“We finally made the plunge a month ago and are delighted so far” says Victoria. ”We used to have good intentions of using our bikes but now it is easy. It's like pedalling on the flat, so you can go as hard as you want but not have to knock yourself out.  We can whizz into town, and be well exercised but still full of go.”

“We looked for ages online then went to Sydney and tried out a couple - new and second hand - before buying online. Our choice was largely dictated by the battery which is lithium iron phosphate and said to be 100% recyclable and non-toxic, as well as long lasting. It gives us about 20km at full power - longer if we pedal more. The battery takes about 4 hours to charge from empty, and according to the manufacturers, each time you charge it the electricity cost will be about 10 cents.

Victoria says “The bike is powered by a 36 volt battery with 10 amps which gives 360 watts. The motor is limited to 250 watts which is the maximum power you can have without registration. The motor starts and stops when you pedal. There are three levels of assistance and you can pedal as much or as little as you like - as long as you pedal the motor works. You can turn it off whenever you like. There are 7 mechanical bike gears so it works as a normal bike as well, though it is quite heavy - 24kg.”

“We've ridden it in much wetter windier conditions than we ever would have braved on our old bikes... we love it!”