It's 2025 Is an Emtb in your near future?

Is an Emtb in your near future?

  • Yes

    Votes: 10 7.8%
  • No

    Votes: 52 40.6%
  • Maybe

    Votes: 21 16.4%
  • Never

    Votes: 11 8.6%
  • Already own one

    Votes: 34 26.6%

  • Total voters
    128
I don’t get the ride further either, I only have a 1-2 hours to ride and my butt gives out before my lungs or legs. I want the short window to be an intense workout, I don’t have the multi hour time I think is necessary to stay fit on a e-bike. I also don’t understand how e-bike pushers say on one hand it’s just as good as workout and then say how effortless the rides are… how can it be both? I assume the answer is you ride longer amount of time?

I don’t care what people ride, but every e-bike rider I meet on the trails always seems somewhat embarrassed and quickly gives a justification (I have a bad back etc) without me criticizing or questioning.

Really, I don’t want to pay for one, not just the initial cost, but I imagine the service is a lot more, and soon, like cars, the apps to manage the bike will require a subscription, and in a 3 years it will be unsupported and then the battery dies which will cost 75% of a new bike, or just be embedded in the frame so it can’t be replaced. That’s fine if your a person who gets a new bike every year, but I am just not willing to invest that into recreationally riding a bike in the woods.

My fear is as they become mainstream, everything will be designed for them, and due to mass production regular bikes will get components thst just work won’t great without a motor (I.e. sram transmission), trails won’t have switchback climbs to downhill sections, riders will just power up straight up to the good stuff.
I am a bit confused on 3-4 hour ride examples myself. i think its fair to say most people dont feel the need, or have the time for 3-4 hour rides, especially on mtb. Sure, they dont have the fitness but that would come if they put in the work. also, if the ebike lore holds true, if they can do a 4 hiur ride on an ebike, they should be able to do it on a regular bike.

And yes, it cant be just as hard and effortless. As soon as you say it is easier, the topic of the bike weight will be brought up.

A lot of people just want the latest, greatest, most expensive or whatever and e bike checks a lot of those boxes. And that is fine.
At the end of the day, it falls in the category of whatever gets you out there, but keep it its own thing.
 
I am a bit confused on 3-4 hour ride examples myself. i think its fair to say most people dont feel the need, or have the time for 3-4 hour rides, especially on mtb. Sure, they dont have the fitness but that would come if they put in the work. also, if the ebike lore holds true, if they can do a 4 hiur ride on an ebike, they should be able to do it on a regular bike.

And yes, it cant be just as hard and effortless. As soon as you say it is easier, the topic of the bike weight will be brought up.

A lot of people just want the latest, greatest, most expensive or whatever and e bike checks a lot of those boxes. And that is fine.
At the end of the day, it falls in the category of whatever gets you out there, but keep it its own thing.

I've tested the range of e-bikes quite a bit over the years and no one is getting 3 hours out of one if they use any of the actual assist modes. On ECO maybe, but if you turn the assist up on climbs that number goes south quick. 21-miles at Chimney Rock on ECO is 2.5 hours and the Battery is dead coming into the lot. Sterling has a lot less climbing so maybe it'll last a bit longer?
 
I've tested the range of e-bikes quite a bit over the years and no one is getting 3 hours out of one if they use any of the actual assist modes. On ECO maybe, but if you turn the assist up on climbs that number goes south quick. 21-miles at Chimney Rock on ECO is 2.5 hours and the Battery is dead coming into the lot. Sterling has a lot less climbing so maybe it'll last a bit longer?
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You are supposed to say it last forever
 
I've tested the range of e-bikes quite a bit over the years and no one is getting 3 hours out of one if they use any of the actual assist modes. On ECO maybe, but if you turn the assist up on climbs that number goes south quick. 21-miles at Chimney Rock on ECO is 2.5 hours and the Battery is dead coming into the lot. Sterling has a lot less climbing so maybe it'll last a bit longer?

at CR, trail mode the whole time, and I have it set to max assist, but I need to be pushing hard to get it to max (that is the "powerful" setting?)
2:50 moving, with 2 bars left. and I got some eBike top 10s!

so I guess if I got 3 more miles in, with less time, it might have drained it more?

