Just another E-bike thread....

[Doug Briggs]

I'm 63 and I need to slow down (evidence in Mountain Biking 2021). If I got an ebike and didn't turn it on, would that help?

I do have the luxury of when I ride I typically have the time to ride as long as I want. I cover the miles that I care to and get the exercise levels I desire. I expect my first ebike will be a commuter/workhorse that I'll use for utilitarian transportation rather than exercise/outdoor pleasure.

 

[johnnyvw]

I will be interested in how this will work out, the rest of that thought will follow. (almost ) Every couple I know where the weaker, or less fanatical or whatever difference there is, rider got an eMTB they ended up being the one waiting at for the other and in many cases, the other rider ended up also got a eMTB. What was interesting in my observations is where the power was back to that same level with the riders performance was more on the same level and they ended up riding more with each other and had more fun.

As far as my reason, no my Trigger was not too difficult or too intense it is that i just don't have the time to commit to get to the enjoyment level I want to ride at. With the eMTB, I can go out and blast out 10-15 miles in less that 2 hours while enjoying some different trails. Could I also have taken my regular bike out for 1-2 hours but it would be the same 5 miles or so and that would not be fun for me and get old real fast. This mentality also relates to golf, I don't have the time (or attention span) to go play 18 holes, so I don't. I am happy to go to the range and hit a bucket from time to time just to minimize my muscle memory loss. Again, it comes down to the time requirement needed be it mountain biking or even golf.

This, to me, hits the nail on the head. Why does bike riding always have to be about fitness? Can't it just be about having fun? ANYTHING that gets you moving and outdoor is a good thing. How many people on this forum know people who have quit skiing because "too old, too busy, no longer fun, etc etc" If you're going to take the attitude of "it makes it too easy", then you might as well go back to skiing deep powder on straight, skinny skis....

 

[Andy Mink]

go back to skiing deep powder on straight, skinny skis

Or any other conditions, for that matter!

 

[Tom K.]

Why does bike riding always have to be about fitness? Can't it just be about having fun?

Agree, sort of. For me, riding is now about fun and maintaining decent fitness.

This is a pretty stark contrast to my previous race training focus, and I'm absolutely loving it.

Though with my wife now on an e-bike, I do end up getting some intensity work while climbing, like it or not!

 

[Philpug]

maintaining decent fitness.

I like that...I am also at the maintenance stage of fitness

 

[cantunamunch]

, then how to recycle the power source, which has a limited life, is troubling to me. An e-bike battery has a lot more lithium in it than a cell phone.

So, which of our Ontario members would like to be in charge of dropping the e-bike batteries off in Kingston?

Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Finally Takes Off in North America and Europe

Li-Cycle, Northvolt, and Ganfeng Lithium are among those building recycling plants, spurred by environmental and supply-chain concerns

spectrum.ieee.org

I expect my first ebike will be a commuter/workhorse that I'll use for utilitarian transportation rather than exercise/outdoor pleasure.

I really like what Greg Lemond is doing along those lines.

 

[Rod9301]

So, which of our Ontario members would like to be in charge of dropping the e-bike batteries off in Kingston?

Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Finally Takes Off in North America and Europe

Li-Cycle, Northvolt, and Ganfeng Lithium are among those building recycling plants, spurred by environmental and supply-chain concerns

spectrum.ieee.org

I really like what Greg Lemond is doing along those lines.

The battery issue is indeed one reason why you shouldn't get an e bike.

Co2 while it's built and recycled, and the appalling working conditions when mining lithium.

But this also applies to electric cars, just in a bigger scale.

But i have an e bike and love it.

The"you're not as fit when you ride an e bike" argument doesn't hold water

 

[AmyPJ]

What was interesting in my observations is where the power was back to that same level with the riders performance was more on the same level and they ended up riding more with each other and had more fun.

As far as my reason, no my Trigger was not too difficult or too intense it is that i just don't have the time to commit to get to the enjoyment level I want to ride at. With the eMTB, I can go out and blast out 10-15 miles in less that 2 hours while enjoying some different trails. Could I also have taken my regular bike out for 1-2 hours but it would be the same 5 miles or so and that would not be fun for me and get old real fast. This mentality also relates to golf, I don't have the time (or attention span) to go play 18 holes, so I don't. I am happy to go to the range and hit a bucket from time to time just to minimize my muscle memory loss. Again, it comes down to the time requirement needed be it mountain biking or even golf.

