Riding the Relaxed Body E-Bike: A New Street Rider's Loop Through Bike Lanes, Hills, and a Golf Course

A First-Timer's Street Ride on the Relaxed Body E-Bike

There's a kind of bike review I trust more than any spec sheet, and it's the one where somebody just gets on the bike and rides it where regular people ride. No closed course, no rehearsed lines, no pretending every second goes perfectly. That's what this one is. Alina from our team took the sixthreezero Relaxed Body e-bike out onto public streets, into a bike lane, past a construction zone, over a patch of dirt, and along the roads that wind through a golf course. She talked through the whole ride as it happened, and I want to walk you through what she said, because the things she noticed are exactly the things most new e-bike riders wonder about before they buy.

I'm Dustin Gyger, and a big part of my job is helping people figure out which bike fits their body and the way they actually ride. The questions I hear over and over sound like this: How fast does pedal assist really go? Do I have to pedal at all? Will I feel safe on the road if I'm not an experienced cyclist? Can this thing get me up a hill? Alina's ride answers a surprising number of those in under ten minutes, and she does it as someone who openly admits that riding in the street is new to her. Honestly, that's what makes it worth your time. She isn't a racer showing off. She's a normal rider learning in real time, and you get to learn alongside her.

One note before we get going. The speeds in this article are what Alina read off the display during her ride, on her route, on that particular day. Speed on any e-bike shifts with rider weight, the grade of the road, wind, tire pressure, and how hard you're pushing the pedals. So read her numbers as a real-world snapshot, not a promise. If you want the official specifications for the Relaxed Body, the bike listings on this page have them, and you can see everything we make on our full electric bikes collection page.

Starting Slow on Throttle Alone

The very first thing Alina did after rolling out is something I wish every new rider would do: she started gently. Her opening words were basically a hope that she wasn't going too fast. She wasn't pedaling at all. She was on the throttle with her legs still, the bike set to pedal assist level one, letting it carry her down the street at an easy pace while she got her bearings.

That's a smart way to begin. The first minute on any e-bike is really about calibration. You're learning how the bike responds when you ask for power, how quickly it settles when you let off, and how it feels to balance at a low speed with a motor underneath you. Running on throttle at a low setting takes one thing off your plate, your own pedaling, so you can put all of your attention on steering, braking, and reading the road ahead. Once those feel natural, bringing your legs back into the picture is simple.

She said it a couple of times in those first moments: she was trying to go pretty slow, and it seemed to be going well. That's not throwaway chatter. That's the sound of someone building confidence on her own terms, and I hear the same thing from customers on their first test rides. Nobody needs to prove anything in the first block. The goal is to feel settled. On a bike built around an upright, relaxed riding position, that tends to happen quicker, because you aren't wrestling a stretched-out posture while you're also figuring out the buttons. You sit tall, you look ahead, and your hands rest where they naturally want to be.

Moving Into the Bike Lane

About a minute into the ride, Alina moved over to the right and slid into the bike lane. As she settled in, she bumped the assist up to level two, dropped back to level one for a moment, then went back to two. Watching the footage, you can practically see her feeling out which setting matched her comfort level and the pace of the traffic around her.

I really like that she didn't just pick a number and leave it there. That back-and-forth is exactly how pedal assist is meant to be used. Level one gave her a gentle nudge. Level two gave her a bit more pull, enough to hold a steady pace without working hard. Neither was the correct answer on its own. Each one was right for a different moment, and she switched between them with a quick button press without losing her rhythm or taking her eyes off the lane.

If you've never owned an e-bike, this is worth sitting with for a second. You aren't buying one fixed speed. You're getting a range of help that you turn up or down as the road changes underneath you. Most first-time riders I talk to assume the motor is either on or off. It works a lot more like a volume knob, and getting a feel for that knob is half the enjoyment of the first few weeks.

If the idea of a bike you can ease into at your own pace sounds good, our e-bikes for beginners are a sensible place to start looking. And if comfort is the priority, the comfort electric bikes collection brings together the models designed around the same upright, easygoing posture Alina was riding in.

