Well that was hilarious! Filthy wet muddy slippery conditions, lots of sideways action, some air, one small fist/tree interface (need to chop the bars down a bit), my riding mates more amused than offended. Kept changing the assistance through the ride, turbo’d there and back, then on eco or no assistance for most of the group ride.
I had pretty fresh legs so eco was a bit too easy and it rolls well enough that the weight penalty of it unassisted isn’t too bad. Went full turbo on one rutted chalky slippery fireroad climb and pedalled like my life depended on it, turned a three minute grind into a one minute sprint, absolutely redlined. It’s great being able to push harder knowing that if I kill myself it’ll help out later in the ride if I can’t keep up – I wasn’t pacing myself so much but working a lot harder, like I was on a shorter ride. Suspect my cardio fitness will increase because it’s like doing interval training – I’d got good at endurance but was down on my few minute max aerobic ability.
It’s bloody fast downhill – rolls so quickly, I had moments of wondering if the motor was doing something when I wasn’t pedalling because I was catching people so quickly. A lot of bike in the tight stuff but not bad at all. Fantastic at drifting with the long wheelbase and chainstays, low centre of gravity and low-ish BB.