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What riding should it be used for that I’m not doing then?
Best use I've had was a day at the Golfie. Scooting up mind numbing grotty fire roads to get multiple descents is amazing.
I'd imagine the likes of GT and whinlatter would be ace too.
Best use I’ve had was a day at the Golfie. Scooting up mind numbing grotty fire roads to get multiple descents is amazing.
Granted, I understand that. Still a long way from being convinced I'd want to ride one down again. Admittedly I have a consensus of 1 bike, but as this thread is about that bike I thought it valid.
I generally don't mind the fire roads as long as the reward is there too.
As for the rest, that’s just quite amusing.
Like your pic of a tiny jump that YOU couldn't ride a cross bike off...
Like I said.
There's a whole world of stuff out there that's not sitting down connected to a PC.
Go in search of your local hand built trails. I'm sure there's plenty of them even near Swinley.
I mince round Morzine too
Yep there's loads of people that do that. 😂
You might want to try not mincing if you've traveled all that way.
Lol get the claws out
Just saying open your eyes a bit...
To what exactly? I'm more than happy to be educated in this world? I'm a bit unsure as to why I'm apparently wrong for not liking the bike
But tbh I'm done caring about your responses, I've played nicely and not risen to the digs, but there's only so much tolerance in my world.
To what exactly?
The whole world of riding out there. 😱
You're not wrong for not liking a shit Eeb around a shit trail center in the south.
But don't try to write every ebike off because of your very limited and narrow minded experiences.
Being able to do multiple laps of all the local Dh and enduro trails has been a real head turner to me.
I've hardly done any uplift days since I've had an eeb in the garage.
Pedal bikes for group rides and general XC stuff are fine but for any multi lap tech you really cant beat one.
It may not be a great bike, so not fair to judge all ebikes on the one that you've riden.
I mean let's say you've just riden a crao handling big standard full susser that's 15kg + you can't just say all full suss bikes are crap and I'm never riding another one again.
It does well in review
https://www.bikeradar.com/news/climb-high-ride-hard-with-livs-new-full-suss-e-mtbs/
However, that doesn't change my thoughts, I'm trying a Specialized Levo thing at BPW in a few weeks. Time will tell
I've been riding an e-enduro bike after coming from a trail hardtail 29er
I think it's amazing on the descents but definitely takes some muscling around - I've been doing 4 heavy free weights sessions a week for the last year, with the express purpose of increasing strength and endurance for downhill riding, so I think I've come into riding the heavy eBike at the right time.
Mine also flies off jumps and drops. Maybe just a different bike. Mine is a Saracen Ariel-E
However, that doesn’t change my thoughts, I’m trying a Specialized Levo thing at BPW in a few weeks
Make your mind up will you.
You're either for or against. 😜
How did this go from a bike thread to a critique of weeksy's riding??
Anyway...
weeksy
I mince the SDW in a day..
Don't rub it in, I'm still a 3 dayer!😅
This year though.... 2 days? Lol
It's a mates and he wants to try my G160 so he can mince a blue like me. So I get to try his new 2020 Levo
Handbags away ladies...
Personally dont get the appeal of them either as the reward of a descent feels more earned under your own power, but I have no issue with others choosing to use them. I think it's great that motorbikes are legal on trails.
1 out of 10 there
Must try harder on the EEB troll.
Love the idea that if someone doesn’t enjoy Ebikes it must be because they are a crap rider and that Ebikes are only for super rad riding. That should save me a few quid 🙂
Funny thing is, I have nothing at all against them. I actually paid 50% of the purchase price so I can get my wife out riding with me a d the boy.
This wasn't even remotely a dug against ebikes, just I rode this today and disliked it and why.
I then brought it home, cleaned it, lubed it, gave it tlc, it's not like I set it on fire because it upset me, I don't give a monkeys, it's not mine and I won't be riding it again. The only reason I rode it today was because my lad had stolen my G160 to go to the car for the GoPro.
Sik edit? 😜
Saw this. Made me think, heavy, slow & cumbersome. Clearly a breeze block to jump.