What I want you to take from this opening stretch is simple. A good first ride isn't about speed. It's about feeling in control, and Alina got there within the first couple of minutes by starting on the throttle, keeping the assist low, and only adding more help once she felt ready for it. That pattern shows up again and again in the rest of her ride, and it's the same approach I'd recommend to anybody bringing a new e-bike home.

If there's one thing people want to know about an e-bike before they buy it, it's how the assist levels translate into actual riding. Product pages can tell you top speeds, but they can't tell you what level two feels like when the road tilts down, or what level three feels like halfway up a long climb. Alina's ride on the Relaxed Body gives us a few honest data points, and I want to go through each one, because together they paint a pretty clear picture of how this bike behaves across changing terrain.

Level One: The Gentle Starting Point

We already covered how Alina began, on the throttle with the assist at level one and her legs resting. Later in the ride she came back to level one deliberately, on a short downhill stretch, dropping the help down because she simply didn't need it. That's a habit I'd encourage. When gravity is already doing the work, there's no reason to have the motor pushing too. Turning the assist down on descents keeps your speed manageable and gives you a calmer, more controlled feel on the way down.

Level one is also where I'd tell nervous riders to live for their first few outings. It gives you just enough support to take the edge off starting from a stop and getting up to a comfortable cruising pace, without ever feeling like the bike is running ahead of you.

Level Two: Her Go-To Setting

Level two is where Alina spent a good chunk of her ride, and it's where she gave us the most useful observations. On one long, scenic downhill she checked the display and saw about 15 miles per hour, and she pointed out that she was barely pedaling at all. She was quick to add context, too: that stretch was already noticeably downhill, so the slope was doing much of the work.

Once the road flattened and she started pedaling again, still in level two, she made a point of showing viewers what that setting feels like in normal conditions. Her estimate was that on a slight uphill grade, level two would carry you at around nine miles per hour. That's a relaxed, conversational pace. You're moving, you're making progress up the incline, and you aren't straining to do it.

I find that contrast really helpful for people trying to picture daily riding. The same assist level gave her roughly 15 on a downhill with almost no effort and roughly nine on a gentle climb with steady pedaling. That gap is the terrain talking, not the bike changing its mind. Level two gives you a consistent amount of help, and the road decides how that help turns into speed.

Bumping It Up as the Road Climbed

Around the two-minute mark, Alina said she was going to raise the pedal assist because things were about to get pretty high. From the footage, it sounds like she was talking about the road starting to climb, and she bumped the help up before the grade really kicked in rather than waiting until she was already working hard. That's good technique. Changing assist levels ahead of a hill, the same way an experienced rider shifts gears before the climb instead of in the middle of it, keeps your cadence smooth and saves your legs.

Level Three and the Throttle on the Uphill Sections

The later part of Alina's loop was, in her words, all uphill. On one of those climbs she called out that she was in pedal assist level three and moving at about 11 miles per hour. She mentioned the bike felt a bit quick at one point but that she was still moving along comfortably, and she kept climbing without any sign of stalling out.

When she wrapped up the ride, she summed up how she handled the hills: a lot of riding in level three, and she was hitting the throttle a lot. I think that's one of the most practical things in the whole video. On a real-world climb, you don't have to choose between pedal assist and the throttle. You can pedal with a higher level of assist and then add a burst of throttle on the steepest pitches, or when you need to get rolling again after slowing for something. Alina did exactly that, and it let her keep climbing without exhausting herself.

A word of balance here, because I'd rather you hear it from me. Leaning hard on the throttle generally uses battery faster than pedaling with assist, since the motor is doing more of the work. Mixing the two, the way Alina did, is a sensible middle ground. You get help where you need it and save energy, both yours and the battery's, where you don't.

