Founded in 2007, Rad Power Bikes started as a small venture and has grown into the largest electric bike brand in North America. Our team of hundreds of designers, engineers, and support specialists are dedicated to ensuring over 450,000 customers experience the best electric bikes available. Our vision is simple: to make transportation energy-efficient, enjoyable, and accessible for everyone.
An electric bike, often referred to as an ebike or e-bike, is essentially a traditional bicycle enhanced with a battery-powered motor. This motor provides assistance to riders, making it easier to tackle hills, increase speed, carry cargo, and cover greater distances without excessive fatigue. This assistance is delivered through features like pedal assist and sometimes a throttle.
Riding an electrical bike is intuitive and similar to riding a conventional bicycle. The key difference lies in the option to engage the motor for extra power, simplifying pedaling or even allowing you to propel the bike without pedaling at all.
In North America, electric bikes are categorized into three regulatory classes, helping to define their capabilities and usage:
- Class 1: Pedal-assist only, where the motor assists up to a speed of 20 mph while you are pedaling.
- Class 2: Pedal-assist and throttle-equipped, offering motor assistance up to 20 mph, with or without pedaling.
- Class 3: Pedal-assist only, but with a higher assistance limit, supporting speeds up to 28 mph while pedaling.
At Rad Power Bikes, we specialize in Class 2 and Class 3 electric bikes. Our ebikes are equipped with batteries designed to last for 45-50 miles on a single charge. This range can vary based on factors such as power usage, terrain, and the combined weight of the rider and any cargo.
How Do Electric Bikes Actually Work?
The functionality of electric bikes hinges on the motor, which is typically either a geared hub or a direct drive motor. This motor draws power from the battery and transfers it to the pedals. This system provides extra power with each pedal stroke, which is known as pedal assist. Many electric bikes, including Rad Power Bikes models, also feature a throttle. The throttle allows the bike to move forward without any pedaling, much like a moped.
Electric bikes can be manufactured in two primary ways. Some are designed from the ground up as electric bikes, integrating the motor and battery seamlessly into the frame. Alternatively, traditional bicycles can be converted into Electrical Bikes using an ebike conversion kit. These kits usually contain all the necessary components, like a motor, battery, and controls, to electrify a standard bike. However, since Rad Power Bikes designs its bikes as electric bikes from the outset, conversion kits are not necessary when purchasing from us.
Why Choose an Electric Bike? The Myriad Benefits
Electric bikes can effortlessly integrate into various aspects of your daily life, offering solutions for commuting, errands, and recreational activities. Whether you’re commuting to work, running errands around town, or enjoying outdoor adventures like camping, hiking, skiing, fishing, or hunting, an electric bike can enhance your experience. They also significantly improve mobility for individuals who may find traditional cycling challenging and make it easier to ride with children. In essence, electrical bikes are a fun, convenient way to navigate your world and engage more deeply with your passions.
Beyond personal use, electric bikes are also proving invaluable in commercial applications. For example, Domino’s Pizza franchises have adopted our electric bikes for food deliveries, and numerous rental fleets rely on Rad Power Bikes for durable and dependable vehicles.
Matching the Right Electric Bike to Your Lifestyle
Recognizing that every rider has unique needs, Rad Power Bikes offers a diverse range of models. While all our bikes are versatile, certain models are designed with specific features to cater to particular lifestyles.
Electric cargo and utility bikes are built to carry heavier loads or accommodate passengers, perfect for hauling gear or riding with children. Electric folding bikes are engineered for portability, easily fitting into RVs, car trunks, or small living spaces. Electric city and commuter bikes are optimized for urban environments, reducing reliance on cars and saving on fuel costs. For those who love adventure, electric off-road and all-terrain bikes are designed for activities like camping, hunting, fishing, and even light mountain biking.
Additionally, we offer step-through electric bike models. These frames make mounting and dismounting easier, enhancing accessibility for riders of all ages and abilities. Regardless of the model, all our electrical bikes are designed to make hill climbing easier, extend riding distances, and allow you to carry cargo without excessive strain.
To further personalize your ride, we provide a wide selection of ebike accessories. These include solutions for storage and transport, safety and security enhancements, seating upgrades for comfort, and performance upgrades like phone mounts and USB chargers. To simplify your selection, we offer curated electric bike kits and a customizer tool at checkout to help you find the perfect accessories for your needs.
Energy Efficiency and Environmental Benefits
Choosing an electric bike is an environmentally responsible decision. Electric bikes are a prime example of energy-efficient transportation. They produce zero emissions while in use, contribute to reduced traffic congestion, and offer a greener alternative to cars. You can even calculate the positive impact of switching to an ebike on your carbon footprint using our emissions calculator.
Save Money with Electric Bikes
Electric bikes offer significant cost savings, primarily by reducing your dependence on gasoline-powered vehicles. By providing a reliable alternative to cars, electrical bikes can help you save money on gas, parking fees, and routine car maintenance. The lower running costs of electric bikes make them an economically sound choice for daily transportation.
Health Benefits of Riding Electric Bikes
Research indicates that electric bikes can contribute positively to your health by encouraging physical activity. Riding an ebike involves pedaling and calorie burning, especially when using lower levels of pedal assist. Electric bikes also enable riders to travel longer distances compared to traditional bikes, naturally increasing exercise duration.
Many Rad Power Bikes customers have shared stories of improved health through ebike riding. For example, rider Blair Hebert reported losing 40 pounds, reversing adult-onset diabetes, and recovering from fatty liver disease thanks to his ebike. Another customer shared how using his electric bike helped him lose weight in preparation for a kidney donation surgery. (Please note: These are customer testimonials and should not be interpreted as medical advice or guarantees of specific health outcomes.)
How to Purchase Your Rad Electric Bike
Rad Power Bikes is committed to making electric bikes affordable. As a direct-to-consumer company, we eliminate intermediaries, which helps reduce overhead costs and allows us to offer competitive prices directly to you. We pioneered this business model in the electric bike industry to ensure accessibility and value.
To make purchasing even easier, we offer flexible ebike financing options, free shipping, a comprehensive one-year warranty, and a 14-day free trial.
Finding the perfect electric bike is simple. You can explore our website, use our ebike finder tool, consult our guide to the best electric bikes, or reach out to our expert customer support team for personalized advice. During the purchase process, you can enter your zip code to select convenient delivery options, including direct shipping, delivery to a local bike shop for assembly, fully assembled delivery via Velofix mobile service, or in-store pickup at a Rad Power Bikes retail location.
We operate both online and through Rad Retail stores and local bike shops across the U.S. and Canada. Visiting a retail store allows you to test ride models and get advice from our team to ensure you choose the best ebike for your needs. You can find a store location near you on our website. Our customer service team is also available to take your order over the phone, answer any questions, and assist with your preferred shipping method.
Owning and Maintaining Your Rad Ebike
At Rad Power Bikes, we are dedicated to designing high-quality electrical bikes that our customers are proud to own. Every ebike undergoes rigorous testing to ensure it meets our high standards before it reaches you. To understand more about our design and quality assurance processes, we invite you to read our guide to the Rad Lab.
Our Product Support team is always ready to assist with troubleshooting, whether online or over the phone. For service, maintenance, and repairs, you have several options: visit a Rad Power Bikes service center, schedule a mobile service appointment through our partner Velofix, or take your ebike to a local bike shop within our network.
We extend our sincere gratitude to our community of over 450,000 Rad riders. Thank you for choosing Rad Power Bikes and being part of the ebike revolution!