 
Just wondering, you fitness or death meat powered mtb riders….. do you refuse to ride in flat south Jersey? Low elevation change mountain biking is more of a tempo workout where riding in north jersey is mostly internal rides with all the punchie climbs and rock riding. Being old I prefer tempo workouts rather than mhr intervals. That’s why I got an e bike. I start in eco mode till my legs are cooked, then it’s trail mode time and if I need to get out of the woods, just pop it into turbo. The e bike give me the choice my workout level while allowing me to spend more time in the woods.
 
I had my recovery ride scheduled for this morning. Usually this is reserved for the trainer staring at my iPad. That type of low power is impossible anywhere in North Jersey on the trails. I'd say putting more time on singletrack is going to make me a faster rider (not fitter).

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at CR, trail mode the whole time, and I have it set to max assist, but I need to be pushing hard to get it to max (that is the "powerful" setting?)
2:50 moving, with 2 bars left. and I got some eBike top 10s!

so I guess if I got 3 more miles in, with less time, it might have drained it more?


My last ride was shorter but it was muddy so I think I can squeeze an extra 20 minutes. There's zero chance of using Trail Mode on an SL bike for 3 hours.

 
I've tested the range of e-bikes quite a bit over the years and no one is getting 3 hours out of one if they use any of the actual assist modes. On ECO maybe, but if you turn the assist up on climbs that number goes south quick. 21-miles at Chimney Rock on ECO is 2.5 hours and the Battery is dead coming into the lot. Sterling has a lot less climbing so maybe it'll last a bit longer?
Doing just that: eco with trail or boost on climbs, I use maybe 2 bars out of 5 in 3hrs. Commencal Meta Power
 
at CR, trail mode the whole time, and I have it set to max assist, but I need to be pushing hard to get it to max (that is the "powerful" setting?)
2:50 moving, with 2 bars left. and I got some eBike top 10s!

so I guess if I got 3 more miles in, with less time, it might have drained it more?

Sames, I had 2 bars, 27% per app
 
This was a 2:16 hour ride of 16.3 miles at CR. Hot AF, so I used lots of turbo cause, why not. Look I only average 97w of my own power and still only used 54% of my battery. If I didn't use turbo so much I could easily get 5 hours out of the battery.

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This was a 2:16 hour ride of 16.3 miles at CR. Hot AF, so I used lots of turbo cause, why not. Look I only average 97w of my own power and still only used 54% of my battery. If I didn't use turbo so much I could easily get 5 hours out of the battery.

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5 hours is the biggest stretch I’ve seen so far. I’d like to see someone actually do it. This is from full charge to completely dead in ECO on the road. I rode from Chimney Rock to home with a dead battery…

 
Easier is easier. Big fat skis on a powder day for an intermediate skier totally replaces input of effort compared to 63mm straight skis. Go on to a ski forum and listen to the diehards screaming about their powder days being ruined by the throngs of people on big fat skis (having fun) and ruining the powder for all the "real skiers." To them, skiing powder "shouldn't be for everyone." "it shouldn't be easy." Same difference as far as I'm concerned.

E-bikes seem to be here to stay, at least until something comes along that is even easier for people to ride.
Please, if you sucked on straight skis you didn’t suddenly become an expert on shaped skis. I’ve been skiing for 50yrs, skiing is another sport where how good you get is proportional to the effort you put in. And tourists hogging the pow days is all about accessibility and spots being blown up, not the skis. And e-bikes are here to stay because laziness and instant gratification are universal.
Just wondering, you fitness or death meat powered mtb riders….. do you refuse to ride in flat south Jersey? Low elevation change mountain biking is more of a tempo workout where riding in north jersey is mostly internal rides with all the punchie climbs and rock riding. Being old I prefer tempo workouts rather than mhr intervals. That’s why I got an e bike. I start in eco mode till my legs are cooked, then it’s trail mode time and if I need to get out of the woods, just pop it into turbo. The e bike give me the choice my workout level while allowing me to spend more time in the woods.
Getting older myself, I would say that strength will give you faster recovery and provide you with more protection from injury vs. doing just tempo work. Fitness will come through interval training also. As you get older, you should put just as much, if not more, priority on strength vs. fitness.
 