How to Pick Your Own Level

If you take one thing from this section, let it be that there's no single correct setting. Alina's ride shows a pattern worth copying. Start low while you get comfortable. Use the lower levels on flats and descents. Bump the assist up before a climb, not during it. And treat the throttle as a tool for steep pitches and restarts rather than your only way of moving. Ride that way for a week and choosing a level will become second nature.

If you're specifically curious about how relaxed, upright e-bikes handle around town, our electric commuter bikes are built for exactly this kind of mixed riding, with stops, starts, gentle hills, and everything in between.

A couple of minutes into the ride, Alina said something I think a lot of readers will relate to. She told viewers she didn't grow up biking on the streets. She grew up riding on sidewalks. So riding on the road, sharing space with cars and learning all the rules that come with it, was genuinely new to her. Her take after a few minutes in the bike lane was encouraging, though: it seemed pretty intuitive.

I appreciate her being upfront about that, because it's the reality for many people who come to e-bikes as adults. Maybe you rode as a kid, around the neighborhood or on the sidewalk in front of your house, and then you stopped for twenty years. Now you're thinking about an e-bike for errands, exercise, or just getting outside, and the idea of riding in traffic feels like a big leap. Alina's experience is a good reminder that the leap is often smaller than it looks once you're actually doing it.

Small Moments That Show Real Street Awareness

What stood out to me watching her ride was how many small, correct decisions she made without making a big deal of it. At one point she simply said to watch out for that car, a quick check that shows she was scanning ahead instead of staring at the display. She signaled her intentions out loud for viewers before turning right, then made the turn calmly. Later, before crossing a street, she made a point of looking both ways and even turned it into a little public service announcement for anyone watching, kids and adults alike.

None of that is fancy. That's the point. Safe street riding mostly comes down to habits like these: keep your head up, look well ahead, make your moves predictable, check both directions before crossing, and give cars and pedestrians plenty of room. A comfortable bike that lets you sit upright makes those habits easier, because you're naturally looking forward and around you instead of down at the pavement.

Rules of the road for bikes and e-bikes vary depending on where you live, including where you're allowed to ride and how e-bikes are classified. Before you head out, it's worth taking a few minutes to look up the local rules in your area. And whatever your local laws say, please wear a helmet. If you need one, we carry sixthreezero helmets designed to match our bikes.

Slowing Down for Construction

About five minutes in, Alina came up on a construction zone and said she was going to slow down a little. Later on the loop she found herself back near the same construction area. Both times she handled it the right way, easing off rather than barreling through. Construction is one of those things that shows up constantly on real rides: uneven surfaces, cones, workers, equipment, and sometimes a lane that suddenly narrows. Slowing down gives you time to pick a clean line and react to anything unexpected.

This is also where having adjustable assist pays off. Dropping to a lower level, or simply easing off the throttle, lets you crawl through a tight spot at a controlled pace. It's much easier to stay smooth at low speed on a bike that responds predictably to what you're asking of it.

Dirt, Rocks, and the Unexpected

Right after a turn, Alina hit a patch of dirt on the road. Her reaction was one of my favorite lines in the whole ride: nothing a good e-bike can't get over. She rolled across it without a fuss. A little later she came to some rocks in her path and, sensibly, went around them instead of trying to plow straight through.

Those two moments are a good illustration of judgment on a bike. Loose dirt on pavement is usually fine if you stay relaxed, keep your speed reasonable, and avoid sudden braking or sharp steering. Rocks are a different story. The smart move, almost always, is to steer around them when you have the room, which is exactly what she did. Riding well isn't about tackling every obstacle head-on. It's about reading what's in front of you and choosing the easiest safe line.

Why Comfort Helps New Street Riders

When I think about why Alina adapted so quickly, a lot of it comes back to the riding position. She mentioned at the end that you can sit upright on the Relaxed Body, and that matters more for a new street rider than most people realize. Sitting tall gives you a wider view of the road, makes it easier to turn your head and check behind you, and keeps your weight balanced so you feel steady at low speeds. Those are exactly the conditions where nervous riders tend to wobble.