Because Kerr is like most other ebike riders and indeed MTB riders?
That's like putting Froome on a Carrera special and being shocked he's still quick.
That was kinda my point. I’m not sure the bike was the issue...
No, sure. All my fault.
Ridiculous place this at times. Bloke finds a 25kg bike heavy and dull, but STW tells him he's wrong and completely rubbish at riding.
Borrowed one down here on the south downs, thought the same. Then I hired one in the Alps. A Riot! Riding up tarmac road climbs has never been more fun!
I think YGH point is that at places like the golfie a mere mortal can get more descents in in a day as they can get up the boring painful climbs more quickly with less fatigue if they have an ebike. Its not for me but if you are a "winch and plummet" type rider I see the utility.
I only opened this thread for the butthurt e-bikers - it has not disappointed 😂
I think YGH point is that at places like the golfie a mere mortal can get more descents in in a day as they can get up the boring painful climbs more quickly with less fatigue if they have an ebike. Its not for me but if you are a “winch and plummet” type rider I see the utility.
BEfore riding it i'd have agreed 100%. But as i say, having ridden it, i'm a long long way from being convinced.
It's going to be interesting in a few weeks with my e-bike mate. He's not really done the manual bike much, so him jumping off his Scott Egenius/Spec Levo and jumping onto my G160 will be very interesting as i'd like to see if he'll find the reverse of what i've found and love the manual bike because of the light/nimble handling.
I don't think he'll be a convert yet due to percieved fitness, but even on that, he may surprise himself
Yep also finding slightly amusing that anyone that doesn't like an ebike must be crap and that they're the best thing since sliced bread, and that they must have their opinion changed.
Some people actually like the challenge of a big day out, doing it all by themselves without any motorized assistance.
Multiple laps of somewhere like Golfie sounds perfect for an ebike, don't think I'd like one on a multiple day Torridon trip though as I find the climbing as rewarding as the descents.
Hey ho, each to their own. 😎
It does well in review
https://www.bikeradar.com/news/climb-high-ride-hard-with-livs-new-full-suss-e-mtbs/
"If exploring forest roads, gravel tracks and simple singletrack is your goal, the Embolden E+ is a bike that will carry you and your luggage quickly"
"...slightly more technical terrain, the main factor holding it back here is the RockShox Recon RL fork, which felt far too flexible when riding and had a tendency to dive through its travel,"
"Liv does say the bike isn’t designed for rock gardens, drops and the like,"
This comment also in the review about the Intrigue E+:
"Both forks and shock have a specific light tune to suit the lighter-on-average weight of female riders, plus adapted to suit e-bikes."
Weeksy reports: "Entry-level ebikes with shyte forks are shyte. All ebikes are shyte"?
My main issue with ebikes is range. Its just not enough for the sortof riding I do unless the power is turned down to the point it is pointless. Multiday wandering around the scenery without going back to civilisation. they cannot be charged from solar panels!. 3 days in the wilds with 100+ miles and many thousands of foot of climbing is not unusual for us. Even one day rides would often be enough to cause range anxiety.
^ True, TJ
That's why I've got a nice Titanium 29er hardtail too
My main issue with ebikes is range. Its just not enough for the sortof riding I do unless the power is turned down to the point it is pointless. Multiday wandering around the scenery without going back to civilisation. they cannot be charged from solar panels!. 3 days in the wilds with 100+ miles and many thousands of foot of climbing is not unusual for us. Even one day rides would often be enough to cause range anxiety.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVQ6UsZWGLo
With forward planning it could work well, imagine if the bike batteries were all standard...
“My main issue with ebikes is range. Its just not enough for the sortof riding I do unless the power is turned down to the point it is pointless. Multiday wandering around the scenery without going back to civilisation. they cannot be charged from solar panels!. 3 days in the wilds with 100+ miles and many thousands of foot of climbing is not unusual for us. Even one day rides would often be enough to cause range anxiety.”
I totally agree with that! I love commuting on my ebike, love normal length (half day) MTB rides of all sorts, haven’t done an uplift day on it yet but intend to as it’s my only full-sus now, but if I were going bikepacking I’d rather have a nice simple bike with no electronics!
