E-mtb vs normal mtb
Discussion
For the first time this weekend in about 10 years, I got some ‘abuse’ from a group of ‘roadies’. I was riding up quite a steep incline and a group of about 5 or 6 guys were coming down when the one at the front called out ‘Stop cheating’, spurred on by this another said something like ‘start peddling properly’. They then all burst into laughter, clearly impressed with their rapier wit and cutting remarks.
Funny thing was they were all fairly portly, red in the face and had been poured into ill fitting Lycra, I don’t ride my ebike to keep fit, I ride it because I enjoy it. I’m pretty fit as I go to the gym 3 times a week and run.
My perception of the people who feel they have to call out to those on e-bikes, are that they are basically morons.
So get whatever you want don’t worry about ‘cheating’, because it isn’t.
Funny thing was they were all fairly portly, red in the face and had been poured into ill fitting Lycra, I don’t ride my ebike to keep fit, I ride it because I enjoy it. I’m pretty fit as I go to the gym 3 times a week and run.
My perception of the people who feel they have to call out to those on e-bikes, are that they are basically morons.
So get whatever you want don’t worry about ‘cheating’, because it isn’t.
E Bikes are great. I’ve had 2 but currently I don’t own one. There are differences regarding the MTB versions which I have experience of with a regular Analogue bike. Mostly the weight in terms of manoeuvrability on the trail. They are hard to pick up and throw over walls if you like proper exploration riding. The major difference is that your leg strength suffers. You still get a high heart rate but they just don’t require any real hard pushing on the pedals. I rode mine in a tuned down version of ECO most of the time and I still noticed my leg strength being poor when I got back on my Analogue bike. E Bikes also corrupt your sense of speed so that the regular bike feels very slow going uphill, although I did learn to spin up to a higher cadence on this bike to make hills easy.
It should be said that I do still race MTBs and so the fitness element is important to me. As I said at the beginning. E Bikes are great and they are huge fun. If I was a more casual rider purely riding for fun and a bit of fitness then I would definitely have one again. But for me the fitness element is too important and I still find the E Bike emotionally lacking… they get the adrenaline flowing but just don’t quite spike the endorphins.
It should be said that I do still race MTBs and so the fitness element is important to me. As I said at the beginning. E Bikes are great and they are huge fun. If I was a more casual rider purely riding for fun and a bit of fitness then I would definitely have one again. But for me the fitness element is too important and I still find the E Bike emotionally lacking… they get the adrenaline flowing but just don’t quite spike the endorphins.
I think it very much depends on what you are intending to ride...I only really rode BMX up until my early 40s, so I prefer riding jumps and flow trails, but I absoluting love my ebike. Its such a lot of fun doing long night rides with good friends, especially in the winter....rides I would never have done on a non-eeb...but I find it a right old lump as soon as its airborne, so I spend most of the dry months riding and pushing my regular bike!
As recommended above, see if you can get a decent test ride in, and see what you think. Do report back on uour decsion though
As recommended above, see if you can get a decent test ride in, and see what you think. Do report back on uour decsion though
Edited by trails on Tuesday 14th May 04:46
pobs said:
The bicycle is one of the most beautiful, elegant machines mankind has yet created, nothing about it is improved by strapping 15+kgs of battery and motor gubbins to them.
That statement is so incorrect, both objectively and subjectively, that’s it’s almost laughable. Edited by pobs on Monday 13th May 21:24
I don't have an e bike but I'm regularly out on challenging, steep, rough terrain. Through last winter, that's been pretty wet and miserable, I think I've seen more ebikers than anyone else. Often in groups.
1) The e bike boys are smiling and look to be having a great time. Type 1 fun
2) Analogue MTBers suffering a bit but still having type 2 fun
3) Gravel bikers look miserable type 3 fun - they're the ones who brought the wrong bike out.
I know folk who are way more skilled and fitter than me who ride them just to get more DH in. A frequent piece of advice is 'get the bike you will ride' if you're out on it having fun you'll be winning and getting fitter, ebike or not.
1) The e bike boys are smiling and look to be having a great time. Type 1 fun
2) Analogue MTBers suffering a bit but still having type 2 fun
3) Gravel bikers look miserable type 3 fun - they're the ones who brought the wrong bike out.