If ease of getting on and off the bike is just as important to you as the riding position, take a look at our step-thru electric bikes. A low frame makes mounting and dismounting simpler, especially when you're stopping and starting a lot on city streets.

Alina's honest admission that she's still learning street riding, paired with how well she handled a car, a turn, a crossing, construction, dirt, and rocks in under ten minutes, is probably the most reassuring part of this whole ride. If she can go from sidewalk rider to confidently using a bike lane on her first outing in the video, you can too. Take it slowly, start on a quiet street, and let the bike's assist do some of the work while you focus on the road.

Not every e-bike ride needs a destination. Some of the best ones are just about getting outside and seeing what's around you, and the middle stretch of Alina's ride on the Relaxed Body turned into exactly that. After turning right off the street, she came around a corner, spotted a pond, and realized the road she was on wound right through a golf course.

Her first reaction was pure delight at the view. Her second was a very reasonable question: was it okay for them to be riding there? She wondered out loud a couple of times before concluding that someone would probably let them know if it wasn't. I'm including that because it's a fair point for anyone planning a ride like this. Some roads through golf courses and private communities are open to the public, and some aren't. When in doubt, check posted signs or ask. It takes a minute and saves you an awkward conversation later.

A Downhill Worth Slowing Down For

From there, the road headed downhill, and Alina's commentary turned into a stream of genuine excitement. She called out a beautiful view, then said it again, then said it was so pretty. She pointed out the trees lining the side of the road and noticed that the air smelled sweet and flowery. A little further on, she spotted a stand of red trees off in the distance, and later a single palm tree standing out on its own. At one point she caught the smell of fresh mulch, and later she remarked on the flowers again.

I know that might sound like a detour in an e-bike review, but I'd argue it's one of the most important parts of the ride. People don't buy comfortable e-bikes only to get from point A to point B. They buy them to enjoy being outside again. When a bike lets you sit upright and coast along without straining, your attention naturally shifts from your body to your surroundings. You notice the pond. You smell the flowers. You catch the color of the trees in the distance. That's the whole appeal of a relaxed ride, and Alina's reactions capture it better than any marketing line could.

She tied this back to the bike directly in her closing thoughts. Because you can sit upright on the Relaxed Body, she said, you can take in all the good views as you go. That's a real, practical benefit. On a bike that has you leaning forward with your weight on your hands, you spend a lot of the ride looking at the road just in front of your wheel. Sitting tall changes what you see.

Riding to the Golf Course Instead of Driving

Partway through the loop, Alina floated an idea I really like. You could ride your bike to the golf course, drop it off, and head out onto the course with your buddies. And, she added, you wouldn't even have to pay for gas, because you're not driving your car there.

That's a great example of how e-bikes fit into ordinary life. A lot of the trips we make in a car are short ones: to the course, the gym, the coffee shop, a friend's house, the store. For trips like that, an e-bike can easily stand in for the car. You skip the parking hunt, you get some fresh air on the way, and the assist means you arrive without being worn out. If short, everyday trips are what you have in mind, our hybrid electric bikes are worth a look alongside the Relaxed Body for that kind of versatile riding.

A Little Golf Talk on the Climb

As the road turned uphill again, Alina and the friend filming her drifted into a fun conversation about golf. Alina admitted she has never actually played on a golf course. She's done mini golf and she's been to a driving range, but a full round is still on her bucket list. She even joked that if anyone watching wants to take her out for her first round, they know how to reach us.

They chatted about the conveniences of a day on the course, like the refreshment cart that comes around with drinks and snacks, and Alina made a practical point about having candy bars and chips on hand if your blood sugar dips during a long day out. They also talked about how golf can easily fill an entire weekend. Alina's view was refreshingly fair-minded: everyone deserves their hobbies, and when one partner is out golfing, the other has time for theirs. She added that on a course as pretty as this one, it's no surprise people never want to leave.

It's a small, human moment, and I like that it made the final cut. It's a reminder that riding an e-bike with a friend is often as much about the conversation as the miles. When the bike is doing some of the work on a climb, you have the breath to talk, laugh, and enjoy the company.

