What made you decide to e-bike?

[AaronJ]

Old thread, but my take...

... I've ridden MTB since the late 1980s and have always been fairly fit. These days, early 50s, young kids, running a business, renovating a house, etc, life is just too bloody busy. I came to the realisation that I just could not get enough hours on a bike to have the fitness I needed so it was that fun I wanted (re distance/time/climbs/etc) rather than just lung and leg pain.

The eMTB has been a total game changer! The most fun I have ever had on any bike in 30+ years. I'm still getting decent fitness, but I'm riding better than I ever have and riding longer/harder/more fun places. My other poor old MTBs, as much as I told myself I'd still find uses, are little more than garage wall art now!

Has had a domino effect... with many of my MTB mates jumping off MTB onto eMTB also, post trying mine!

Edit: I also meant to add one other basic factor...

... That is that I ride first and foremost for 'FUN'.... not fitness (though that's an added bonus), not racing anyone and definitely not for ego, status, or for pleasing others. Just fun, of which the eMTB just cant be beat in that space IMO.

 

[safreek]

Had a test ride last week on a speccy that is e powered but you need to pedal.
It was fun but I don't see the fitness benefit people talk about unless you can't ride an analogue bike at all.
An hour on it felt like I had really had no exercise.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably convert one of my bikes to electric for some easy fun. I recon I could do 100km in a day without a sweat

 

[dancaseyimages]

Had a test ride last week on a speccy that is e powered but you need to pedal.
It was fun but I don't see the fitness benefit people talk about unless you can't ride an analogue bike at all.
An hour on it felt like I had really had no exercise.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably convert one of my bikes to electric for some easy fun. I recon I could do 100km in a day without a sweat

Theres a dude on an EMTB that absolutely flogs it past me on the way to work on a motorbike, he can run the red lights that I cant so is faster and wears the sperm shaped helmet, doesnt smell super sweaty when I catch him in the lift at work either, as opposed to some of the roadies so might be onto something.

 

[jrewing]

For me, I'm still a healthy 48 year old, but the Tassie trail networks are just getting bigger and bigger and a 40km+ day on the bike just wrecks me. I wanted something that I can comfortably do a 50km ride and upwards of 800m vert on single track.
I bought a second hand Levo SL and love it. I still have my old Norco Sight, which I ride when riding with other non-Ebike group rides and on solo or Ebike rides I take the SL.
I've even done a couple of rides on the SL with lesser fit riders with no assistance selected and it was fine to ride. I find the Ebike gives me more motivation to ride solo and it's great to go exploring without as much concern of not having the legs to get back.

im thinking of one for this exact reason. Trail networks are too big here. Got the fitness to bust out big rides, but lazy days i dont have the mental fortitude to do it.
But i dont like how they ride, so im 50/50.

 

[Minlak]

Had a test ride last week on a speccy that is e powered but you need to pedal.
It was fun but I don't see the fitness benefit people talk about unless you can't ride an analogue bike at all.
An hour on it felt like I had really had no exercise.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably convert one of my bikes to electric for some easy fun. I recon I could do 100km in a day without a sweat

So because I had the E-Bike I rode for 90mins and knew I could get back if I was too flogged - without E-Bike I ride less than 1 hr and walk several sections. Check out the max and average HR for the whole ride - that feels like exercise to me.
You may not have felt like you exercised as you didn’t come back feeling fatigued but with out actual information it’s only a feeling

 

[Stredda]

So because I had the E-Bike I rode for 90mins and knew I could get back if I was too flogged - without E-Bike I ride less than 1 hr and walk several sections. Check out the max and average HR for the whole ride - that feels like exercise to me.
You may not have felt like you exercised as you didn’t come back feeling fatigued but with out actual information it’s only a feeling
View attachment 403266

For sure.
Those that think that you can't get any exercise on and Ebike hasn't had a proper crack on one. Like anything, you can choose to be lazy no matter what type of bike you ride. For reference, MX is one of the most physically demanding sports around, so adding a motor, doesn't necessarily take away the physical exertion.

 

[kten]

For sure.
Those that think that you can't get any exercise on and Ebike hasn't had a proper crack on one. Like anything, you can choose to be lazy no matter what type of bike you ride. For reference, MX is one of the most physically demanding sports around, so adding a motor, doesn't necessarily take away the physical exertion.

To get decent exercise on an ebike.....this is almost impossible unless you have one of two things. Zero fitness or a decent amount of bike handling skills.

The person with minimal fitness, well of course they are going to improve massively as any new movement is an improvement and even fast walking would be a decent workout.

