Founder and CEO of Rad Power Bikes steps down

Mike Radenbaugh, the founder of North America's largest e-bike company, Rad Power Bikes, will step down from his role as CEO, BRAIN reports.

After 15 years at the helm, Radenbaugh will step down into the role of chairman of the board while he shifts his focus to e-bike advocacy and innovation.

The company's president, Phil Molyneux, will take over as CEO.

"Before joining Rad Power Bikes, Molyneux was president at Dyson and Sony and has "deep experience leading complex hardware businesses. Together they (Radenbaugh and Molyneux) are devoted to accelerating the e-bike revolution," a Rad Power Bikes spokesperson stated.

Riding the pandemic- and climate-related tailwinds, Rad Power Bikes Is among of the fastest growing bike companies in North America with some $329 million in investments and more than 550,000 customers world-wide. 

However, as we reported earlier this week, 2022 been a rough year for Rad Power Bikes filled with lawsuits, lay-offs and manufacturing defects.

In April 2022, Rad Power Bikes laid off 100 of its employees, citing growth strategy and business restructuring. A second round of layoffs followed in July with the company downsizing by another 10 precent, this time citing economic uncertainty and rising operating costs.

Then in August, the parents of a 12-year-old girl who died from injuries sustained after riding on the back of a RadRunner e-bike in 2021 hit  the company with a wrongful death lawsuit.

The parents claim that flaws in the bike’s design made it difficult for riders to slow down and stop as the bike gained speed while going downhill. The lawsuit criticizes  Rad Power Bikes for using disc brakes in conjunction with a quick-release mechanism and for failing to “adequately warn about the dangers of children operating e-bikes.”

A second lawsuit followed in October, when insurance powerhouses, State Farm Fire & Casualty and State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, announced a joint lawsuit against Rad Power Bikes, on behalf of its insured client, for property damage due to a fire caused by a malfunctioning Rad Power Bike battery or charger. 

Rad Power Bikes denies the claim, however, confident that the fire did not originate in a Rad e-bike battery, charger, or any other Rad product.

Both lawsuits are ongoing and meanwhile, Rad Power Bikes is recalling its RadWagon e-cargo bikes in collaboration with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

At the time of the recall, the firm had received 137 reports of tires blowing out, deflating and separating from the sidewalls. There were eight injuries including reports of arm and wrist fractures, road rash, cuts and bruises. 

This recall involves Rad Power Bikes’s RadWagon 4 Electric Cargo Bikes, which were sold in black, white and orange colorways. The recall also includes any spare RadWagon 4 tires sold separately under the product name Rad Power Bikes by VEE Tire Co.  

If you own any of these products, you should immediately stop using them and contact Rad Power Bikes to schedule a free repair to replace both tires and rim strips.