Getting older myself, I would say that strength will give you faster recovery and provide you with more protection from injury vs. doing just tempo work. Fitness will come through interval training also. As you get older, you should put just as much, if not more, priority on strength vs. fitness.
lol, I thought the same way as you 10 year ago. The main issue as you get older is recovery and how long it takes. For example 2 weeks I was out on my road bike and I got hit, did a OTB at around 15 mph. Cracked a rib and street pizzaed both knees, my elbow and shoulder. When I was 20 years old I would be out on the bike the next day. Sadly I have been hobbled for the past 2 weeks.. getting old is not for wimps.
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at CR, trail mode the whole time, and I have it set to max assist, but I need to be pushing hard to get it to max (that is the "powerful" setting?)
2:50 moving, with 2 bars left. and I got some eBike top 10s!

so I guess if I got 3 more miles in, with less time, it might have drained it more?

I thought e-bikes were supposed to be fast. 😂
 
I thought e-bikes were supposed to be fast. 😂

I tried to take the Dam Climb on the Levo and haven’t come within striking distance of my Amish Bike times. It’s way easier, but not faster, or even as fast…unless you’re normally slow, then it’s faster. These aren’t exactly Cat1 dudes in this thread talking about the benefits of e bikes 😂
 
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They are here to stay - and there are definitely people for whom they are a solid tool, especially in elevation.

South Jersey; I think this falls more into a health issue or you are the type that wants to ride seven days a week.

Right now I am in good health (just fat) - but if I am going to ride a bike, I want to ride a bike - the Amish type. Spending $8k + on an ebike to be part of a quiver that will be obsolete in a few years is not a priority right now.

Since I am now mid-aged and been into cycling for 30+ years (gasp) I get some of the issues with ebikes, like the change in trail construction as well as a motorized bike on trails that are for non-motorized traffic (I know this is changing but I dont see it). Some habits die hard I guess - don’t get me started on head phones or people taking selfies in the middle of the trail.

The bike industry is not doing itself any favors by pushing sustainability and the green movement - then changing standards annually and making a $10k bike nearly a disposable items within a few years - this pushes me away from them more than anything - call me an a-hole but todays technology has me feel like I am living in a 24hr commercial. Getting on my bike is a way for me to disconnect from technology.

Finally - living in sand-land (South Jersey), a dual sport motorcycle makes much more sense for me. Almost 250 hours in the saddle last year, 50 State street legal and requires minimal maintenance. (I am at 270 hours on the motorcycle with over 7k miles and have only changed wearables - tires, chain/sprocket, oil and air filter). If you don’t think riding one of these off road is a workout you are very mistaken.

Also - the pros riding the ebike thing is a tough sale. They are brand influencers selling us on e-bikes.

My biggest enemy to getting out on the bike is time - making it and using it wisely. Amish bike normally gets the nod here, if I am beat I go to the moto or a really good cheeseburger and a cold beer.

BUT - seeing my homie @Frank get his ride on with his e-bike wants me to see the e-bikes stay. They have a place, I don’t think I would have said that five years ago.

Get out there!
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lol, I thought the same way as you 10 year ago. The main issue as you get older is recovery and how long it takes. For example 2 weeks I was out on my road bike and I got hit, did a OTB at around 15 mph. Cracked a rib and street pizzaed both knees, my elbow and shoulder. When I was 20 years old I would be out on the bike the next day. Sadly I have been hobbled for the past 2 weeks.. getting old is not for wimps.View attachment 242377View attachment 242378View attachment 242379View attachment 242380
Ouch. I hear you on the recovery time... I haven't been on a bike of any type in a week thanks to a fairly high-speed wreck last Monday. I'm pretty sure I just bruised some ribs and the first few days were rough. I don't want to know what actual broken/cracked ribs would feel like. Yesterday was the first day I finally start feeling like I was getting back to normal. Still haven't been on a bike yet. Hopefully some road riding soon.

Heal up soon!
 
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