If a rider is of below average skill level then they don't (yet) have the ability to maintain the pace needed to keep their body in that sweet spot of effort whereas the rider with a decent amount of skill can keep the bike moving well and thus at least maintain (for a little while) their fitness but likely not increase it. Fitness on an ebike requires a fairly sustained effort of not stopping at the end of each trail for a chat and a pie as the exertion on climbs generally isn't near max effort (hills are over quickly too) so the heart rate spikes are reduced hugely. Ebikes are good for zone 2 training but cannot replace a normal bike (or the gym) for decent fitness goals imo.

 

[slowmick]

... stopping at the end of each trail for a chat and a pie ...

You've seen me ride then.

 

[beeb]

You've seen me ride then.

I was thinking if I'm not stopping at the end of a trail for a pie, what would I need the eBike for? Can I still stop for a chocolate milk? It's all too confusing!

 

[Stredda]

To get decent exercise on an ebike.....this is almost impossible unless you have one of two things. Zero fitness or a decent amount of bike handling skills.

The person with minimal fitness, well of course they are going to improve massively as any new movement is an improvement and even fast walking would be a decent workout.

If a rider is of below average skill level then they don't (yet) have the ability to maintain the pace needed to keep their body in that sweet spot of effort whereas the rider with a decent amount of skill can keep the bike moving well and thus at least maintain (for a little while) their fitness but likely not increase it. Fitness on an ebike requires a fairly sustained effort of not stopping at the end of each trail for a chat and a pie as the exertion on climbs generally isn't near max effort (hills are over quickly too) so the heart rate spikes are reduced hugely. Ebikes are good for zone 2 training but cannot replace a normal bike (or the gym) for decent fitness goals imo.

But you don't HAVE to ride the bike in Boost/Turbo, the whole time, you can use a lower setting if you want. I've certainly done max effort many times with a sustained 180bpm efforts. You may have to choose your trail appropriately (a steep fire road soon sorts you out) but max effort is certainly possible, but maybe not possible on the same trail as you would get a max effort on a normal MTB. An Ebike does open up your horizons to things that would not be possible on a normal bike. I've been out on some old fire trails that I used to ride dirt bikes on and it's a real challenge on the Eeeb.

 

[caad9]

I think the issue comes when you have an allocated ride each week, say 3 hours on a Saturday/Sunday.

Only the most committed of riders are going to use that time to get the same/similar workout by covering far more distance, most will just faff more in between the same number of trails.

 

[Stredda]

I think the issue comes when you have an allocated ride each week, say 3 hours on a Saturday/Sunday.

Only the most committed of riders are going to use that time to get the same/similar workout by covering far more distance, most will just faff more in between the same number of trails.

Yes, if you are going to do the same ride as you would have done on a normal bike on an Eeeb, you are not going to get the same workout.

I once had the discussion with a roadie about Ebikes and he was using the argument about not getting the same workout as with a non-Ebike. He was saying this while he was sitting on a $15k carbon fibre race bike with all the expensive weight saving components under the sun. I told him that he would get an even better workout if he went and bought an old heavy steel framed fat bike with a half seized bb, rusted chain, rubbing brakes and 4 PSI in the tyres, but all of a sudden pure fitness wasn't so much of a goal for him.

 

[Mattyp]

I once had the discussion with a roadie about Ebikes and he was using the argument about not getting the same workout as with a non-Ebike. He was saying this while he was sitting on a $15k carbon fibre race bike with all the expensive weight saving components under the sun. I told him that he would get an even better workout if he went and bought an old heavy steel framed fat bike with a half seized bb, rusted chain, rubbing brakes and 4 PSI in the tyres, but all of a sudden pure fitness wasn't so much of a goal for him.

The satisfaction of passing an entitled pack of fat dentists clad in pink lycra riding Pinarellos while you are on a clapped out old Malvern Star cannot be matched...

 

[caad9]

Yes, if you are going to do the same ride as you would have done on a normal bike on an Eeeb, you are not going to get the same workout.

I once had the discussion with a roadie about Ebikes and he was using the argument about not getting the same workout as with a non-Ebike. He was saying this while he was sitting on a $15k carbon fibre race bike with all the expensive weight saving components under the sun. I told him that he would get an even better workout if he went and bought an old heavy steel framed fat bike with a half seized bb, rusted chain, rubbing brakes and 4 PSI in the tyres, but all of a sudden pure fitness wasn't so much of a goal for him.

