Have you picked up the latest issue of T3 magazine yet? If not, then go grab one! The 'Best Electric Bikes Rated' makes for a real good read. Here the test winner - Haibike xDuro Urban. In the latest July issue T3 magazine took three world class eBikes and road tested them to the max. This included our Haibike xDuro Urban RC road bike, the Gocycle G3 and the ETT Trayser. T3 Says: Once you've ridden the Haibike, you'll never want a normal bike again. Side by side T3 reviewed the bikes and competed at 3 stages - Design, Power & The Ride. Read the full review below. For mobile readers it's easier to navigate by clicking here. We are really pleased to not only see 2 out of 3 of the bikes in T3 magazine are bikes that we offer, but to also come 1st and 2nd. With the Haibike winning overall first place and the Gocycle leading second. T3 Rates: The Haibike offers a perfect blend of power and battery life, with optimum gearing to suit. It also looks great and is fantastic to ride - even more so with the optional Nyon computer. Garage-dreamers will love the removable battery. Both with 5 star overall reviews and both winning all 3 of the major tests. This is a real feat! Find out more about the electric bikes featured: Haibike xDuro Urban & Gocycle G3. Credit to the guys over at T3 Magazine who clearly know their tech. Makes for a great read.
We are pleased to announce that Bikmo Insurance has just awarded E-Bikeshop as chosen bicycle retailer of the month!.. We are proud to accept the badge of honour! Bikmo partner with some of the leading industry cycle shops to offer a premium cycle insurance designed by cyclists for cyclists! Offering policies designed specifically around riders is the key to their success. Bikmo stated: Our ‘Retailer of the Month’ for June goes to one of the UK’s top destinations for power assisted bikes. As the cycle industry has seen a huge surge towards e-bikes in recent years, we’ve also noticed a dramatic uptake in customers adding e-bikes onto their insurance policy at Bikmo We too have seen an uptake in our customers insuring their precious steeds. We think with higher ticket items like electric bikes it's important to know your covered and most want the added peace of mind. Let's not forget eBikes tend to be a fairly big purchase and people rely on them more, that's why it's important to offer a eBike specific policy that meets these needs. Bikmo went on to say: We visited our June ‘Retailer of the Month’ in May and were super impressed with how slick their operation is. By scheduling one-to-one appointments with new customers, they’re able to provide the utmost information and advice as well as also allowing customers to test ride the bikes before purchasing. We can now also offer live quotes at the time of purchase to give the customer an instant idea of any insurance costs associated. Many actually pleasantly surprised the relative low cost. Bikmo concluded: The after care is also top notch, and to save time and get you back on your bike quicker, these guys even deal with warranty issues in-house meaning if your battery or motor pack up, you don’t have to wait for any middle-men or couriers. So, without further delay……we’re awarding our ‘Retailer of the Month’ for June to….. E-Bike Shop Thanks so much to the Bikmo team for offering such a great service and also choosing us as their retailer of the month.. Bonus! As "Retailer of the Month" our Bikmo customer discount has been increased from 5% to 10% for the next month (that's the whole of June). Find out more about the services we offer & insure your eBike today by visiting our dedicated page - Bikmo Electric Bike Insurance.