Waving to the Golfers

Near the end of the loop, Alina spotted a group of golfers off to the right and gave them a cheerful hello as she rolled past. It's a fitting end to the scenic part of the ride: relaxed, friendly, and unhurried. That's the mood a comfortable e-bike is meant to create.

If cruising past scenic views is the kind of riding that calls to you, browse our electric beach cruiser bikes for more laid-back options built for easy, enjoyable rides.

At the end of the ride, Alina pulled over and gave her honest summary. It had been a nice cruise around a beautiful golf course. There was a lot of uphill riding, so she spent plenty of time in pedal assist level three and hit the throttle a lot. And her overall feeling was that the Relaxed Body is a great bike for all occasions, including a scenic loop like the one she'd just done, because you can sit upright and enjoy the views, plus the occasional friendly golfer along the way.

I want to unpack that verdict a little, because it says more than it seems to at first.

What the Ride Actually Proved

First, it showed the Relaxed Body handling a genuinely mixed route. In under ten minutes, Alina rode city streets, a bike lane, a long scenic descent, flat stretches, sustained climbs, a construction zone, a patch of dirt, and an obstacle she chose to steer around. That's a realistic sample of what an everyday rider runs into, and she never sounded uncomfortable or out of her depth.

Second, it showed how the assist system works across all of that. Level one for easing in and for descents. Level two as an all-around cruising setting, which she read at roughly 15 miles per hour on a downhill with barely any pedaling and estimated at about nine on a gentle climb. Level three plus throttle for the steeper sections, where she read about 11 miles per hour on one climb. Those numbers are from her ride on her route, but the pattern is the useful part: lower help where the road is easy, more help where it isn't.

Third, and maybe most important, it showed a rider who is new to street cycling getting comfortable quickly. Alina was clear that she grew up riding on sidewalks and that the road was new territory. By the end, she was making smart, calm decisions in traffic and having fun doing it. That's what I want for every new rider.

Who I'd Point Toward the Relaxed Body

Based on Alina's ride, here's who I think will get the most out of a bike like this. Riders coming back to cycling after a long break, who want to ease in gradually with the help of the throttle and low assist levels. People whose routes include real hills, and who want the option of pedaling with more assist or adding throttle when the grade gets steep. Anyone who rides mostly for enjoyment and wants to see the scenery rather than stare at the pavement, thanks to that upright position. And people looking to replace some short car trips, like Alina's idea of riding to the golf course instead of driving.

If you're shopping for a parent, or you're a rider who simply prefers a gentler, more upright experience, our electric bikes for seniors collection is another good place to compare options. Women shopping for a comfortable ride can also browse our women's electric bicycles.

Getting the Fit Right

Here's the part I care about most as someone who helps people choose bikes every day. A comfortable ride starts with a bike that fits you. Seat height, reach to the handlebars, and frame size all affect how relaxed and confident you feel, especially at low speeds and when stopping. Alina felt at home on the Relaxed Body, but your body isn't her body, and the right setup for you depends on your height, your riding style, and where you plan to go.

That's why we built our fitting process. If you want help narrowing things down, start with our personal bike fitting and we'll point you toward the bike and size that suit you. And if you'd rather feel it for yourself before committing, take a look at our 30-day test ride details, or come see the bikes in person and visit our store for a test ride.

Final Thoughts

What I love about Alina's ride is how unpolished it is. She's careful at the start, a little unsure about whether they were allowed on the golf course roads, honest about being new to street riding, and openly thrilled by the views. That's what real riding looks like. The Relaxed Body didn't need a perfect rider or a perfect route to show what it's good at. It let a newer street rider settle in, climb hills with a mix of assist and throttle, coast down a beautiful descent, and enjoy every minute of it.

If that sounds like the kind of riding you want more of, I'd encourage you to take the next step. Watch the video, look at the details on the bike listings on this page, and reach out if you have questions. Thanks for riding along with Alina, and I'll see you on the next one.