An e-bike sales spike has been attributed to pent-up demand from Australians coming out of lockdown, as purchases nearly doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. New figures from 99 Bikes, one of the nation’s largest bike retailers, show electric bike sales went up a gear from April to December last year. Founder Matt Turner said purchases almost doubled nationally over that span and were up as much as 220 percent in some regions. He put the rise down to people emerging from lockdowns seeking “safer, cheaper, healthier and environmentally friendly ways to get around”. It tracks with a broader trend of riders turning to electric-powered bikes, with the company’s sales up 131 percent nationally since 2018. Turner said the perception e-bikes were just for older people was a myth, with data suggesting 42 percent of users are aged 35-54. “Most of our buyers are people aged 25-plus, who want to …