A preview at the newly launched Shimano Steps E8000 eBike system for 2016. This revolutionary system from Shimano is designed specifically around electric mountain biking. It's great to see a big competitor like Shimano join the market with an eMTB specific system. Up until now, the Shimano Steps system has been designed around city riding and thus has not been supported for electric mountain biking. A player like Shimano could be a game changer?.. Following a big launch, last year at EuroBike Shimano clearly put a big push on their standard Steps system, but we were anticipating Shimano to come out with a new system specifically for the mountain bikers, so let's take a look at some of the new features: Shimano Steps Motor Drive Unit Following the integrated look, the Shimano Steps E8000 eMTB motor is small and compact. Using a slightly different design to its competitors the drive unit is held in a triangle formation allowing for a slimmer bottom bracket width, better q factor (just 175mm) and a secure, efficient and direct power output from the rider to the cranks. The compact E8000 Motor has integrated cooling fins to disperse heat efficiently, a technology which derived from some of the newer Shimano disc brake systems. Plus it look's good! The way in which the motor is designed and integrated means frame manufacturers can position it just right to reduce chain stay lengths keeping things tight and nippy on the back end. This will add to the rider's manoeuvrability on the bike and ride like a typical mountain bike in respect of handling. It offers 250w of continuous output power and a whopping 70Nm of torque which gives good progressive power to the rider. This is adjustable with the power outputs as the rider can set and change the assistance mode whilst riding on the fly in 3 options - Eco, Trail & Boost. The Shimano Steps eMTB system also features a walk function should you ever walk next to the bike it'll push itself along (also handy for oiling the chain!). Using a more conventional but dedicated crank setup with technology from the Shimano hollow tech cranks. These are offered in 2 variants - A lighter hollow arm or a solid arm based on rider preference. The regular sized chainring on the front (34t or 38t) gives the rider easy compatibility between regular sprockets and chains which we will delve a little more into further down this article. Shimano Steps Battery Power Pack The newly formed slim power pack slots neatly into the downtube of the eMTB. This appears to slide in from the side rather than slot in from above allowing it to be mounted into smaller frame sizes. We also hear that although this is currently frame mounted there may be options to integrate into the frame in the near future. Shimano advertises a rattle free mount that should withstand even the harshest of conditions. The Shimano Steps E8000 eMTB battery has a larger capacity of 500Wh. We are still awaiting range figures based on the system's efficiency, but as with all things Shimano we expect it to be good. You should be good for a lifetime of around 1000 full charge cycles. The 500Wh power pack has 5 green LED's at the top to show current charge state and allows the user to see capacity when charging at a glance. Worth noting the Shimano Steps battery is also offered up as waterproof so no qualms when catching the odd rain storm or when cleaning the electric mountain bike. Shimano Steps eBike User Display / Controls Keeping in with the look of Shimano Di2 displays the eBike specific colour LCD version gives a clear and simple readout to the rider. Credentials like speed, assistance mode, power & battery capacity offer a crisp picture at a quick glance whilst out attacking the trails. The smaller display is neat and compact and just does the job it's intended for. Also integrated into the new display is gear selection and we'll delve a little more into this further down. It's also worth noting that the new E8000 eMTB display is smartphone/tablet compatible via Bluetooth, where the rider can change settings & customise the eBike to their liking. Nice! The handlebar mounted controls on the left act as the riders assistance selector for the rider and keeps in look with the current Di2 setup and looks. It means the rider's cockpit will be clean and sleek with potentially a Di2 shifter on the right and the assistance selector on the left. Quick sharp and precision shifting between assistance modes on the fly should be a doddle with the large grippy buttons. Shimano Steps Integration / Compatibility As with all things Shimano, the clear advantage is perfect seamless compatibility and integration with other popular controls. The fact that this system will work seamlessly with Shimano 11 or 10 speed cassettes, standard chainrings and Shimano chains is a big bonus. It means the user knows exactly what will work with each component. It also makes for handy transfer across to the normal Shimano drivetrains which users are already familiar with. Where this really means a lot is in the integration, with electronic shifting taking off and Shimano's already proven Di2 system firmly established, the clever bit will be with the synchronised electric shifting and motor assistance to create an all in one system to the rider. For example, a Shimano XTR Di2 Rear mech will be fully compatible with the system, using the power of the Shimano Steps system, information passed through the motor/controls and quick electric shifting to offer a completely integral system. Perfect! The new Shimano Steps system uses the well established Shimano eTube setup to communicate between components. This open system allows easy installation of extras like shifters, derailleurs and lights by simply unplugging existing parts, plugging in a Y-cable adapter and re-connecting the components. How does it compare? Likely to be a big question, so moving forward it'll be mostly compared to big system providers like Bosch & Yamaha. The motor is around the same size as it's competitors if not slightly smaller whereas the battery appears slightly bigger. It's clear it's designed in direct competition at both of the above. The power is similar between systems although the new Bosch CX will be slightly higher in torque, in real