Bill Hughes, owner of Sitka’s Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop, riding on the Cross Trail in June 2024. (KCAW/Jeb Sharp)

E-bikes are ubiquitous in Sitka. Tourists rent them, commuters ride them, officials field complaints about them. But one aspect of e-bikes that is perhaps overlooked, is how they keep cyclists in the game as they age. 83-year-old Bill Hughes, the owner of the Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop, is a striking example. 

Hughes started cycling decades ago when he was competing in triathlons. He was good at it. Eventually he fell in love with mountain biking. But inevitably age caught up with him. By the time he was in his late 70s he was having trouble keeping up with his friends.

“I used to be sort of in the front of the group I rode with and all of a sudden I wasn’t able to keep up with the people I used to ride with,” Hughes said. “So I knew I had to switch over.  It feels like a regular bike, only you’re 20 years younger. I wouldn’t be riding if I didn’t have the e-bike.”

His favorite place to ride is the Cross Trail.

“I don’t ride on the road,” Hughes said. “I think it’s too dangerous. That’s why I ride on the trails. If I want to go to Starrigavan or something like that, it’s the Cross Trail the whole way. Coming back it’s the Cross Trail the whole way.”

Hughes invited me out for a ride to try out one of his electric mountain bikes. We left his bike shop on Harbor Drive and headed to the entrance to the Cross Trail near Indian River, making a stop at the old dam on the way. 

“I used to be a fisheries biologist so I always come out on my ride and check whether the fish are in the stream or not,” Hughes said. 

And then we were off. 

“We’ll hit our first little hill and when you hit that you get a chance to put it into turbo mode and it’ll walk you up the hill,” Hughes said. “If you see a walker or hiker you can use your little bell.” 

Hughes was right about the electric mountain bike feeling like a regular bike, albeit a fancy one since he had me on a high-end model.  The boost of power on the hills was smooth and welcome. He told me when he’s riding in a mixed group – some people on ebikes and some on analog bikes, they ride more or less the same speed until they get to a steep hill. Then the ebikes have the advantage and have to wait for the others at the top.

Hughes was faster than me but stopped and waited periodically. I was grateful to have him as a guide.

“Right ahead there’s a blind corner on a downhill; it used to be a little bit of a hazard,” Hughes said. “Terry Lovett and I ran into each other one day with our bikes. He was going one way and I was going the other. But we’ve cleared out the trees so it’s not much of a hazard to walkers or bikers anymore.”

We rode for a while. Long enough for me to become a convert. Before we finished, Hughes took me on one of the single track trails near the high school. 

“This is my favorite,” he said. 

I slowed down and pedalled carefully through the narrow twists and turns and ups and downs. I started to get the hang of using the extra momentum to overcome small obstacles without having to stop and put my feet down. It was exhilarating.

Hughes said he rides on the Cross Trail as often as he can. He also rides up Harbor Mountain or out on the four wheeler trails beyond the shooting range. He still has to work pretty hard, electric bike or not.

“I still come home after a long ride on Sunday and have cramps all night,” Hughes said. “You still have to pedal them; there’s no throttles on the bikes that we ride, just a bit of pedal assist.”

That bit of pedal assist has made all the difference to Bill Hughes in his ninth decade.

“I’m back. I’m not only back, I’m in front.”