantage to power yourself faster and with less effort…

So really, the guy who yelled at me was the asshole that was cheating—he was driving! At least I was pedaling, even if I was I getting 30% assistance (carrying a load of groceries, on a much heavier bike than he’d ever consider riding). Even worse, he was presumably driving his bike somewhere so that he could ride it (likely for exercise). That’s a bit like driving a half mile to the gym to use the treadmill, instead of simply jogging there.

If you’re replacing car trips, you’re not “cheating” by using an ebike. And even if you’re using one for exercise, you’re not cheating either. You get to decide how you want to exercise.

If it gets you out, then that’s a good thing.

Orange ebike parked at a local public library branch.

That’s been the biggest takeaway for me in owning an ebike. I use it waaaaaay more than I did my “acoustic” (aka, not electric) bike. I ride far more often than I did before, and for much longer distances. The assist I get helps me more safely power through bike-adverse intersections while also making it easier to ride when it’s hot af outside. I live in Phoenix, so this is relevant for half the damn year. I wouldn’t ride to happy hour in 88º before, let along 98º—but I’ll ride there in 118º on an ebike without a second thought.

I’ve had my ebike for two years now, and I have 300+ roundtrips on it, which far eclipses the number of trips I’ve taken on my mountain bike and city bike, combined, in the last decade plus. It’s clearly enabled more riding for me. I don’t consider it cheating, because I’m not cheating myself—instead, I’m empowering myself to ride more often, and for greater distances. And that sure seems like a win for me.