life conditions it'll be difficult to tell over specification on paper. Check out our Bosch / Yamaha comparison here. Some features of Bosch and Yamaha have clearly been taken into consideration to combine into a powerful system. The big chainring and side mounted battery are similar to the Yamaha whereas the controls/smartphone communication is more comparable to the Bosch. Offering 4 assistance modes seems to be the preferred figure too across Shimano, Bosch & Yamaha eBike systems. Battery capacity is on par / if not more than some, obviously depending on how efficient the motor and drivetrain are. We will be able to do a more comprehensive comparison article as the official facts and figures appear. What do we think? We believe the Shimano E8000 eSystem will exceed on the gear shifting integration and smaller display/controls. Although the Bosch system is also compatible with gear integration, the Shimano will be an easier switch and more brand specific. Having tested a Shimano Steps system with integrated Di2 gear selection early last year, the shifting was seamless & really made sense. It's fully interacted with both the rider & the system: If the battery power and signals already exist; it makes perfect sense to use them to power / control all aspects of the bike - An all-in-one system! It's also nice to see a big player like Shimano back in the game, with the launch many years ago of the first ever standard Steps system it never really took off, it's nice to see Shimano have been working hard to produce more modern specific city / eMTB systems that work for different riders needs. We are sure the eMTB specific system will live up to the Shimano name. When can you get it? Well, it's just been announced this week at the Lake Garda Bike Festival as a preview. We are sure Shimano will have a lot more to offer when it will properly launch at EuroBike later on this year (August) where we expect to see the first Shimano E8000 Steps eMTB's. What does that mean to the end consumer? Manufacturers will already be working closely with Shimano to produce prototype bikes in time to show off at EuroBike. You'll be able to get your hands on actual bikes later on in the year, we'd expect at least October time 2016. See our Shimano E8000 equipped Mountain Bikes here - Shimano Electric Mountain Bikes.
On Sunday 17th April the E-Bikeshop owners Club ventured up to Cannock Chase for a great new ride location. What a fantastic day of riding it turned out to be! Best one yet?.. Many of us ventured up to Birmingham the night before and stayed at the Hilton hotel. We met for dinner on the Saturday night, followed by drinks and a good night's sleep (apart from the fire alarm going off at 5am in the morning!). Breakfast served @ 8am and then ready to ride. As a few of the fellow owners club members tend to travel down south we thought it only fair we schedule in a ride further north to even the odds. We are glad we did! We saw a few new faces which was great as always and some new technical terrain to ride. We met in the car park for 10:30am. After some new bike handovers and a natter fellow member Bernie briefed us for the day's ride. We nominated him team leader (because Ken wasn't there) because this is Bernie's home ground, so he knew his way around! We also invited Alex from eMTB coaching along to ride as this is also a local one to him, so nice to be led around this time. Top work chaps! A couple of us were on brand new bikes too so eager keen to get them setup, bed them in and start enjoying the trails. Out the car park and we were straight onto the Red trail which is essentially a big figure of 8 with a road crossing at the centre. The trail led straight out onto some boardwalk wooden structures which were fun and fast rolling, then onto some twistier singletrack. Lots of small rock gardens, small drops and tight twists made for a fun and flowy ride. Following on we entered 'Devils Staircase' which was fast looping turns down the side of the hill with small drops which made for exciting more eventful riding. After a short break, we crossed the road onto some climbing. In fact I think it was called 'Lung Buster' which was a long gradual climb to the top with tight trees to manoeuvre your bars through. Fortunately we are all on eBikes so the climb was fun over strenuous and we were up to the top in no time to enjoy the views. The next trail was great - The Monkey Trail. In fact we all decided to climb back up and do it again, lots of long sweeping berms and bumps you could get some decent air off if carrying enough speed. Here's a quick video of the strenuous climb: We then rode a few more singletrack sections before getting back to the road crossing and stopping for a cake and coffee. At this point (what usually happens) a few chaps were inquisitive about the eBikes so we let them have a quick go followed by smiles and a 'where can I get one of these?'. Then we crossed back over the bridge to complete the remaining sections that Cannock had to offer. Some more technical trails with small slab rock drops, tight trees and small wooden boardwalk crossings made for miles of fun all the way back to the visitor center. Conclusion In total we travelled approx 16 miles including the few trails we went back and did again, it's fair to say we had absolutely amazing weather with blue skies and the sun shining all day! Everyone absolutely loved it and we'll definitely be going back again soon. We had a couple of mishaps including one mechanical (quickly resolved) and a couple of falls, but everyone got straight back up and made it home safely. I think it's fair to say it had been one of the best rides yet! A great bunch of people although we were missing a couple of regulars (due to injury). All in all we had a great time with great company. Really looking forward to visiting Cannock Chase again. The next ride will be at Peaslake at the end of May. Already live on the club events section, you can sign up now. We will of course publish all the photos of this ride on the club page in the next few days, don’t forget to tag yourself in them. The E-Bikeshop Owners Club is a closed group of riders, if you have purchased a eBike from us and want to get involved, please get in touch.
