chroot

Loghorn,

I can't imagine anyone actually using that bike to go faster or longer than one could on a decent stock road bike. I'm not trying to pick a fight, but can you please explain why an electric bike that you can barely lift and has a top speed of 16 mph is superior to an 18 lb. road bike which many people can easily ride at 20 mph?

- Warren

Patellapedler

Is that a radio on your bike? Did you mount that yourself or does it come bike mounting ready? I would love to have a radio on my bike! I am not too keen on riding with headphones but I love music and I often thought that a radio mounted to the handlebars would be great!!

FatguyRacer

Dang Longhorn! My legs ache just looking at that bike. I think the bike cops around here have less stuff to haul around. You must be getting in good shape pedalling all that weight around.

Longhorn

Hi, Warren!

The top speed of 16 mph is on motor only. I can easily go faster when I'm pedaling without the motor. I've gone as fast as 32 mph but that was downhill, of course. The only time this bike feels different from my Trek hybrid is in the low gears -- it's not geared as low and being heavier, some of the hills are harder to pedal without using the motor.

I'm not at all claiming this bike is superior for most folks but it is superior for me. I live in a very hilly area and riding just isn't any fun for me, especially in the heat. I don't mind breathing hard and getting my heart rate up -- in fact, it feels good! But I do mind breathing so hard that I can't drink because I'll choke and my heart rate climbing so high that I felt like I might pass out. Perhaps that's proof of what poor shape I'm in (though I've been working out on an elliptical and home gym for a couple of years) but I'm not going to get in better shape if I don't ride at all -- and I was getting to where I dreaded to ride.

What this bike does for me is give me a little boost up the hills. I start off doing it myself until I run out of gears and then I use the motor. I've already found that I can get up hills on my own that I used to need help on. I've had knee problems in the past so I try not to mash in higher gears. But I am getting stronger.

To me, this bike is a training vehicle -- I'm training to be able to ride my Trek in my neighborhood and on my 29-mile r/t commute. Before I got it, I felt like my only option for training to swim the English Channel was to jump in the English Channel and start swimming!

Longhorn

I bought the radio and installed it (two handlebar clamps.) I got it from Sony online but they sell it at Target and amazon.com

It's also a bike computer -- speed, distance, maximum speed, average speed, odometer, and clock. It has pretty good sound and it's easy to operate while cycling. It even has a light for when I'm riding at night.

Longhorn

I rode my Trek the other day and it did seem much lighter! Once I get a good commuting routine going (school just started last week so I'm getting back in the swing of things) I plan to commute on the Trek now and then and measure my improvement.

chroot

Longhorn,

I'd like to applaud you for getting on a bike (any bike!) and getting that heart rate up at all -- you're already ahead of the 62% of Americans who do not get enough exercise to keep their hearts healthy.

However, I just have to mention that hybrids are heavier and slower than road bikes, too. Unless you actually need some off-road capability, why are you using a hybrid? If you cannot ride a road bike due to back or knee problems, etc., have you considered a recumbent?

What kind of hills do you have? Do you know their grade and length?

Do you use a heart-rate monitor or other device to measure your performance? I use an HRM on every single ride, to help me pace myself. It's wonderful to have some feedback -- I pick a gear that gets me 80+ rpm cadence at 160 bpm, and I can spin up virtually any hill (and we have some doozies out here) without even breathing very hard. Consistent effort is key!

I'm not trying to pry that electric bike outta your hands, but I sure would love to eventually hear a story about your first unassisted commute!

- Warren

DynoD500_SR20-d

Longhorn, how do you like the Sony radio? I have it and outdoors in certain settings it is not audible. But....when I came inside the other day and compared it to my clock radio and bathroom radio, it is much louder and has more bass. I am impressed, but not overwhelmed. Also, it shows my top speed at 124.5 MPH. Why does it do that? I am attaching some pics in a few minutes.
BTW, I tapped my fork and used a stainless steel screw and applied silicone (lock out moisture and potentioal rust) on the threads to keep the sensor strap from sliding up or down out of position.

pearce

Longhorn, if that bike works for you then I say it kicks *&@#^$. I find myself constantly swinging back and forth between adding new gizmos or new ways to attach old gizmos and cleaning house for that 'clean lines' look....although at my geekiest I couldn't hold a candle to your bike. That thing (and I use that term as a compliment) is awesome!

