E-bikes and Accessibility

A Newsletter by Chuq Von Rospach

V1#15 - Sep-10-2019

Welcome to the new issue of 6FPS. As I write this, it's now September and Silicon Valley is starting to feel like fall is arriving. Fall Migration for the birds is in full swing, and I'm about a week away from heading out again for my photo workshop with Art Wolfe.

Laurie and I spent a glorious week in Victoria, which you can read about on the blog. Getting back to Victoria and wandering around Vancouver Island was as much fun as I'd hoped it to be.

It's been a busy few weeks: we took the trip to Victoria, we both bought E-bikes (they are Pedego, more on them soon), and we replaced the refrigerator in the garage with a new, huge (25 cubic feet vs 19.5 for the old one) Samsung with ice and water in the door. Laurie says she now has an Alton Brown fridge, where she can put a roast on a pan and stick it in without wondering what shelf to throw stuff out from to make room. (I expect that'll change eventually). The refrigerator was getting older -- 2004 model -- and the freezer seal was starting to fail, so it was showing its age.

While we were at it, we realized the washer dryer were even older, and the washer has a bearing that sometimes makes a funny noise, and the dryer sensors don't work quite right, so we decided to replace them as well. The dryer we bought was out of stock, so we're waiting to hear when it arrives and get installation scheduled.

I'm this close to finishing a major project at work (and have been, it seems for a month as little details keep creeping in that need to be stomped) and I've started my next one and written up the project proposal for the one after. In other words, about normal and happily busy.

The nice thing is that unlike the first half of the year, I'm still really busy, but I no longer feel like I'm trying to finish things that were due two weeks ago.

Winter Refuge Season

With fall here and winter approaching I've been planning out my trips and activities for the refuge season. It looks like I'm going to be a busy person -- in a good way. I'm expecting to see the first report of migrating Sandhill Cranes arriving any time now.

This also means there are opportunities for us to get together and go do stuff when I’m out leading a birding group. Here are some dates where you can come out and bird with me in the next few months:

  • In a couple of weeks (September 17), I’ll be headed to Olympic National Park to attend Art Wolfe’s Lake Quinalt Photography Retreat. This is a small, intimate workshop with only 8 attendees, so I’m really looking forward to it, when I’m not scared shootless at the of Art Wolfe judging my for my images. As of this week, there are two spaces left — surprisingly not a sellout — so there’s a chance to sign up at the last minute. Or not, and that means I have to share Art with fewer people…

  • On November 17, from 3-5, I’ll be doing another Big Sit/Drop-in at Coyote Valley OSP. I did one of these last weekend and it was rather hot and quiet, but I have good expectations for this location in the winter so I’m looking forward to it.

  • In Mid-December I’m taking a two day trip to do some intensive photography at Sacramento NWR and Colusa NWR.

  • January 17-19 I’m headed to Morro Bay for the Morro Bay Bird Festival, where I expect to spend a chunk of time on a boat in the harbor with a camera, and splitting that with time up at the Elephant Seal colony, since January is prime season there for photography and chaos.

  • And on January 26, 3-5PM I’ll be doing another event at Coyote Valley OSP, in case it wasn’t obvious this was a favorite place of mine.

  • On February 23, from 9AM to 1PM I’m doing my annual half day outing to Merced NWR. These are always fun and interesting with generally great looks at Sandhill Cranes and three species of geese.

  • And on March 21, I’ll be at Coyote Valley OSP for a third time.

So that’s four group events I’ll be leading, the photo workshop with Art Wolfe, a few days in Morro Bay for the bird festival, and a solo trip up to Sacramento for a couple of days hoping for great photos of Bald eagles. 

And wait! there’s more! Since this is busy season for me doing my Crane and Geese photography at the refuges, I have planned four solo day trips out to Merced and San Luis NWR, plus Laurie and I will go out together to those refuges on the Friday or Saturday after thanksgiving, and again the weekend between Christmas and new year. That’s basically scheduling me every couple of weeks for the next almost five months, without conflicting with holidays, Laurie’s travel, work things and the rest of life. 

There are times when I do these schedules where I shake my head and wonder if I’m an idiot, and occasionally I seem to prove to myself I am — but this year, I’m really looking forward to it. I even had two more trips penciled in, but as I looked at the schedule, I realized that was just too much given my other commitments. But I a not going to complain about lack of time on the refuges this winter, unless the government shuts down or we get really nasty weather. 

