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Heart Attack Survivor Still Cycling – on a Pedal Easy Electric Bike!

April 10, 2016 by Average Joe Cyclist Leave a Comment

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Ron Wensel is a heart attack survivor who still cycles – a lot! He joins his wife on group rides, and they even do extended cycling tours. Ron makes sure that he does not trigger another heart attack by using a combination of a heart rate monitor and an electric bike that he designed himself – the Pedal Easy electric bike.

Heart attack survivor Ron Wensel with a Pedal Easy Electric Bike
Heart attack survivor Ron Wensel with a Pedal Easy Electric Bike

I have had the privilege meeting Ron twice, and I have had a very enjoyable bike ride with him. Ron is one of the most impressive men I have ever met – quiet and soft-spoken, yet talented, fearless, and heroic. He is a talented mechanical engineer, and spent 35 years designing ultra-high reliability mechanical equipment for nuclear and aerospace. At one point he was the lead investigator following the Challenger Space Shuttle accident. Subsequently he was the lead designer of sealing for the Advanced Solid Rocket motors. Oh, and he commuted to work by bike!

When asked about how he invented relativity, Einstein said:

“I thought of that while riding my bicycle.”

Clearly, cycling brings oxygen to the brain, and I bet Ron did some great thinking as he commuted to work.

Unfortunately, Ron suffered four heart attacks a few years ago. He wanted to keep on cycling, but his doctor warned him that letting his heart rate go over 140 could trigger another heart attack – possibly a fatal one. That would keep most people on the couch, but not Ron! He decided that he would find a way to keep cycling without over-exerting himself. He applied his engineering skills to the problem – and created an ultra-light, power-assisted bicycle to enable him to keep cycling. These designs would eventually lead to the Pedal Easy electric bike – possibly the lightest electric bike on the market.

Ron still provides technical advice for Pedal Easy – and he still cycles! So far he has logged a lifetime mileage of 150,000 km. Total respect!

Hats off to Ron - still cycling despite his heart attacks
Hats off to Ron – still cycling despite his heart attacks

Light exercise can actually help the heart to recover, and that was Ron’s plan.

With these electric bikes and his heart rate monitor, Ron can still do group bike rides and even go on long-distance biking vacations with his wife: he just wears a heart rate monitor, pedals the bike like a regular bike – and then uses the throttle whenever his heart rate is close to his “danger zone” of 140 beats per minute.

Learn more about using a heart rate monitor to get fit here.

Ron’s Pedal Easy Electric Bikes are very competitively-priced (around $1,500) – and Pedal Easy offers a whole range of lightweight, long-range electric bikes. The lightweight bikes are integrated with a small, high-efficiency battery and motor.

A Pedal Easy electric bike – calories burned cycling
A Pedal Easy electric bike does not look like an electric bike

These very efficient Pedal Easy electric bikes don’t LOOK like electric bikes. As you can see, the small, light battery is cunningly concealed in a saddle bag. The motor in the rear hub is so small that most people would not notice it. In fact, when I tried the bike out, a cycling friend saw the bike and said, “Oh, not riding electric today?” I told him it WAS an electric bike, and he was amazed. And the bikes are nicely specced with mid-range Shimano components. The frames are built to be super strong but lightweight.

The total weight of Pedal Easy electric bikes, with battery and fenders, is as low as 28 pounds.

The electric assistance on these Pedal Easy bikes is controlled with a throttle. Because the bikes are so light, you can choose to use them as regular bikes (pedaling only) or on full throttle (no pedaling at all) – or somewhere in between.

Pedal Easy bikes have good Shimano components
Pedal Easy bikes have good Shimano components

Keeping your heart rate under control with a Pedal Easy electric bike

Pedal Easy electric bikes
This first graph produced by Ron’s heart rate monitor shows a one-hour ride WITH throttle assist

Ron took his Pedal Easy electric bike on two one-hour rides over moderately hilly terrain. On the first ride he used throttle assist for the tougher parts. This first graph produced by his heart rate monitor shows the one-hour ride WITH throttle assist. As you can see, Ron was able to keep his heart rate under 140 (the red zone starts at 140). You can also see that his heart rate is in the zone for cardiac exercise and cardiac benefits for most of the bike ride.

Pedal Easy electric bikes
This second graph produced by Ron’s heart rate monitor shows the one-hour ride with NO electric assist used

A few days later Ron did the same bike ride on the same Pedal Easy electric bike, but without throttle assist. As you can see, his heart rate went well above 140 – sometimes even as high as 170 beats per minute. Fortunately, he survived this test.

These graphs clearly show that using an electric bike enables cyclists to get cardio exercise, but without endangering themselves if they have health limitations.

One of the Pedal Easy bikes
One of the Pedal Easy bikes

Testing calories burned cycling on electric bikes

Pedal Easy electric bikes
This third graph produced by Ron’s heart rate monitor shows the number of calories he burned with and without power assist

Ron’s heart rate monitor supplied some very interesting information about calories burned on the two bike rides. This graph shows both bike rides, with the number of calories burned on both rides. Notice that when Ron used the throttle assist to protect his heart, he burned up 444 calories during the one-hour bike ride. When he did the bike ride without throttle assist, he burned up 552 calories during the one-hour bike ride. This shows that using the electric bike resulted in burning only 20% less calories. Burning 440 calories in an hour is a big deal – done regularly, this kind of calorie burn could result in significant weight loss.

Ron’s story is exciting for two reasons:

  1. It shows that heart disease patients can use electric bikes to keep on cycling, while still following their doctor’s orders about keeping their heart rate fairly low.
  2. It shows that many calories are burned cycling on an electric bike.
Pedal Easy electric bikes are nicely specced with good components
Pedal Easy electric bikes are nicely specced with good components

Thanks to Ron Wensel for the information in this post. Check out his electric bikes at Pedal Easy.

Note: I am currently test riding one of these bikes, trying it out on my daily bike commutes (and I am very happy to know that I am still burning about 1,000 calories per day on my bike commute). My first impression of the bike was “Awesome Commuter Bike!” – and here is my full review of the Pedal Easy electric bike.

Click here to link to my full review of the Pedal Easy electric bikes
Click here to link to my full review of the Pedal Easy electric bikes

Deciding which electric bike is the best electric bike for YOU is difficult. I have written a book about how to choose the best electric bike for you. The book includes reviews of many of the best electric bikes on the market today. Find out more about this book on Amazon.

Did you like this post or find it useful? If so, please support our blog:

average-joe-cyclist-mug-shot copyWe would appreciate it very much if you would SHARE this post with others (using the Share buttons) or LIKE our Facebook page. Or just click on one of the Amazon links before buying from Amazon – small commissions help pay for our time! BEST OF ALL – just SUBSCRIBE to our blog! You will get a FREE DOWNLOAD of my book, How to Buy the Best Electric Bike, plus free weekly updates about our posts. Thanks in advance – reader support keeps us going and makes it all worthwhile!

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Welcome to our Electric Bikes Blog!

Average Joe CyclistWelcome to our blog! I’m Joe Goodwill, and I love electric bikes! I have written a book about how to choose the best electric bike. This blog features product reviews, news, and advice. I also have a blog about all aspects of cycling - my Average Joe Cyclist Blog - and my Average Joe's RV Living Blog.

Mrs Average Joe Cyclist - MaggieHi! I'm Maggie Neilson (aka Mrs. Average Joe Cyclist). Together Joe and I have done a lot of cycling, and Joe has passed on his love of electric bikes to me. I love my electric bike, and  I share my passion for electric bikes on this blog.

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