Commuting to work - test ride and presentation
 

Ok guys, I just got hired by a company that sells foldable e-bikes. During my initial salary negotiations, I was offered one of their e-bikes in return for testing it out to work one day and after a couple of weeks present my overall experience with the bike to my boss and the executive vice president. Obviously, I didn't turn down a free e-bike. The only problem is that I have no experience with e-bikes and I haven't owned a bike since I was in my early teens - I am now close to 30 and starting to regret taking the bike :)

Could anyone tell me what the standards of a current e-bike are?
This one offers a battery life of +15 hours in charge, combined with a 250W 24V brushless (not sure what that means) hub motor. Is that good? As far as I've heard, local retailers are doing quite well selling the thing but it doesn't really help me understanding what I am looking for. Other specifications included an LCD screen to measure speed and I was told it's wires and connector are water resistant. My goal is to know as much as I possibly can before that presentation.

Here's my experience so far:

I tried it around the block the other day, it felt strange in a good way to say the least. People were totally checking me out, probably because the bike has this sleek finish but also because they could see that I looked uncertain riding it :) It has some kind of pedal assist system so I don't really need to pedal that much at all. That was cool but I found myself wanting to pedal more. Is that something e-bikes have in general? Is it suppose to be silent by the way?

Listen guys, any info at all is appreciated my presentation is in 2 weeks but I just wanna try to be proactive so I don't make a fool out of myself. Oh, the bike is called "Db0 3.0" maybe some of you own/sell or have heard about it? http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=270073

Is this an advertising for this bike?
If that's the case - Screw you!

If this is a genuine post, then I
apologize - And welcome aboard!


https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphot...39260334_n.jpg

Assuming it's genuine, how about visiting the electric bike section? Those guys will have more information, and actually understand what you are referring to. The only cycles I have ridden required lots of sweating :)

+1

And that bike looks sort of cool.

If this was an ad for the bike, he has done a terrible job. :lol:

I dont have any help for you either as I know nothing about electric bikes. They might appreciate your raw thoughts without doing a lot of research, however. Maybe they want to know how an average person off the street with no bike experience would respond to one of these things? Perhaps you should write down your initial thoughts, then do some research and give both perspectives.

**sigh** if only gas prices were that low now. :(

You would still hate gas prices and still commute by bike.

I try to pass and drop any e-bike I come across. Usually successful, but some of them are really fast. Seen them on the MUP around here, even though they are not allowed. Can't stand the things.

I think those are per litre ;)

How about you ride it and present them your overall experience? That was the task for getting a free e-bike. Not sure they intended for you to jump on a forum and ask what WE think of an e-bike.

When I see an e-bike I immediately think of how lazy the person riding it is.

Hey greenymachine!

Your company hired you to do a job, presumably. The also gave you an assignment...to evaluate an eb-bike from a rider/commuter's perspective. So...why don't you approach it as you would any task at your job. Come up with a clear statement of the problem, determine what information you need, lay out a plan to ride to gather that information, execute the plan, write/organize your thoughts, prepare the presentation, deliver it with all of your notes.

You don't need to technically critique the bike or compare it to other e-bikes. They didn't ask you to do that- and frankly, it sounds like that type of assignment isn't your strength.

So, approach it as your job and do it well. Talk with your supervisor about your plan and see if he/she has any suggestions prior to the end.

BTW - I don't bring my work challenges to this forum to ask for advice...

Also, FWIW, I've never seen an e-bike that I know of. Wouldn't impress me, I don't think - seems like an unnecessary complication. It's a bike, afterall...like putting a motor on a hamster wheel...

If you were tasked with this:

Why do you need to know this:
They already know that stuff I'm sure and all you'd do is show your ignorance even more.

I vote "sales pitch."

Agree.

Lame.

+1 I responded hoping that it was legit but seeing as how he has not posted back I am positive it is a sales deal and why didn't even bother looking up the bike.

where's that ban-hammer :p

Ick, searched for the bike and man is it ugly. It also costs 15x as much as my current bike cost me including upgrades. And it weighs 55 pounds! That would be quite hefty to carry around.

I don't think the post was sales pitch, but it's a horrible product IMO.

Too bad this is a sales pitch. I saw a guy this weekend on the MUP with a converted e-bike, first I'd ever seen here. It looked to me like about a 250 watt motor, with a small and unobtrusive battery. It was and is a bit intriguing.

I am a little curious though, what the attraction is for the e-bikes over a kit you can install on a suitable bike. Slower, more expensive, heavier, uglier - what's the upside?

Pre-assembled may be an attraction? Besides, this is a folder, so presumably it will fold nicely - compared to a folded Dahon with a motor (if that is even possible). I can easily imagine people carrying this on BART - fits the letter of the law (though at 55 pounds, not really the spirit - hard to imagine this could be moved unobtrusively).

First off, a 250W 24V hub motor sounds lame... underpowered and slow... what will it do... 12mph on flat ground without assist? Secondly, the battery life of 15+ hours... what does that mean... it'll stay charged for more than 15 hours while it's sitting in the corner of my garage... I can have the throttle pegged WFO going up hill for more than 15 hours? Explain it in real terms, not market-speak.

Tell you what, you ship it to me and and I'll evaluate it.

250W? I have trouble keeping it under 250W on anything steeper than an overpass. With fat tires and an upright position, could you even maintain 20mph on a flat road with no wind at 250W? I would doubt it.

Haha, nooooo I am a web designer for the company, I do not have anything to do with PR, dude. (more than riding around on the bike) Thanks!

Thanks!

I actually quite enjoyed the ride but I am not sure if I could afford it, if I had to pay for it. I'll give you guys an update on the presentation very soon.