I know folk who are way more skilled and fitter than me who ride them just to get more DH in. A frequent piece of advice is 'get the bike you will ride' if you're out on it having fun you'll be winning and getting fitter, ebike or not.
Barchettaman said:
That statement is so incorrect, both objectively and subjectively, that’s it’s almost laughable.
Anything to back that up with or am I to consider you the ombudsman of truth and that is the end of the matter? 
I've ridden loads of ebikes and have worked for two large ebike manufacturers (a big American one and a small british one). All of their 'e' products are in my opinion generally pants.
They are slow, unreliable and purchased by people who would have bought golf clubs to show off a few years ago.
You can kid yourself that you are getting exercise if you like or that they are increasing cycling participation, but the bottom line is they do nothing that you couldn't do on a regular bike.
On top of this batteries are a real problem to dispose of or recycle.
Edited by pobs on Tuesday 14th May 19:06
pobs said:
Anything to back that up with or am I to consider you the ombudsman of truth and that is the end of the matter?
I've ridden loads of ebikes and have worked for two large ebike manufacturers (a big red American one and a small british white one). All of their 'e' products are in my opinion generally pants.
They are slow, unreliable and purchased by people who would have bought golf clubs to show off a few years ago.
You can kid yourself that you are getting exercise if you like or that they are increasing cycling participation, but the bottom line is they do nothing that you couldn't do on a regular bike.
On top of this batteries are a real problem to dispose of or recycle.
A manual bike does nothing you can’t get from a stationary spin bike either. Or running for that matter. I've ridden loads of ebikes and have worked for two large ebike manufacturers (a big red American one and a small british white one). All of their 'e' products are in my opinion generally pants.
They are slow, unreliable and purchased by people who would have bought golf clubs to show off a few years ago.
You can kid yourself that you are getting exercise if you like or that they are increasing cycling participation, but the bottom line is they do nothing that you couldn't do on a regular bike.
On top of this batteries are a real problem to dispose of or recycle.
The line drawn in the sand seems rather arbitrary!
It's the question I was asking myself a few years ago.
I have a full sus Orange and I hate climbs like the most of us, but my mind is you have to do the tough climbs to enjoy the downhills. Even doing uplifts I feel like I am cheating.
Anyway, a friend of mine bought an e-bike not long after I'd bought my Orange, now he's no athlete by any stretch and always carried a few too many pounds which translated into slow climbs. Suddenly he's flying off up the hills and getting around much quicker than ever, to the point where he was asking to go around again - 12 mile black route at the trail centre... I was buggered.
It was at this point I realised it's about having fun and enjoying yourself, he certainly was whereas I was ready to throw the towel in a lie down.
I still haven't made the move, mainly due to barely riding my MTB more than anything.
I have a full sus Orange and I hate climbs like the most of us, but my mind is you have to do the tough climbs to enjoy the downhills. Even doing uplifts I feel like I am cheating.
Anyway, a friend of mine bought an e-bike not long after I'd bought my Orange, now he's no athlete by any stretch and always carried a few too many pounds which translated into slow climbs. Suddenly he's flying off up the hills and getting around much quicker than ever, to the point where he was asking to go around again - 12 mile black route at the trail centre... I was buggered.
It was at this point I realised it's about having fun and enjoying yourself, he certainly was whereas I was ready to throw the towel in a lie down.
I still haven't made the move, mainly due to barely riding my MTB more than anything.
nickfrog said:
Tell me more please. What marketing spiel do I believe?
The bit about ebikes being great.I'm on a hiding to nothing here as imagine most posters have invested money in an ebike of some description so the confirmation bias is high.
E-bikes, while convenient, undermine the core benefits of regular cycling: physical exercise and environmental sustainability. Regular bikes promote fitness by providing a full-body workout, whereas e-bikes reduce physical exertion, leading to less exercise. Additionally, e-bikes, with their batteries and electrical components, have a higher environmental impact due to resource extraction and electronic waste. Regular bikes, on the other hand, are simpler, more sustainable, and foster a healthier lifestyle
pobs said:
nickfrog said:
Tell me more please. What marketing spiel do I believe?
The bit about ebikes being great.I'm on a hiding to nothing here as imagine most posters have invested money in an ebike of some description so the confirmation bias is high.
