When it comes to riding an e-scooter in NYC, one thing that I notice about many people who use e-scooters is that they don't really use the right gear. This is not safe since an e-scooter, including other electronic vehicles, can travel as fast as a car and if you were to fall off, it can cause serious damage to your body. Personally, I recommend a motorcycle helmet but a regular bicycle helmet should be fine as long as you are not going beyond 20 miles per hour. Another item that I recommend are elbow pads and knee pads; but it honestly depends on what you are wearing that day. For example, if you are wearing a short-sleeve shirt and shorts, then you should cover them with pads. However, I also recommend sports gloves in case you fall on your hands.

Another important item you should buy is a bike lock. While you can carry an e-scooter while it is folded, it is still a heavy vehicle to carry. Plus, it is not guaranteed that every building in NYC will let you bring an e-scooter inside, so it is important to always have a bike lock with you just in case.

Speaking of carrying an e-scooter while it is folded,, make sure to adjust the bolt inside the e-scooter’s folding mechanism. If closing and opening the folding mechanism feels tight, that means it is adjusted correctly. Otherwise, the folding mechanism has a high chance of randomly opening while you are riding: which is what happened to me. It is truly very dangerous.

One last important piece of equipment that I recommend is a phone holder. The reason why I highly recommend a phone holder is simply because while riding, you can use Google Maps at the same time as a GPS to get to your destination; but please make sure you still have your eyes on the road.

When using an e-scooter, be sure to be careful when controlling the speed when holding down on the throttle. Go as fast as you need to go based on your surroundings. Such as the texture of the ground, how many people are nearby, the weather conditions, the obstacles in your area, and how busy is the area that you are riding in. Another very important thing to remember is to never do any tricks while riding an e-scooter. While it is easily possible to do tricks with a standard scooter, an electric one can easily cause someone to fall down while even performing a simple hop. This is most likely because you would be jumping with a fast motor rather than the manual speed your body would be able to perform.

I hope that after reading this, you are prepared to choose which e-scooter to ride, which extra tools you need, and more importantly: how to ride an e-scooter.