And I’m just realizing as soon as this block of things ends, on March 28, we kick off the 2020 Birdathon fundraiser. I expect I’ll lead my normal 2-3 outings for that, but I’ll worry about that later, since this year, I’m not running that committee! It’s someone else’s problem for now…

On with the Show!

And with that, on with the show! And thank you for being part of this.

What's New?

Here is what I've written since the last issue:

  • Greater White-Fronted Geese in Flight

  • Morro Bay at Sunset

  • Forster's Tern

  • I Feel Like I'm Home

  • Sea Otter Smile

  • Resigning from the Landscape Photography Guild

  • Dawn at Merced National Wildlife Refuge

  • On Island Time

  • Nuttall's Woodpecker

  • Farm Building in Black and White

  • August Update: Convincing Charities to Stop Sending Me Paper (tl;dr: sigh)

  • Barn Swallow

Photos: Common Gallinule and Chick

The Common Gallinule (renamed in the last few years from Common Moorhen) is a reclusive bird that lives among the reeds in shallow water in our wetlands. Similar to but a different species from the American Coot, seeing these requires a bit of patience and luck. 

This one, seen in the Charleston Slough area of Mountain View, is busy feeding one of its chicks bits of vegetation. Common Gallinule chicks definitely qualify as being so ugly they’re cute.

E-Bikes and Accessibility

As I mentioned above, I bought an E-bike. This is one of those things that has been in the back of my head for a number of months but wasn't a priority for me. 

Then, one day I had a revelation, and buying an E-bike became a priority. I realized an E-bike would enable me to do things again that I was finding were simply beyond my capabilities. 

Here's the thing: I have been, for about the last year, working to improve my conditioning and build up my leg strength again to allow me to do more than just birding from my car and parking lots. Because of my ongoing knee issues and some other health things, my ability to do a lot of walking or other activities was really limited for a while, and that allowed the legs to weaken. 

Some of this is the progression of my arthritis, some of it ties to a drug reaction where we tried a new diabetes drug that I didn't tolerate, which is when I was switched to insulin to get everything to settle down, but for a few months I had to cut my activity levels to close to zero. 

The insulin got my diabetes back under control, my live stopped threatening to join the rebel forces, and I started feeling decent again. Back in January we switched my arthritis drug from Relafin to Meloxicam, and the change was stunning -- good enough that we have discontinue the Cortisone shots to the knees that I love so much. 

That said -- the knees are pain free (mostly) but there are still limitations and discomfort. I can't go up stairs like a normal human, and down is even harder. I have to be really careful off paved paths because I have a higher risk of tripping. But overall, it's manageable and it was base to work on to try to get back in better shape. 

The goal: to be able to hike 5 miles twice a week, hopefully with a full pack on. Where I was when I started: 3/4 to one mile was my max, on pavement. My heart rate max was about 120-125, and 40 minutes of sustained activity would wear me out. That's pretty poor. 

Today, things are a bit different. I'm now able to put in a 2 mile walk -- pushing it a bit I get get 2 1/2 -- and in general exercise and activity I'm now able to push 90 minutes or two hours. Max pulse is up to 155-160. 

The problem I ran into is my knees wouldn't take me past 2 miles. I've been trying, and that seems to be their max. It was driving me crazy. 

And then I got into a conversation about this with a friend who rides an e-Bike, and he simply said "why aren't you riding one?"

Well, because I never considered it as an option. 

Silly me. 

A E-bike is a great way extend your range. For me, where many birding locations are on paved paths where bikes are welcome, it's a way to get out away from the parking lots and back into the field. The biggest advantage may not be an obvious one: I no longer have to worry about where the "half way I better turn back now" point is, because I can use the power assist to get back if the legs give out. That alone widens my range massively. 

It comes with some caveats. Not all locations and trails and paths allow bikes, and as someone who wants to be a responsible owners, I intend to follow trail rules. 

E-bikes are also still an emerging device here in the states. It's rare to see a location or governing authority that has already grappled with e-bikes and come up with a policy for how to manage them. 

There is growing controversy about them out on the trails. Recently Tom Stienstra, outdoor columnist for the SF Chronicle, trashed them and called for their banning on trails (evidently because all of us should be able to hike like he does or stay home). There's been a fair bit of blowback at him over that, but it's just a new variation of the same fights that go on every time the hikers, bicyclists and equestrians argue about how to share their common territories. 

