DENVER (KDVR) — An electric bike store in Cherry Creek has been experiencing a sharp increase in sales. What began as a trend is becoming more popular.
Houshmand Moarefi is a structural engineer and has another graduate degree in information technology. But if you ask him, he will tell you his passion is e-bikes.
That is why it is no surprise that he opened up a bike shop called eBikes USA. “Electric mountain bikes, cruisers, folding bikes for travelers, commuters,” Moarefi said.
Houshmand has been a fan of the electric, or, e-bike for years.
“I was always a cyclist, I rode bicycles. As I got older, riding the Colorado mountains and hills, big mountain rides, wasn’t as much fun,” Moarefi said.
He is not alone. E-bikes have been making inroads to the bike community for years.
“People that came from the cycling industry thought they were cheating. People were cheating by riding an electric bike,” Moarefi said.
Now e-bikes are less of a novelty and more of a viable, alternative form of transportation. Like they say, you are never too old, just ask 83-year-old Denver resident Don Roll.
“Like everybody else when you’re young you have a regular bike and you don’t think, ‘oh we need a motor’,” Roll said.
Roll will be using his newly bought e-bike to visit friends, and just enjoy being outside.
“It’s not a speed machine, it’s to help you to pedal. And we all need a little help as we get older, certainly I do,” Roll said.
Moarefi says you can go farther, ride more often, and that the hill, well, it really doesn’t matter any more.