I prefer the handling to a normal bike because of the stability. I’m far from great at jumping but it’s the first bike I’ve had that gives me confidence on doubles (I have such a mental block on them compared to far bigger tabletops). I know it’s way heavier than a normal bike but me and it together, vehicle and pilot as it were, are only about 10% heavier and the suspension works so well, better than any normal bike I’ve ridden and it seems to love getting airborne.
It does feel like a lot of the negative comments about the handling are like those we used to hear about bigger slacker bikes or bikes with bigger wheels, “cumbersome, unwieldy, dull, heavy” but so many of us prefer riding bikes like that now and find old small steep small-wheeled bikes nervous.
My main issue with ebikes is range. Its just not enough for the sortof riding I do unless the power is turned down to the point it is pointless. Multiday wandering around the scenery without going back to civilisation.
Unless you like to use one bike for everything, most riders I know have a N+1 for bikepacking / long XC type duties.
imagine if the bike batteries were all standard…
😂 yeah, and pigs started racking up air miles 😉
lets see what ? I’ve posted the pic of my lad above…. You’re telling me you’re landing that on a CX bike ? Honestly….
Don't really see why not apart from the wear and tear on the bike. Plenty of people (everyday folk not pro's) would ride that on a BMX without thinking twice as opposed to something the same size but with gnarly landings and run ups.
That's not really the point though... it's not really a DJ/skills area bike
Think about this another way... say end of a big day at Afan or Cwmcarn when you're knackered.
I reckon a steamroller combined with being less knackered would be great. Do a quick 1/2 lap of Twrch after a long day then ride the downhill back... and sure it's a steamroller but you'd not be riding it normally or if you did you'd be too knackered to worry about popping off everything.
It's probably fantastic for the wife at the moment for Swinners.... but for you to appreciate it you'd need to take it somewhere else. I can't help thinking all you are getting are the disadvantages but non of the advantages???
It’s probably fantastic for the wife at the moment for Swinners…. but for you to appreciate it you’d need to take it somewhere else. I can’t help thinking all you are getting are the disadvantages but non of the advantages???
Oh absolutely agree yes, what i was asking from it was completely not why either myself or most people would buy and use it... But that's where we were and that's what came up at the time. So that's where it was tested and ridden.
I'm with Weeksy on this one, I was one of the ones on an EBike at FoD on Saturday along with the wife and son when we took a some E150s out for a few hours, I was on an RS with Lyriks.
Main feeling I came away with was disappointment mixed with relief that I didn't want to buy one, while it was great fun shooting up any incline while chatting to my son on the way and saying to anyone I passed "Yes, we're cheating" I found the handling of the bike itself sadly lacking. It was surprisingly twitchy and unsettled on anything rough, not what I was expecting at all.
Now, this is probably all related to set-up as I think the forks were too hard although they were set at 25% sag before I left the tent and I noticed that someone had wound the compression up to full which once it was backed off improved things a little and the tyres felt far too hard while riding despite seeming to visibly "squish" into the ground reasonably while I was on the bike.
I also found it quite disconcerting when I changed pedal position in a bend by cranking forwards a little and the motor kicked in a few times trying to "drive me on", that's probably just something you get used to.
Viewed in overall it was just not as fun a riding experience as my G170, the easing of the ups for me wouldn't outweigh the diminishing of the downs. Add to that the £1.5k-2k premium you pay for that battery and motor over a regular bike and I'm happy with my clockwork model for now.
Some people love 'em, some people don't.
I also found it quite disconcerting when I changed pedal position in a bend by cranking forwards a little and the motor kicked in a few times trying to “drive me on”, that’s probably just something you get used to
According to my mate there's a lot of trail braking and rear pads being needed on them as because of exactly that you trail the brakes through loads of turns you normally wouldn't without the motor kicking in.
Weeksy
Oh absolutely agree yes, what i was asking from it was completely not why either myself or most people would buy and use it… But that’s where we were and that’s what came up at the time. So that’s where it was tested and ridden.
