Here's Why Ebikes Can Be Dangerous In The Backcountry, But Not How You Think

Or, an object lesson in why you should never take vague social media posts at face value.

Photo by: Joseph C. Lucente

By: Janaki Jitchotvisut

Mar 20, at 6:45am ET

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I've ridden a fair few electric two-wheelers in my time. Some might be classed as mopeds; some are true motorcycles, and others are definitely e-bikes.

And while I might have individual features/bugs that I like and dislike about each of them, broadly speaking, they're mostly fine—as long as you have realistic expectations, both of what they are and what they can do.

For example, you need to respect the fact that most EV manufacturers are a little, shall we say, optimistic about their range estimates. A smart thing to do is get to know what your average range is for the things that you specifically plan to do on your e-bike or other electric motorbike. Going up and down hills, whether your model offers some level of brake regen, having a spare battery, head or tail winds, and so on are all variables that impact your range. Weight of yourself and any items you might be carrying will also play a role.

While I'm not here to talk to you about any of that today, it does provide important context for what I actually want to discuss, which is this Facebook post from the Friends of Big Bend Ranch State Park.

On the face of it, it seems harmless enough. It reads, "Big Bend Ranch State Park is a mountain biker's paradise. E-bikes may sound like a good idea to make your adventure a little easier but in the backcountry they're downright dangerous."

It goes on, "Recently, a biker was recued [sic] in Big Bend Ranch State Park because her e-bike battery died. She was in the desert for 30 hours and pushed her bike 20 miles before she was located deep in the park interior."

Finally, it concludes with a neat little admonishment/conclusion that reads, "If you can't ride it without the assistance of an electric motor, please keep it out of the park and off the trails."

And at first, that seems pretty reasonable. When you're out in nature, as many like to point out, there are frequently no guardrails. You need to make sure that you, your equipment, and the other members of your party (and their equipment) are all appropriately prepared for whatever adventure you're about to undertake. That includes dressing appropriately, bringing plenty of water and snacks, having solid sun/insect protection, and so on. And if you're going to be in places where your cell phone signal will be spotty, investing in a satellite communicator like a Garmin inReach device is also extremely advisable.

There's just one problem with that post: It's a gross misrepresentation of what actually happened to that vague, anonymous e-biker. The way it's told, it's almost blown up to full-on myth status, like when you're 13 and you hear about Bloody Mary for the first time. Or your favorite local haunted spot, wherever you live (everywhere has them, honestly). The kind of tale where the lesson (whatever it might be) is the point; not whether the thing actually ever happened or not.

Why am I spending time on this story? Because although you can probably find plenty of Internet stories like this one, it's a fantastic example of how easy it is to unravel a vague, nonspecific post and find out how one thing or event can get twisted into something completely different.

See, plenty of bicycling sites (both small and large) amplified the Friends of Big Bend Ranch State Park's Facebook post, because it confirmed biases against e-bikes (and maybe also against e-bike riders) that they already had. I'm not and have never been a hardcore cyclist, though I have enjoyed riding bicycles (both human- and motor-powered) for a long time. Like any special interest, some people can get extremely snobby about their chosen activity. I'm not a gatekeeper; I want more people to enjoy the things I love, period. So maybe that's the difference.

Ever since e-bikes started to gain popularity, you've had some folks get snippy about the fact that e-bikes have made it easier for more people who haven't fully given themselves over to the Lycra and carbon fiber frame lifestyle to get out and hit the trails. We're talking primarily about older people, heavier people, disabled people; in other words, all kinds of people who aren't your typical hardcore cyclists.

I won't go so far as to say that it's democratized cycling. After all, half-decent e-bikes still cost a decent chunk of change, so there's still more of an economic barrier to getting into them. That's especially true when you can buy a new (or new-to-you) pedal bicycle at your local Wal-Mart or off Facebook Marketplace for a lot less.

But at the same time, while my partner and I have been loving exploring some of our local trails (where e-bikes are thankfully allowed) in ways we never had before, we both know and respect the fact that there are very real limits to what these bikes can do. He has a spare battery for his bike, and it can easily be switched out trailside; we've done this several times before. My e-bike has a bigger range, but I only have one battery for it. So we always have to take that into our real-world considerations when we're planning our long rides. Not planning a ride that takes our available battery range into account with these e-bikes would be a mega nightmare, period.

What does this have to do with that Facebook post? While some cycling publications took it at face value, simply jumping to say that e-bikes don't belong on trails, a couple dug in and quickly discovered that all was not as it seemed with this story. Gasp!

For one thing (and probably the one that matters the least, to be honest), the story actually happened in November 2024; not 'recently' (the Facebook post comes from March 2025). While it's true that Big Bend Ranch State Park is a massive, sprawling, 300,000-acre complex in West Texas, and that it's extremely rugged terrain that's not for the faint of heart, and it was a woman on a bike who got stranded, that's where most of the facts of this story end.

What really happened? According to a press release (!) from Texas Parks and Wildlife about the November 2024 incident, the actual search and rescue operation came about after a woman on her bike (no mention of it being an e-bike at all) took the wrong trail while trying to catch up to her husband, who was also riding a bike. She then got a flat tire on her bike; a thing that can happen to any bike; be it pedal-powered, motorized, or otherwise.

It then goes on to say that she decided to leave the bike behind after it got a flat tire, but then "proceeded to walk in a circle for five hours, eventually coming upon the bike again." When she found the bike again, she decided to take it with her this time as she walked to find help. Eventually, she happened upon a ranger station, and search crews were notified about her location. Soon after, it says, she was reunited with her family.

The search and rescue operation reportedly involved multiple agencies, and spanned two days because it was suspended overnight (when it was no longer safe to search). Given the incredible size and scope of the Big Bend State Park area, it's understandable that multiple agencies would cooperate to try to locate a missing person. If it was someone in your family, that's exactly what you'd hope would happen.

The real problem here: A flat tire, and someone getting lost and going in circles in a vast wilderness area. Both of those were undoubtedly stressful for everyone involved, but neither is directly attributable to the perceived failings of e-bikes. It's still not clear that an e-bike was even ever involved, yet it got connected somehow in a Facebook post months later.

More importantly, it has nothing to do with the judginess some people insist on dishing out when the subject of e-bikes comes up. I mean, there are plenty of legitimate concerns about e-bikes to have, but a lot of this anti-e-bike attitude comes off more "old man yelling at cloud" than anything. To quote an ancient meme from at least a couple of years ago, ain't nobody got time for that.

Seriously, more people can (and should) get outside and enjoy the fresh air. If e-bikes can help them do it, why wouldn't you want to encourage them? Because they're not adhering to some stringent definition of 'cyclist' that you've built up in your head? Get over yourself and let people enjoy things. Less judging; more zooming. We'd all be better off, every single one of us.