Lynne

I LOVE my bike! Yes still getting the miles in but the weather recently has slowed me down. I have been to the Tissington trail, and managed 27 miles! I will be coming back for a service soon....need to ask about the judder! Is it me or the bike?

...meant to say...I don't think it shows that I am an MS sufferer!

Getting my bike has been the best thing I've done recently, and I could not have done it without the grant from Barnsley MS Society. This forum helped me choose the bike and the bike shop in Penrith were great. And here is a picture of me on said bike [ATTACH]4474.vB[/ATTACH]

I have looked at the dates...and I doubt aroncox will see these replies, unless somebody knows how to let him/her know they are here.

Hello...I know a bit about MS and riding a bike! I have known about my MS since 1995, I started riding a bike in 2006 when walking became difficult. I feel riding my bike has kept me fit both in mind and body. I recently bought a pedelec with a grant from my local MS society because I was finding riding my usual bike very difficult. It is hilly around Barnsley! And I kept falling off because balance is more tricky when going slow. Remember clinicians can advise...however only people living with the condition can tell you how it is for them. If you are interested I write a blog, http://http://selfmanagementgoals.blogspot.co.uk/ Here you can read about me and my bike amongst other things. Best of luck, Lynne

I did investigate this, because after all I was buying a pedelec because of my impairment, however found I was not eligible for VAT free bike. It is not considered to be an appropriate disability aid as far as I can see. Did get my bathroom modified VAT free though!

I bike on the Trans Pennine Trail around Barnsley. It is traffic free (apart from Kids on motor bikes), sometimes muddy (especially this year with the awful weather) and sometimes hard surface. The most annoying things are the gates, put in to stop the motorbikes! And sometimes I bike on quiet lanes. Wherever I go it is for the joy of it, my commute is upstairs to my office at home.

it felt a bit like the eBike equivalent of driving a limo Have to agree! Yesterday I got on my old bike(not a pedelec) just to see if I could. It felt like a ford escort in comparison! I have decided I feel very safe and stable on the C11. I like the upright position, and I especially like the 'chopper' style handlebars. They seem to really suit me and I feel very comfortable and in control of my steering. There are some issues with the motor, which might be down to me not really understanding how to use it. Or down to the fact that my legs are unequal in the amount of pressure exerted on each pedal, but would that matter? I have been told it is over-run. When I get to the top of a steep hill and stop pedaling, there is judder coming from the bike (and from my right leg!). I am going to experiment a bit to see exactly when it happens. I am just about to do my third charge of the battery, having run it right down 3 times. The range is great...45+ miles and that is up and down dale. So yes, am happy!

....doable...what a lovely word! Thanks folks for your continuing support!

I've not been on here for a while because I have been busy working and also riding my bike and I have to say I love it! On Sunday I went through the 100 mile mark, and what is even more amazing it was while I was biking around the Guild Wheel. I did ALL 21 miles at once, and could still walk once I'd finished. I had one small stumble at the beginning of the steep descent into Brockholes, mainly because it was so muddy. I managed to get on and off at the gates fairly easily, though it was useful having someone with me to slot my foot back into the cage thing I have fitted on the right pedal . I can't believe I am riding a bike again, so maybe London to Brighton is doable after all. If anybody is interested I have started a blog as a result of achieving a very significant goal. A Year Of Setting Goals And I am sure that me riding my Kalkhoff C11 Agattu with a step through frame will feature in it quite significantly! One very happy pedelec rider:eek:

I know I said count me in.....however..... I've just done my first 10 mile bike ride....needed a long lie down, so my head might be willing to do 54 miles....the body on the other hand... I've got time though, so I'm more a maybe than a definite yes!

Yep......count me in!

I did this in 1982 or 1983! Would really like to have another go....with electric pedals!

Yes whatever reason people choose to ride a bike with a battery it seems that positive outcomes are to be expected. I am most definitely a convert! In fact I'm just about to set off for my daily pedal right now....