They rode a more similar level because the "weaker" rider started riding more often, which can happen on any bike. That's kind of what I get annoyed by--people improve by riding more! They don't need a battery, they need to just move more! And you could hammer out 10 miles in two hours easily on a normal bike if you worked your way up to it. I certainly don't start out in the spring season doing big rides or expecting fast times. I ride 5-8 miles, often on pavement, getting ready for the bigger rides I'll do (usually only once per week) starting in June. Da Man can outclimb me and has done so when he's committed to riding 4 or more days per week. The only reason I support him getting an e-bike is his age and a few age-related health things. At this point, it's going to take him a year+ to get one anyway.

One of the things I have loved so much about MTB is how freakin' hard it is. The mental aspect of it was much more of an issue during the first two years, but as I progressed, that part is all but gone. The physical part of grinding up some of the climbs we do is truly satisfying. I love how I have no choice but to push through stuff (well, I could walk some sections I suppose, and I did last weekend.) But it pushes me to get that extra bit of oof that I wouldn't do at the gym or on a hike.

I foresee that women's 50+ race divisions, which are already hard to find, will be done away with in favor of women's 50+ e-bike race divisions.

 

[Tom K.]

One of the things I have loved so much about MTB is how freakin' hard it is.

Same! But I'll admit that part of the enjoyment has cooled a wee bit for me at age 62, and a bit more for Mrs. K.

Side Note: She is SO much faster in corners on her analog bike now. I suspect it is because on the e-bike, which she chooses most of the time, she does maybe three times as many fast corners per hour, so......improvement through repetition?

 

[cantunamunch]

That's kind of what I get annoyed by--people improve by riding more! They don't need a battery, they need to just move more! And you could hammer out 10 miles in two hours easily on a normal bike if you worked your way up to it. I certainly don't start out in the spring season doing big rides or expecting fast times.

All this does is backload the fun payout onto a several hundred or thousand hour training mortgage.

No one actually having fun needs that argument, no one not having fun will buy into it.

 

[AmyPJ]

All this does is backload the fun payout onto a several hundred or thousand hour training mortgage.

No one actually having fun needs that argument, no one not having fun will buy into it.

I had fun from day 1 (well, day 2, as day 1 was a disaster where I got left behind by my group and got lost.) I ended up in the rockiest of rock gardens (we're talking a couple of 100 yard or so stretches of round, loose rocks, shark fins, baby heads, corners) and was in tears. I now blast through those things like a maniac. In fact, I'm racing today and the course will take me through them twice, onto a rocky pig section of climbing for a couple miles that I wouldn't even ride for my first two seasons because it was daunting. To say this ride tests your suspension settings and tire pressure is an understatement, because the rocks are the kind that will rattle your teeth out. I think I got it dialed in on Thursday, but we'll see! I'm riding in the Pro division because the Sport division doesn't start until 11:30 (why??!!) and it's going to be way too hot by then. I'll stay at the back and see how I do.

 

[scott43]

Speaking of which, has anyone noticed that Masters 50-59 is an ambush?

 

[Tom K.]

Speaking of which, has anyone noticed that Masters 50-59 is an ambush?

For sure.

The only guys still racing at that age are the ones that were pretty darn good at it.

And a few of their buddies, that tagged along because they were assured it would be "fun".

 

[Doug Briggs]

I had fun from day 1 (well, day 2, as day 1 was a disaster where I got left behind by my group and got lost.) I ended up in the rockiest of rock gardens (we're talking a couple of 100 yard or so stretches of round, loose rocks, shark fins, baby heads, corners) and was in tears. I now blast through those things like a maniac. In fact, I'm racing today and the course will take me through them twice, onto a rocky pig section of climbing for a couple miles that I wouldn't even ride for my first two seasons because it was daunting. To say this ride tests your suspension settings and tire pressure is an understatement, because the rocks are the kind that will rattle your teeth out. I think I got it dialed in on Thursday, but we'll see! I'm riding in the Pro division because the Sport division doesn't start until 11:30 (why??!!) and it's going to be way too hot by then. I'll stay at the back and see how I do.

Good luck, be fast!

 

[johnnyvw]

The ability to "push through stuff" declines with age for many people. When I met my wife, she was a cycling coach for Team In Training. Road probably 300 miles/week for training, and did maybe a dozen centuries a year at various places around the country (did the one around Lake Tahoe, for instance). Now her "push through" mentality has caught up with her, and she has all sorts of physical issues if she doesn't stick to a more gradual pace..."the spirit is willing but the flesh is week". So not everyone is able to build their level up very high, and an e-bike would allow them to go out and enjoy a day of riding, as opposed to maybe an hour, especially if the area they live in has much in the way of hills. Not everyone wants or needs "hard"

 

[Lauren]

The sustainability thing really does bother me. The net-benefit of a hybrid car is obvious for air quality. The net-benefit of an e-bike for commuting is obvious for the same reason. (My dad commuted by bike for 40 years, first in the Puget Sound region in the rain many days, then in the high desert in the relentless heat during summer. Both commutes were about 10 miles each way. No e-bikes then.) The net-benefit of riding something that is a net-negative for the way it's power source is mined, then how to recycle the power source, which has a limited life, is troubling to me. An e-bike battery has a lot more lithium in it than a cell phone.

I completely agree on so many levels of the concern for the environment and the future effect batteries are going to have on it. Being in a career that involves battery storage systems (large industrial size systems), it’s regularly on my mind. The technology is constantly improving and changing. I have a lot of hope that we'll get to a less destructive means of manufacturing and recycling/disposing of batteries in the future. Unfortunately, the fact is...we're not their yet. The batteries are still very new (the first generation Tesla's are just now reaching the end of their battery lifespan). I think these next 10 or so years will be very telling on the impact they'll have (good or bad). I think bringing it up regularly in these types of conversation always helps from an advocacy standpoint.

As far as having a net-benefit, I don't think it's all that obvious. The benefit of an electric car from an air quality standpoint may be net-positive on the environment compared to a gas powered car, but there are other factors that come into play (i.e. all of the issues you mentioned above). EV's may be net-negative to the farmer that lives near the lithium mine that now doesn't have clean water. For e-bikes there's a personal benefit of health for those people riding them…all about perspective. Many people in this thread have expressed the fact they (or their friend/significant other/etc.) wouldn't ride, or wouldn't ride nearly as much if it weren't for e-bikes. So there's definitely a beneficial element of fitness and mental health for those people. Some people don’t have the time to ride even once a week, consistently throughout the summer and build up past the point of biking being a constant, grueling grind. You probably know as much as anyone taking even a week off (let alone 2) can have a huge impact on your performance. If someone can never ride more than once a week, then it’s tough to really build up to the more fun parts of riding. If an ebike helps offset the pain for more fun for those people…I’m all for it.

 

[wiread]

I used to ride my bike to work, we had a shower there. Now I have kids and morning routines and the time isn't there to ride then shower then work. New clinic doesn't have one anyway. Seriously considering an ebike for rec and for work. if I can keep a steady 20mph without the exertion it would take me to try and maintain that on my old trek MTB, it would keep me from firing up a big ol truck 3-4 days week. I guess if I really wanted to make a difference I'd get rid of the boat and camper and other trailerable toys, then I wouldn't need a truck either.

 

[Andy Mink]

I guess if I really wanted to make a difference I'd get rid of the boat and camper and other trailerable toys, then I wouldn't need a truck either.

Someone else would be using them at that point. Net gain=zero. Keep the toys and enjoy life! I say this from the point of a person who also has a truck, 5th wheel, small 12' boat, and other toys.

 

[4ster]

I had fun from day 1 (well, day 2, as day 1 was a disaster where I got left behind by my group and got lost.) I ended up in the rockiest of rock gardens (we're talking a couple of 100 yard or so stretches of round, loose rocks, shark fins, baby heads, corners) and was in tears. I now blast through those things like a maniac. In fact, I'm racing today and the course will take me through them twice, onto a rocky pig section of climbing for a couple miles that I wouldn't even ride for my first two seasons because it was daunting. To say this ride tests your suspension settings and tire pressure is an understatement, because the rocks are the kind that will rattle your teeth out. I think I got it dialed in on Thursday, but we'll see! I'm riding in the Pro division because the Sport division doesn't start until 11:30 (why??!!) and it's going to be way too hot by then. I'll stay at the back and see how I do.

Go fast, have fun!

 

[4ster]

Rode my Sister in laws ebike (Specialized Levo SL) for about 10 minutes yesterday. Felt like I was on a motorcycle! Ended up turning it off on the flats & it actually pedaled okay.
I am still in the dream stage as to what I should get ,
maybe a motorcycle? But then I'd have to buy wiread's truck to haul it