On Sunday 27th March the E-Bikeshop Owners Club visited Aston Hill bike park. Of which turned out to be a wet & muddy ride around the XC track and around the surrounding forest. We all met in the main car park @ 10:30am. Aston Hill is a paid site, so after we all paid up and got the bikes setup, a quick briefing followed and we were ready for action. I counted 13 riders in total, so good to see so many people out on a rainy day. It was also great to see a few new faces, as the club grows this seems to be a common theme, so it's nice to meet new people and share the same passion we have for riding. It also makes for a mix of abilities to go out riding together. The plan was to head out and follow onto the green marked XC route to get warmed up. Then a few members could attack the DH sections if they were feeling ambitious. Unfortunately a wrong turn lead us straight onto a black run and thus a rather tricky descent down to the bottom of the hill. It's worth mentioning it had been raining non-stop the day before and the sticky mud / chalk conditions made it hard to even walk down the side of the hill, let alone ride the trails! I get the feeling a few of the new members were thinking: "What the hell have we signed up for!". Fortunately we all made it to the bottom (some sliding down on their backside I might add!). At the bottom a quick regroup led straight onto the Green XC trail. Which was much to the delight of many! I must admit at this point it was raining further and even the short steep climbs of the cross country route led for some tricky spots. A long climb to the top meant we could enjoy a little of the single track as we snaked up the hill. Fellow member Bernie's bike decided to play up at this point, fortunately we were on hand to rectify a small issue at the top, but it left him somewhat out of breath to say the least! As we were all sopping wet, the XC route was almost to the point of being un-rideable as they were so sloppy wet decided for a quick change of gloves and jackets at the main car park and led into the woods opposite for a longer run over some more natural terrain. This took in a mixture of road, bridlepath and forestry tracks. One track in particular was fast flowing and led to lots of mud splatter. Literally some were unrecognisable at the bottom of this trail! It's all part of it I suppose and glad everyone got stuck in! Unfortunately about an hour in the group was split at a junction and we got completely lost as one group went one way and the other another way. This led to a load of confusion with people darting off as we were trying to communicate and re-group. At this point we had covered many miles and we were at the limits of the bikes, so we managed to find a road and coordinate everyone to meet in a local town. On arrival we all had a well deserved bacon sarnie and much desired hot chocolate. Before a short road ride back to the main car park. Conclusion This ride was unlike no other! For one the weather was not on our side, as everyone knows this can spoil a ride before it's started. The trails had not had a chance to drain and this left a lot of sloppy mud everywhere we rode. The fact that we all got split up didn't help either. A lesson learned on this one I think. On the plus side we all returned safely and at least managed to get some miles under the belt. Plus not forgetting the social side and a good natter in between! Finally well done to the Cooke's in particular - Alli, Nigel & Julia done so well. We thank you for staying well spirited, keeping up morale & continuing to ride the duration of the ride. The next ride will be different - Promise! Really looking forward to the next ride, which will be at Cannock Chase at the end of next month. Already live on the club events section, you can sign up now. We will of course publish all the photos of this ride on the club page in the next few days, don’t forget to tag yourself in them. The E-Bikeshop Owners Club is a closed group of riders, if you have purchased a eBike from us and want to get involved, please get in touch.