I picked up my bike yesterday, Kalkhoff C11 Step through, and this morning I have been on a ride that I used to do; so up some very familiar hills that I have not ridden a bike up for the last 2 years. And I went on my own! It was a 7 mile bike ride, I needed a rest after 5 miles, which is OK. I arrived home and was able to get off the bike without the need for assistance. I have a big grin on my face! It just feels so good to be able to do this again. I thought I would have to stop riding my bike...well I have had to stop riding THAT bike...I've turned the clock back and found freedom again and am so delighted. I have to thank all the members of this forum who supported me through the ups and downs of decision making...I just wish I didn't just need 1 bike from 1 supplier! You never know though my partner John may feel he needs one eventually so that he can keep up with me...watch this space!

Yes Cyclezee... the guys at the Penrith shop are good! Knowledgeable, without being patronising, empathetic rather than sympathetic, and all in all very helpful which is why I have ordered a bike from them. I am sure though that given time I would have found other equally accommodating suppliers... the people at The Electric Transport shop were also good...but alas Cambridge too flat for me to really try bikes on hills. So I have finally found my bike and a good shop....shame its miles away, but you can't have everything! Thanks everybody for all the constructive comments...wish I could have visited....Kudos cycles, Buxton, Banbury, Milton Keynes...and a host of other places..

d8veh ...couldn't get my leg over! The 2 guys there raving about that bike! Did try BH city 700, it was so easy to ride being very similar to mine but with assistance. Tried Kalkhoff C11....loved it and I think it's the bike for me! No compromise needed,its got everything I'm looking for, and Pete will adapt the peddle and move the bell. Lot of money, but learning to ride that bike, because I will have to change my riding style, is going to be easy and just what I need for the next 5 years. Thank you everybody for all the really thoughtful comments..... and I am so glad I travelled to Penrith! And good luck kudoscycles, one day I may come and visit to see all that choice! THANKS!

Am off to Penrith today...have printed off some comments. They sell Raleigh. Am planning to try BH Emotion 700 wave, and anything else...oh and of course Kalkhoff! Will let you know.....

I won't be buying a Sparta! And whatever I buy, I will bear in mind the above and make sure I ask the right questions around after sales, and that I get a low maintenance bike because as you have probably gathered ... an engineer I am not!

Thanks Dave! Have decided to go to Penrith tomorrow and try out some of their bikes...including the BH Emotions. Am conscious that I must keep a clear head and not get too giddy! Have looked at Just e-bikes...Sparta was the bike I fell off because I wasn't aware of the throttle turning! So I know that the more controls I can have on the left hand the better, and that buttons are better than twists! The problem with Cambridge is that it is pretty flat, and the bike I tried looked the part in Cambridge, but I'll be riding it in Barnsley! It was beautiful and so easy to get on...and off!

All comments, derisory,supportive or ambivalent, gratefully accepted! I could not have even begun this journey without the forum. Part of my decision for lowest possible step through was influenced by falling off a bike in the yard outside the shop. Hey ho...the quicker I get a bike the better,especially since summer appears to have arrived at last!

The step through in the picture is a mere 18 cm....and that is the attraction. I have just had a message that adaptions can be made....so sparticle kit, alfine gears may well be the way forward. Just glad somebody else is doing it!

I have started a new thread because the other was getting too long, and my question about advise has been answered. I know I can get good advise here and I have been to the Electric Transport Shop in Cambridge...and it was most helpful. I now realise that the bike I want doesn't exist yet...it can however probably be put together for me. I tried this bike: [ATTACH]4181.vB[/ATTACH] It is Dutch by Er-GO.....hard to find on the web The low step through was exactly what I need, but it was not powerful enough, I did not like the twist grip gear shift, and we decided a push button throttle would be handy. Plus we could choose a comfy seat and good handle bars and brakes. Or I could just go for an off the peg Kalkhoff, which I tried again and do like the feel of it. Would need to go up a notch though I think to get the thumb shift gears. And the step through, although low, it isn't ultra low! I still have not tried a BH emotion bike, I need to travel again to do that. I'm thinking I need a bike building!

I would like to add tillson and eddio..

Local expertise seems to be the stumbling block! I had a great phone call yesterday with Adam from Electric Cycle Centre, and I am sure that if I went there I would find the right bike. The problem being they are in Penrith, I am in Barnsley and it is a 260 mile round trip. Hardly local! I have decided to approach the South Yorkshire Electric Bike Centre and ask them to get me the bikes I am interested in. They don't stock them according to the website, but I can ask!