I think it's fair to say you are in the minority for using the E-bike as a tool for more/further/higher etc

I don't have skin in the E-bike game, just know that many around me have converted solely to E-bikes and it's not to ride further or longer, it's to do the same thing with even less expenditure. Their fitness levels have all plummeted

 

[Stredda]

I think it's fair to say you are in the minority for using the E-bike as a tool for more/further/higher etc

I don't have skin in the E-bike game, just know that many around me have converted solely to E-bikes and it's not to ride further or longer, it's to do the same thing with even less expenditure. Their fitness levels have all plummeted

I can definitely see that happening and I don't solely ride the Eeeb and will always like to have a normal MTB. I suppose the argument could be made that the people that solely switched to an Ebike, didn't have the drive to push themselves, and may have given up riding altogether if there wasn't the option of and Ebike. I know one guy that gave up riding normal MTBs and now is quite unfit and rides an adventure bike (motorcycle). Funny as he is a staunch anti-Ebike person and now rides a motorbike but still hates Ebikes.
I really mainly ride for the fun of it and the fitness is an added benefit, but I'm fairly competitive so I do like to go hard up and down regardless of what bike I'm on.

Like anything, you get out what you put in, and it's depends on what you want out of it, and how dedicated you are.

 

[Chriso_29er]

You've seen me ride then.

 

[LPG]

I could justify an ebike if it meant I was riding to my trails instead of driving, unfortunately im not close enough. I have local trails that are good for a 1hr quick ride which I don't need an ebike for.

I have mates who have ebikes. Some said they won't go back as they think they've lost fitness (not just the change in bike but the ebike means they have less need to build back up). Others try and keep a MTB in the mix and try to ride 5050. It makes it hard to organise to ride with people as the rides are different when people are on an ebike.

 

[cammas]

So yesterday I went and tested rode a couple of e-bikes, I took out a Focus Jam SL and two Rocky Mountains an Instinct and the Altitude. The Altitude is too much bike for me with a 170mm of travel but it was still a good ride, then I took the Focus Jam SL which is what I there for, it was okay but was not impressed by the fazua controller, didn’t seem to work every time I pushed it, seemed very hit and miss.
Then I tried the other Rocky, the instinct, this seemed a lot better to ride with 140/150mm of travel same as the Focus just full power. The controller was definitely better, unsure if it was because the seat was a little low but for a medium it felt a little bit on the smaller side even with a 457mm reach. I definitely was still cracking a sweat when riding, using the factory settings eco was like riding with the brakes on or without the assistance but it can be tweaked, then in full power in ludicrous mode I felt like a passenger. The trail and trail+ modes were were fine but I am still unsure if I want one yet as it felt like a very unnatural feeling to me but it was only a couple of small rides at the quarry park in Melbourne so it was either up or down so not a huge test.

 

[binner]

ok, so for me it was deterioration of bones and muscle with a few full on surgeries on parts of the body. I remember saying at around 48/49 ill wait till 50 to allow myself an ebike. I managed till 52 to buy one. For me it means i get to ride more and allows me to ride in this fucked up humidity in brisbane all year round. It's all about the body and how I can manage to ride more. For me Eeeb is king. I still commute on non E and enjoy the ol skool but for weekends and getting the best out of a mornings ride E is good for me...

 

[downunderdallas]

So yesterday I went and tested rode a couple of e-bikes, I took out a Focus Jam SL and two Rocky Mountains an Instinct and the Altitude. The Altitude is too much bike for me with a 170mm of travel but it was still a good ride, then I took the Focus Jam SL which is what I there for, it was okay but was not impressed by the fazua controller, didn’t seem to work every time I pushed it, seemed very hit and miss.
Then I tried the other Rocky, the instinct, this seemed a lot better to ride with 140/150mm of travel same as the Focus just full power. The controller was definitely better, unsure if it was because the seat was a little low but for a medium it felt a little bit on the smaller side even with a 457mm reach. I definitely was still cracking a sweat when riding, using the factory settings eco was like riding with the brakes on or without the assistance but it can be tweaked, then in full power in ludicrous mode I felt like a passenger. The trail and trail+ modes were were fine but I am still unsure if I want one yet as it felt like a very unnatural feeling to me but it was only a couple of small rides at the quarry park in Melbourne so it was either up or down so not a huge test.

Don't get hung up on the controller, Fazua will replace with a new one that is better. I have no issues with mine now on a transition relay. It's really about the lighter weight lower power of the focus verus the much much more powerful RM. Santa Cruz Heckler SL looks pretty great for a medium to long travel sled.