Joy to ride

E-bike offers sense of freedom, earns respect from drivers

Stacey McCool runs Sugarbomb, Toronto’s only female-owned and -operated printing shop, and the Really, Man? clothing line. Living downtown for two decades, she has never owned a car. To get around the city, the Indigenous artist would bicycle where she needed to go. But with knees and hips that she admits aren’t what they used to be, her uphill pedal from her home on Queen Street to her Junctionbased business was becoming a chore.

Looking into electric options, McCool learned about Beachman and its café racer-style e-bikes that are hand built in Toronto. Unable to find another model that “looked as cool,” McCool placed her order for a Beachman Founder’s Edition, which she picked up from the bike shop last November. She tells us why she loves her vehicle.

“I’m turning 40 this year and I realized I’ve never experienced the sense of freedom of just hopping in your vehicle and going somewhere,” said McCool. “This bike allows me to do that without any gas or insurance. I don’t have to worry about it.

“I was blown away when I did the test drive. I hopped on and rode, and I couldn’t believe how natural it felt. It goes up to 30 kilometres and needs a charge after approximately 70 kilometres, but I charge it when the battery gets to about halfway because the voltage drops a little and you don’t quite get the pickup when you’re going uphill. If I’m commuting every day, I just charge it at the end of the week. The battery comes off the bike, and it charges in about five hours.

“As someone who has been a cyclist for 20 years, the biggest thing for me when I first started riding the e-bike was having turn signals and a headlight. It’s hard to be a cyclist in the city, especially on main streets, but now that I look like I am on a motor vehicle, I get a little more respect on the road. It’s something I hadn’t felt before. Cars aren’t whizzing past me. It’s really refreshing to be in the flow of traffic as opposed to being the person that the motorists don’t want there, which is how I felt as a cyclist.

“I modified my bike a little,” said McCool. “I bought a couple foraging bags from an outdoor supply store, and they’re big enough for things like cream for coffee that I might grab on the way to work, or to store a couple packages. I’ve been using my bike to drop off orders from my web store, which is something I always dreamed of doing. So that’s exciting.

“The e-bike makes me want to go out and do stuff more even if it’s cold out, or during COVID for mental health to just going for a ride. Because I’ve never owned a car, I’ve never been a person to say, ‘I’m going to go for a ride and clear my mind.’ And now I can do that,” she said.

“I can just ride my bike there and it saves me money and time. I’m also excited just to ride out to the Value Village in Etobicoke instead of the one on Bloor Street. It’s just little adventures like that.”

THIS ARTICLE WAS EDITED FOR SPACE AND CLARITY. TO BE FEATURED IN WHY I LOVE MY