Dragging my tired and sorry ass  up the Heinous Hill on my commute home yesterday, I was effortlessly overtaken by a middle-aged woman on an e-bike – a sort of electraglide in beige.

“Hey!” I shouted, “That’s cheating.”

“You still have to pedal.” She laughed. I would have joined in, but I was much too short of breath.

It transpired she had asthma and couldn’t ride a normal bike, but the e-bike was ideal for her and allowed her to zip up the worst climbs without even breaking sweat.

I have to say being passed by an e-bike is a lot more pleasant and a lot less stressful than jockeying for road space with any other kind of motorised vehicle.  If an e-bike is suitable for an asthmatic, middle-aged woman on a fairly arduous climb, then it seems like just about anyone could use one, just about anywhere.

Wouldn’t the world be a much better place if even just a tiny fraction of car journeys were made by e-bike instead?

I’ve seen the future and it looks electric – even if it means being shamed by grannies who can climb like a super-charged Lance.