Longhorn

Thanks, Warren!

In answer to your questions, I've never tried a road bike but I honestly can't imagine that I'd be comfortable on one. But it's a moot point now because I've spent $150 fixing up my old mountain bike, $400 on the Trek hybrid, and now $700 on the electric bike, and that doesn't include all those gadgets and accessories! So whether I'd be better off with a road bike or a recumbent is a question that will be unanswered for awhile. However, I can say that I am very comfortable on both the hybrid and the electric bike, which is basically a hybrid as well. I like the upright position and being able to see again without bending my neck.

I've gone all over my route with Google Earth checking grade elevations and the hills are generally 5 to 6 percent, usually a quarter to half a mile, with 10.7 percent on the monster hill at the end, though it's only about a quarter of a mile long. I weigh just under 200 pounds, which doesn't help.

I do use an HRM and found that my heart rate was up to 250 bpm! This was after climbing the 10.7 percent hill and corresponded exactly to how I was feeling at the time. That's not great at any age but certainly not at 50. My resting heart rate is about 72. Since I started riding the electric bike, my heart rate stays in the 160s to low 170s when I'm making the most effort -- much more reasonable. I have a computer with cadence on the Trek and my most comfortable cadence was in the 70s. I'm not up to maintaining the 80s yet. My cadence drops in the 50s on the hills.

I've never been what anyone would call an athlete -- you should see me on skis! I'm 30 pounds overweight and get to deal with oppressively hot and humid weather from May to November. I really feel like this electric bike is just what I needed to get me to the point where some of y'all started!

Thanks again for the encouragement!

Longhorn

Hi, Dyno! I don't ride in a lot of traffic as my commute is mainly rural so the sound has been great for me. In fact, I haven't even had it turned up all the way. But I'm sure lots of cars whizzing past would make a big difference.

My computer has also shown a top speed of 124.5! I wonder what that's all about! Have you seen that error since you glued the sensor? Thanks for the pics! I was planning to check my setup and see if I could tell what the problem is. If you figure something out, please let me know! This just started one day last week and I haven't ridden since then. I thought maybe the throttle was somehow interfering since it interferes with my HRM -- but then, the radio also interferes with my HRM, too.

DynoD500_SR20-d

Because of you I went and bought more additions to my bike. I have a caliper activated LED brake light with turnsignals. I will take pics when my newborn goes to sleep.

CBBaron

Why does every one have to dis the electric assists? I think there're great. And not everyone is best suited by a road bike.
Yes a young fit cyclist is probably faster on a road bike than an assisted hybrid, but young fit cyclist are a very very small percentage of the population. Most people will ride more often and be more comfortable on an assisted hybrid.
Craig
ps - I ride a fixed gear road bike and a recumbent

Longhorn

Thanks, CB! I don't quite understand it, either. But then I guess the fixed-gear people rag on the multi-speed folks and the two chain-ring people look down on the three chain-ring owners.

Seriously, in the ideal situation, I'd start riding the flats until I could handle a decent time in the saddle, then I'd do some interval training on hills and for speed, slowly adding to my repoiteur until I could take steeper and longer hills. At my age and in my condition, maybe this would take six months to a year (or more) before I'd really enjoy riding in my area. But I have no flats on which to train and I'm an impatient person. Further, I've known me for 50 years now. I'm not going to MAKE myself get out there and ride if I find it pure torture and that's what it was to me most of the time before the electric bike.

On the other hand, today was the most fun I've had since I started riding! It was only in the mid-80s and even though I could tell my muscles were worn out from the 17 miles home yesterday, I didn't have to fret because I could take it easy on some of the hills, though I did push it whenever I felt like I was up to it.

Believe me, I don't feel like I'm "cheating" any more than someone who rides ten miles to work with no hills. I'm getting a workout that I sure as heck wouldn't be getting in my car, I'm enjoying the outdoors, and I'm cutting my car's time on the road by half. What's funny is there was recently an entire thread on the benefits of getting an electric scooter -- not a pedal assist but a full powered scooter -- and everyone seemed to think that was great! I don't get it!