Best New Product 2024

EveryBody eBikes has recently announced a new ebike product which they believe is a world-first: an electric bike for short statured people, designed specifically for riders with achondroplasia – the Lightning! 

Describe the real or potential social, community and/or business return on investment:

Achondroplasia (type disproportionate dwarfism/skeletal dysplasia) is the most common form of dwarfism. People born with achondroplasia typically present with short arms and legs, with a typically normal torso length. The condition affects about 1 in 27,500 people across the world.

Designed by the team at EveryBody eBikes, in close association with their short statured customers, the Lightning has been a year or so in the making. The design is a direct result of assessing standard bike geometries, reviewing alternatives and conducting close dialogue with the short statured community themselves, to determine the needs, preferences, comfort, fit and performance expectations of people wishing to be able to ride. 

Appreciating that like any community there is variation in the range of sizes within the short stature peer group, the design aims to provide versatility in design to accommodate most of those variations for all but very young riders. 

Most importantly, we listened to the comments around fatigue management and the need to make it easier for someone with short limbs to keep pedalling when riding with friends, family and over longer distances. The importance of the electric pedal assistance was apparent right from the start in our discussions around needs. 

What is the problem that your new product is addressing?  

Riding a bike is an activity enjoyed by many and considered by some to be a rite of passage. Both children and adults with short stature have, until recently, been extremely limited in options to share in this joy and have often been confronted with age-inappropriate solutions which are not designed for their body shape, weight or need to manage fatigue. 

Fatigue Management:

Fatigue is a significant consideration for riders with short stature. Through the introduction of electric pedal assistance, they too can enjoy the benefits of curated electric power to help ride on rougher surfaces, up hills, along rail trails. As many able-bodied riders attest, riding an ebike can offer greater freedom, independence and a whole lot of fun. For those who fatigue quickly due to their condition, it can make the difference between enjoyment and disappointment.  

Transfers and Rider Comfort:

People with achondroplasia typically find transferring on and off a standard bike almost impossible, due to the geometric design of the bike frame and its height above the ground. Furthermore, when on the saddle, it is hard to setup a standard bike to suit arm and leg length and accommodate variations within these parameters. The Lightning electric bike offers and industry-best low step-through height, flexible saddle height and saddle to pedal length coupled with the ultimate flexibility in handlebar position and angle to enable most people with achondroplasia a safe and comfortable solution. 

What opportunity is your new product creating? 

Introducing a new electric bike model with these key features into the Australian market is creating the opportunity for riders with short stature to become more active, to access their community using sustainable transport options and to be able to benefit from the well-documented improvements in both mental and physical well-being that is a direct consequence of riding a bike outdoors. 

Ultimately the Lightning product is offering people of short stature the opportunity to use a sustainable form of transport for commuting, for recreational purposes and for exercise.  

This product has been extremely positively received by the Australian small stature community. Many have been waiting years for an electric bike to be available for them to ride, often resorting to unsafe practices of asking friends, family or businesses to cut and weld existing ebikes to try and make them fit. The release of this product therefore not only offers hope, opportunity and a way to enjoy riding possibly for the first time, it also contributes directly to reducing unsafe practices being undertaken by desperate short-statured people who simply want to get outdoors, ride with the wind in their hair and have some fun. 

This is the best bike for short statured riders! The only bike on the market to accommodate body geometry and help manage fatigue!