I'd be made up if the OH wanted one ... though the biggest issue is then having to justify why Ollie pedals but that aside it would be great getting her out to Surrey Hills or Swinners but then stealing the bike for a lads weekend in Wales or Scotland.
It’s probably fantastic for the wife at the moment for Swinners…. but for you to appreciate it you’d need to take it somewhere else. I can’t help thinking all you are getting are the disadvantages but non of the advantages???
Judging by the number of the things at Swinley (and recently seemingly on the army ranges too) they can't be that out of their depth.
I can see that they would perhaps better suit faster, more open trails with bigger jumps that just happen when you hit them fast enough, whereas Swinley is more like a 20 mile pump track. Apart from 15, 25 and the latter half of the blue, it really makes you work for any airtime.
What riding should it be used for that I’m not doing then?
Rocky/rooty/technical uphill singletrack - the kind of stuff that you'd be walking up with a normal bike. Due to the weight I prefer the ebike over non ebike on the rocky downhills too.
I also found it quite disconcerting when I changed pedal position in a bend by cranking forwards a little and the motor kicked in a few times trying to “drive me on”, that’s probably just something you get used to
Yep. You get used to turning the assist level up/down too and you can use that motor kick and overrun to get up rock steps. Feathering the back break on tight uphill switchbacks was a new technique for me.
Rocky/rooty/technical uphill singletrack – the kind of stuff that you’d be walking up with a normal bike.
TBH where i live in the south, that simply doesn't exist.
I'm sure if i lived in the Peaks/Lakes that stuff exists, but down in Berkshire there's very very little you cannot ride on a regular basis....
And to be honest... Riding up stuff that's hard interests me WAY more on a manual bike than it would on an ebike. It's about the challenge, it's about the grit, determination, sweat and effort.
Climbing it on an ebike, meh, i'm not seeing it.
Rocky downhills... again, none here... I'd love some.. but i'd have to drive 3 hours to get to them 🙂
I'm fairly small and light, and found the same, on descents they just feel like a big heavy lump that does it's own thing. Not necessarily bad, but very different to a normal bike.
But.
And to be honest… Riding up stuff that’s hard interests me WAY more on a manual bike than it would on an ebike. It’s about the challenge, it’s about the grit, determination, sweat and effort.
Climbing it on an ebike, meh, i’m not seeing it.
Technical climbs they really come into there own. You can get up stuff you'd never even look at on a normal bike. It opens up a whole new world of what's possible. Still lots of effort and skill required, but for me, technical climbs would be the main reason for buying an ebike.
Horses for courses.
Looking at that particular ebike it's rather short for an average sized man, has a rather steep head angle, a bendy fork and has a light damping tune so if you're average weight or heavier the suspension will be underdamped, so I wouldn't expect the handling to be great.
There's definitely an adaptation period with an ebike. I don't know how they all work but you control the assistance on a Levo with your left thumb; off, eco, trail, turbo. And you develop a feel for how the assistance will respond to your pedalling - a bit like how you learn to shift cleanly by adjusting your pedalling torque and cadence. When commuting I use the brakes more for sure but when MTBing the difference is marginal - but when MTBing I've often got the assistance off (in turbo mode it's easy to go too fast into a corner, brake during the turn, slide around messily and slower and then accelerate out - turn the power off and I'll judge things better and carry the speed through).
If you have a more subtle riding style which relies on finesse and timing rather than weight and strength then I can see you might hate the handling, especially if you're either small, light, or less strong. Personally I love that my Levo wants to go flat out in a straight line over everything or hold whatever radius I've set it to carve - and if I want it to do anything else I have to put in a significant input - that stability gives me so much confidence, not just when going straight but on flat corners with minimal grip, when linking slaloms or when getting air.
I've only been to Swinley twice despite living in the south east and I wasn't the greatest fan either time - gut feeling is that it's probably the worst possible type of trails for riding an ebike hard (but probably very nice for a beginner on an ebike).
probably very nice for a beginner on an ebike).
Based upon half of the posters in here, i should have loved it then 🙂