We set out to take a look at the top 5 best looking electric mountain bikes for 2016. Remember we're not talking budget, components or specification. Just looks on this one! The new season is upon us and the eBike frenzy has taken off. With more and more manufacturers on board & some model ranges doubling in size we thought it only necessary to take a look at the top 5 (our opinion!) best looking electric bikes. Following a visit to EuroBike it's clear that it's now hard to find a manufacturer that doesn't offer something eAssited. Now time to round up the top 5: No1: Haibike xDuro DwnHill Pro We like that fact that Haibike have gone balls out on this one, not only does it look great, but it actually makes perfect sense if you sit back and look at the bigger picture - To go downhill you have to go uphill first, forget the uplifts or any of that walking lark. Why not ride up?! No2: Scott E-Genius 710 Plus Yes - You could argue that someone tripped over with a box of highlighter pens in the design room at Scott. But the 'in thing' is bright and vibrant at the moment. Scott certainly set the trend here with the addition of the +PLUS tyres. No3: Haibike Carbon Ultimate The Haibike Full Carbon Ultimate couldn't go without a mention not only because it looks the business, but if we are talking about the best looking bikes, who doesn't love carbon? From the wheels, frame, post, bars, saddle and even the cranks.. It's carbon heaven! No4: Lapierre Overvolt SX 800 Designed by 10 times world champion. Nico Vouilloz set out to create this full 170mm Enduro rig with clean lines that follow front to back and sleek finish this deserves to be in the top 5! We love the colour scheme on this one as much as we love the setup! No5: Haibike sDuro Full FatSix Either Haibike have gone bonkers or there's some logic behind it. Either way, rocking around on this badboy certainly sets the rider apart from the crowd. A full suspension fat bike! Spec aside this bike looks the nuts. We're sure it'll grip the trails as much the attention it attracts. Conclusion Yes, Haibike clearly headline here with 3/5 of the top spots! Be it their beautiful integration of the Yamaha & Bosch eSystems or the crazy lines and graphics. But their are also some new cards on the table with decent finishing kit and sleek lines. Here's a quick vid of Guido Tschugg rocking out the DH bike above in a little town in Croatia: One thing that is clear that eBikes have moved forward a hell of a way in the past few years. No longer is your stereotypical imagination of an eBike a shopper with duchess handlebars. But now anything up to a fully blown DH bike! We like the way things are moving. With this comes more adopters, more people that 'get it' and of course more people out riding - Which is the main aim of the game at the end of the day! Ready to ride longer, harder & faster? Click here to begin your eBike journey now.
On Sunday 28th February the E-Bikeshop Owners Club visited Bedgebury Forest Trail Center for the first time on an action packed day of riding across the Kent single track & XC. We all met in the main car park for 10:30am and after a quick setup on the bikes and a ride brief we set off. A couple of the owners club members had arrived early and already got a lap in before we set off, which was good because we could decide on which route to take. It was nice to see some new faces on this ride too, with some owners not long owning their new electric bikes so excited to get out and explore to put their new steeds through their paces and of course mingle with other eBikers. We all share the same passion! We decided to cut out the Blue section as this was mainly a family route consisting of flat fire roads, so we set off and after a short ride up a couple of tracks we were onto the red. A new member to the club was able to offer some guidance as this was his local trail center, so it was nice to be able to have someone confirm the routes etc, made day easier, thanks! It's noticeable that Bedgebury has spent some money on restoring the trails and it's clear a lot of hard work has gone into the routes. On the first bit of singletrack we entered their was fast rolling berms, a rock garden and short switchbacks. This set the pace for the day. Fun! The red route is approx 13km (8 miles), there is also a Black section that leads off the Red as you cross a fire road, we decided that we'd do the standard Red trail once, then go round and do it again to include some of the Black sections the second time round. Halfway round the Red it was noticeable that although the forest is a fairly small place and not hugely hilly, the actual terrain / gradients were actually pretty tiring, the routes plotted through the trees were marked out well with plenty of signposts and trail start and end checkpoints. The guys have done a great job reforming this trail center. Some trails had man made rock gardens within them, some