In a similar vein, National Parks Traveler Podcast eBikes and Dutch Ovens had a discussion that I recommend as well worth listening to, but it became clear that there was an attitude of looking to get the e-bikes banned or seriously restricted on trails in National Parks in the discussion. What I found fascinating was that the feedback they got after the episode released brought up the accessibility aspect, and many of those responding that they'd bought e-bikes were retired rangers who were using them to go where their legs no longer could take them. I got the impression this brought up this accessibility option in a way that the NPT people had never really considered. 

Which is one reason I'm talking about this here. I had never considered it. I'm just starting on my journey, but I already see how it's going to revive my ability to bird in places that I've struggled to visit. I'm starting to plan a spring trip to Yosemite, where the bike will give me access to the valley floor and help me avoid the joys of the traffic there. I can even get to Mirror Lake again, a location that has effectively been walled off by the knees for years. 

The need for good regulation

Having talked up all the positives of e-bikes, there are places they don't belong. Any trail that isn't open to non-assisted bikes shouldn't have e-bikes on them. That should be a given, but I know there will be idiots who ignore the rules. 

And the added power and capabilities make e-bikes a possible issue even in places where manual bikes are allowed. The question is what kind of restrictions and regulations are required and fair to all sides. 

One thing that is stupid: this last week the Interior Secretary issued a rule out of nowhere that effectively allows e-bikes anywhere non-assisted bikes are allowed. It's unclear why they did this but it's a rule that is stupid on the face of it. 

My take: I don't want to see e-bikes on sensitive and narrow single-tracks. They have the capacity to do extra damage over a regular bike, and when not ridden responsibly, put the other cyclists at risk in narrow spaces with limited visibility. I'm not comfortable with those risks.

Another aspect I worry about and am looking into are trails shared with equestrians. the e-bike is silent so noise isn't a problem, but you can get to a higher speed easily than with a manual bike, and that seems risky to me with equestrian traffic. Someone not paying attention to what's around them could cause a horse to spook. 

Speed, to me, is the big worry here, and I think should be the core of regulations. Most trails that allow regular bikes would work fine with e-bikes, as long as the cyclists maintain safe speeds. It's the idiots that won't we have to deal with. 

Last week I did a birding event at Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve where I worked with one of their rangers. That gave us some time to talk about this; I wanted to make sure it was on their radar so they had a chance to consider and build rules before something bad happened. She agreed, and is taking that back to her bosses. 

Her take is that the equestrian risk is management with reasonable speed limits. The question is what a good speed is and how to help people learn about the rules and educate them on why they're needed. This is my take, too. If we keep the speed down and ride with some caution, the e-bikes are fine. 

I'm hoping to continue encouraging organizations I have contact with to think about e-bikes pro-actively. If you think about when drones started becoming consumer products, rule-making was mostly re-active, coming after idiots with drones did stupid things with them like fly them into geysers. The general reaction in reactive rule making is to over-restrict (because you're rightfully pissed at the damage that's been done). I'm hoping we can help avoid that with e-Bikes, not let the Tom Stienstras of the world try to lock us back in our cars just because we aren't capable of the 10 mile walks any more. 

E-bikes are an interesting way to help people get out and get active again, and I'd hate to see that stuffed back in a closet because people aren't willing to consider those positives and only focus on the perceived problems (real or imagined). Hopefully we can find ways to maintain safety while enabling access. That's my goal. 

For Your Consideration

About 6FPS and Chuq

6FPS (Six Frames Per Second) is a newsletter of interesting things and commentary from Chuq Von Rospach (chuqvr@gmail.com).

Coming out about every two weeks, I will place in your inbox a few things I hope will inform and delight you. There is too much mediocre, forgettable stuff attacking your eyeballs every day you're online; this is my little way to help you cut through the noise to some interesting things you might otherwise not find.

See you soon!


And with that, I'll see you in a couple of weeks with the next issue. I'd love feedback on this, what you like, what you want more of, what you want less of. And if you have something interesting you think I might want to talk about, please pass it along.

Until then, take care, and have fun.

Chuq (chuqvr@gmail.com)

(P.S.: some links in this newsletter may point to products at Amazon; these are affiliate links and if you use them to buy a product, I get a small cut of the sale. This doesn't make me rich, but it does pay for my site hosting every month, and maybe a coffee or two. If you use the link to buy something, thank you. If you prefer not to, that's perfectly okay, also.)

Copyright © 2019 Chuq Von Rospach, All rights reserved.