You're judging others by your own standards. The fact that you have a strong anti E bikes bias doesn't not necessarily mean that others have a pro ebike bias.
And that still doesn't tell me what marketing spiel I believe either.
For the record I don't have an ebike, so what money have I invested?
You'll struggle to find someone with more cynicism against marketing. If I get an ebike it will probably be despite the marketing.
But more pertinently, it's not even a binary proposition. Plenty have both ebikes and accoustic bikes. What's their bias then?
As I said you protest far too much to have any credibility.
Edited by nickfrog on Tuesday 14th May 10:27
They're great for casual riders I reckon.
Like others, I don't have the time to commit to getting out on a bike regularly, but an EMTB allows me to get out, go for a ride, enjoy it, without worrying whether I'm fit enough to do it.
I've been out with mates who are fit as, and it helped me keep up. I've also been out with people that are less fit, and I either drop into Eco or switch off the assistance completely so I can still enjoy the ride with them.
If e-bikes help people get out, who otherwise wouldn't, then for me, that's a huge positive.
Like others, I don't have the time to commit to getting out on a bike regularly, but an EMTB allows me to get out, go for a ride, enjoy it, without worrying whether I'm fit enough to do it.
I've been out with mates who are fit as, and it helped me keep up. I've also been out with people that are less fit, and I either drop into Eco or switch off the assistance completely so I can still enjoy the ride with them.
If e-bikes help people get out, who otherwise wouldn't, then for me, that's a huge positive.
pobs said:
core benefits of regular cycling: physical exercise and environmental sustainability.
Going for a run is better for both if you want to go down that route. But I'd rather ride a (predominantly made in the far East) bike for fun, and god forbid I might put in my car and drive it to somewhere I want to ride.sjg said:
Going for a run is better for both if you want to go down that route. But I'd rather ride a (predominantly made in the far East) bike for fun, and god forbid I might put in my car and drive it to somewhere I want to ride.
Is that an electric car with yanno, a great big battery? 
Without fail, every time an ebike topic comes up, some Whiteadder blows in to lecture us on cycling purity. What a load of old hooey.
pobs said:
The bit about ebikes being great.
I'm on a hiding to nothing here as imagine most posters have invested money in an ebike of some description so the confirmation bias is high.
E-bikes, while convenient, undermine the core benefits of regular cycling: physical exercise and environmental sustainability. Regular bikes promote fitness by providing a full-body workout, whereas e-bikes reduce physical exertion, leading to less exercise. Additionally, e-bikes, with their batteries and electrical components, have a higher environmental impact due to resource extraction and electronic waste. Regular bikes, on the other hand, are simpler, more sustainable, and foster a healthier lifestyle
It depends what the comparator is. If there is a binary choice between ebike and bike and the outcome is fitness and if you control the amount of time on the bike then the liklihood is that the conventional biker will get fitter.I'm on a hiding to nothing here as imagine most posters have invested money in an ebike of some description so the confirmation bias is high.
E-bikes, while convenient, undermine the core benefits of regular cycling: physical exercise and environmental sustainability. Regular bikes promote fitness by providing a full-body workout, whereas e-bikes reduce physical exertion, leading to less exercise. Additionally, e-bikes, with their batteries and electrical components, have a higher environmental impact due to resource extraction and electronic waste. Regular bikes, on the other hand, are simpler, more sustainable, and foster a healthier lifestyle
Problem is cycling is hard and most bikes end up rusting in the shed.
When E bikes are used for commuting and errands they are replacing car journeys not walks or other bike rides. People who are older or less fit are able to use them and gain benefits which, whilst less than cycling are not nothing. There's a wealth of evidence on the benefits of ebike use.
What we need is the ebike equivalent of the Ford Model T or '60s Mini which is cheap enough for everyone; is convenient; reliable; looks cool and gets widely adopted. That way cycling becomes as mainstream as it is in Holland and our woeful cycle infrastructure might be improved.
President Merkin said:
sjg said:
Going for a run is better for both if you want to go down that route. But I'd rather ride a (predominantly made in the far East) bike for fun, and god forbid I might put in my car and drive it to somewhere I want to ride.
Is that an electric car with yanno, a great big battery? Without fail, every time an ebike topic comes up, some Whiteadder blows in to lecture us on cycling purity. What a load of old hooey.
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