Electra launches its latest two ebike models for cruising the town

By Kelly Hodgkins Updated June 22, 2017

electra ebike townie commute go loft

As one of the top lifestyle bike manufacturers in the United States, Electra is leading the ebike revolution with not one, but two new electric bikes, the new Townie Commute Go and Loft Go models. The pair are designed with Electra’s signature “relaxed and comfortable” cruiser bike style. They will join Electra’s existing Townie Go, a popular pedal-assisted bike that is one of the best-selling ebikes in the country.

Electra, a subsidiary of Trek bicycles, has been in the cycling business for almost 25 years. The California-based company is best known for it cruiser bikes that blend the classic cruiser style with modern technology. Founded when there were very few cruisers on the market, the company is credited with rejuvenating consumer interest in this category of bike. Now it’s poised to repeat this achievement with its electric bikes.

The Townie Commute Go is designed for the commuter looking for two-wheeled transport between work, the gym, and home. The electric bike is equipped with a midrange Bosch Performance Series 250W midframe motor and a battery combination that provides up to 100 miles of pedal power, depending on your mode of pedaling and terrain. The drive system offers four different pedal assist modes including Eco, Tour, Sport, and Turbo. The Turbo mode is the fastest of the four pedal assist settings and can zoom you along at speeds up to 20 mph. Other specs include a Shimano Nexus twist shift with eight-speed gearing, Tektro hydraulic disc brakes, and 700c Schwalbe Fat Frank Balloon Tires that are puncture resistant.

The Loft Go is an entry-level cruiser bike with a Bosch Active Series 250W midframe motor and compatible battery. Similar to the Townie Commute Go, the Loft Go offers four modes of operation, a 100-mile range, and speeds up to 20 mph. It also has puncture-resistant Schwalbe Fat Frank Balloon Tires, Shimano Nexus eight-speed shifting, and Tektro Hydraulic Disc Brakes.

Fashionable and comfortable in true Electra style, the $2,999 Townie Commute Go is available in either a step-thru or step-over frame in a choice of colors that include white, mineral blue, and black. The $2,799 Loft Go is available only in a step-thru frame with black, cream, and aqua color choices.

Topics

Contributor

Kelly's been writing online for ten years, working at Gizmodo, TUAW, and BGR among others. Living near the White Mountains of…

Outdoors

Goodbye, coolers. The EcoFlow Glacier doesn’t need ice — it makes it

The EcoFlow Glacier is a fridge shaped like a cooler with its own battery,

Every cooler operates on borrowed time. It leaves for your camping trip brimming over with crisp produce and ice-encrusted beer that looks straight out of a Super Bowl commercial, and returns with a soggy block of foil-wrapped cheddar cheese floating in a pool of mustard water. Mother Nature always wins.

Perhaps that’s why I was so enamored when I saw the EcoFlow Glacier at CES 2023. Less a cooler than a mobile battery-powered fridge on wheels, the sleek electric Glacier not only obviated the need for ice, it would make ice for me in 18 minutes. My home fridge can’t even do that, and I didn’t even know I wanted it to until just now. When EcoFlow offered to let me try the Glacier, I envisioned sipping a perspiring glass of whiskey in the tropics and accepted the occupational hazards of my job.

Outdoors

I was wrong. E-bikes are so practical, they’re a transit cheat code

An Aventon Level 2 ebike sits outside a grocery store.

Confession: Despite loving both bikes and gadgets, e-bikes never excited me. Compared to my bicycle, e-bikes seemed unfair. Compared to my motorcycle, they seemed slow. Compared to my car, they seemed impractical.

But with $1,500 federal e-bike rebates potentially on the horizon at part of E-Bike Act, I decided it was past time to reconsider. Not just because 30% off would make them way more accessible, but because the entire idea that e-bikes could be worthy of a rebate changed the way I looked at them: less as toys, more as transit. Had I written off an entire way of getting around because I was looking at it the wrong way?

Outdoors

Upway launches one of the best marketplaces for certified e-bikes, new or not

Man holding ebike from Upway in a field, lifestyle image.

This content was produced in partnership with Upway.
It wasn't too long ago that e-bikes were a rare sight, but all of that has changed, and rightfully so. Electric bikes are all over the road these days, and there are many brands either venturing into the technology, to launch their own versions of the sustainable transportation option or reiterating existing and traditional designs. From Aventon to Schwinn, or RadPower to Momentum, with so many opportunities, the prevailing question is, where do you go to find the best deals and the best information about these brands and their e-bike models? The answer is Upway, the number one certified electric bike provider and an official partner to many of the aforementioned brands.

What is Upway, exactly? It's a marketplace, specializing in e-bikes, featuring an inventory that's sourced from some of the best brands in the world. There are American brands -- like Specialized, Cannondale, and RadPower -- and European brands -- like Riese, Muller, and VanMoof. The best part is the discounts, offering up to 60% off retail, for a plethora of brands. Upway is on a mission to make sustainable mobility affordable for everyone. It's also one of the best places to go for a new or pre-owned e-bike, and here's why: