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The GenZe – How eBikes should perform

MVA2897You’ve got to love electric bikes. You’re staying away from the use of petroleum, but you’re not killing your legs while you’re going uphill. It’s a nice compromise between getting around on your own power and accepting some assistance when necessary.

But sometimes,that compromise is a bit more apparent when you use an electric bike. Sometimes you have a very limited range.  Other times, it might not give you the power you need when you’re really tackling those hills during your commute. And while the bike runs well while the batteries last, that extra bulk can add a lot of extra weight when you are in need of a recharge. So is there really a happy medium between electric assist and leg power?

There is now. The creative minds over at Mahindra have created the newest revolution in the eBike community, called the GenZe. When the creators first sat down to design this bike, they had one thing in mind: Relentless Practicality. They wanted to create a bike that fit to your needs, not something that you would have to adjust your own riding style to use.

The result was a bike that doesn’t compromise performance just to boast about its electric assist. Instead of a clunky electric motorcycle that happens to have pedals, the GenZe is first and foremost a bicycle. Only better.

ebike2I actually had a chance to ride a GenZe bike during the Eco Lloyd Fair a few months ago, and let me tell you – it was a blast! When I first got on the bike, I was told to take it for a spin around the walkway a bit, just to get a feel for the ride. I did the loop on what felt like a perfectly average bike – It wasn’t incredibly heavy, and it didn’t feel like a chore to get up to speed.

Then I was told to crank up the assist and start pedaling, and all of a sudden, I was moving.

I had control over my speed like any other regular bike, and that electric assist gave me that extra umph that really gets you rolling. While I was moving at a pretty good clip beforehand, I felt like I was flying with the extra power behind me. And best of all? The transition from my legs to the electric assist was so smooth, I could barely tell where the pedaling stopped and the assist began.

I wasn’t riding a clunky electric bike – I was riding a bike that just happened to have electric assist.

Check out GenZe eBike when you’re ready to see what an electric bicycle should really feel like.


The ENOkio! Proof that good things DO come in small packages!

Size isn’t everything, you know. Sometimes the best things in life come in small boxes. Nowhere is that sentiment expressed better than with the newest model in the Portland Pedal Power cycling fleet, which we have dubbed the ENOkio!

As you may have read in our monthly newsletter, we recently introduced the ENOkio, a smaller, lightweight model of the Pyxis! This new model of enclosed delivery bike was meant to reduce our fabrication costs by switching out our typical aluminum frame with a birch one. The unintended result has been a lighter, nimbler, super practical cycle capable of performing the Kessel Run in less than 12 Parsecs. How’s that for bending space-time? Because you get some great cargo space without sacrificing the freedom of a bicycle, we’re calling it the Pyxis for everyone.

So when did it all start? ENOkio was born in February 15, 2014, and  was our smoothest build to date. Our in-home engineer Alex did a fantastic job with the pre-build phase, and the assembly went off without a single hitch (which might have been a first in our building process). Of course, as we prepare for growth to meet our market expansion goals, our manufacturing process is consistently getting smoother and more efficient.

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