downhill, some flatter and some were on gradient. The uphill rock gardens were surprisingly tricky as they zapped most of your energy, fortunately we all had the extra grunt of the eBikes to help out! After a lap of the Red we had a little break to natter and chill and then set off for another lap. First we followed some directions to the 'Bike Park' but unfortunately on arrival it's clear it was no longer had had been flattened some time ago. Fortunately we had the extended Black sections to think about and keep the excitement flowing. At one point Ken was lagging behind and as we waited decided to show off his wheelie skills, at this point (when everyone was watching) he decided to pop a wheelie straight off the side of the trail and ended up.. You guessed it spilled on the floor. More practice next time ken! The Black sections were not that hard to be fair. Albeit the big rock entrances and a few smallish drops here and there, everyone enjoyed them! A few places on the red were really flowy with high berms and switchbacks, this was real fun to blast down and at one point we had a massive flowing train from top to bottom consisting of about 15 riders. It's worth noting we took a avid MTB'r & non eBiker out with us on this ride. His impression before getting on the bike was the typical "your all cheats" (never ridden and eBike mentality) after 5 hours of riding his words were: Once dialled in, you're tearing up the trails. Great fun, grinning from ear to ear! Finally we took the 'Cake Run' that followed back down to the car park. This run was excellent and really fast, with lots of twists and turns and mini jumps. Once of which goes between two trees and you hold your breath as the handlebars only just seem to fit between them! Conclusion Throughout the whole day we didn't have any mechanicals, not even 1 puncture. Which was ace! The weather was once again on our side, we warmed up fairly quickly on the trails and the sun made an appearance on a few occasions too. At the end we were a few short who had to dart off early, but we stuck the bikes aside and grabbed a coffee and cake at the fabulous lake setting next to the car park. It was good to catch up with everyone and share a little banter of the day's riding. It's safe to say we were all pretty zonked after this one, the route wasn't massively long but it was certainly tiring! Really looking forward to the next ride, which will be at Aston Hill Bike Park. Already live on the club events section, you can sign up now. We will of course publish all the photos of this ride on the club page in the next few days, don’t forget to tag yourself in them. The E-Bikeshop Owners Club is a closed group of riders, if you have purchased a eBike from us and want to get involved, please get in touch.
We grabbed one of the new Lapierre Overvolt FS 700 2016 eMTB's to play with at our local trails to see how well this eBike performs & give it a full review. Let's start by saying we'd been thoroughly excited by the 2016 range of electric mountain bikes from Lapierre. With an eMTB range that's more than doubled in size and now with the Bosch / Yamaha options offering something for everyone. Lapierre have been high up in the regular bike game for some time now, but it's nice to see them taking the electric mountain bike scene seriously. Even Nico Vouilloz (10 times world champion) is on board as Lapierre's chief in testing and design, he now rides a eBike! What do you get? Let's firstly look at what you actually get for your money? For a sub £4k eBike, three thousand seven hundred to be precise you get rather a lot: RockShox Pike's up front with a Monarch RT at the rear to match. Full Shimano XT 11 Speed coupled with Shimano disc brakes on matchmaker clamps. A Mavic wheelset on Formula sealed through axle hubs wrapped with Schwalbe's finest Hans Dampf tyres out the box. The bike is then finished of with Nico Voulliouz's very own signature bars and an Easton finishing kit. Electric wise you'd need not ask for any more. It features the brand new Bosch Performance CX line motor with increased torque and assistance. You also get the top spec 500Wh Bosch eBike battery pack for extended days in the saddle. Introduction First and foremost, let me get this out the way; we had an upcoming E-Bikeshop Owners Club ride and I knew this shiney new Lapierre FS700 eBike was due in any minute. Fortunately it came in time and after some brief fine tuning the bike was ready to roll. However, on the day I was a little nervous having given up my other eMTB to a colleague to ride while I rode the Lapierre FS 700.. The reason why I am mentioning this is because I really like my regular eMTB, I know exactly what it does, how it rides & I feel it's perfect. So from here the Lapierre had a lot to live up to, I was dubious that I wouldn't enjoy it as much and as ride time is becoming more and more rare for me these days, every minute of it is valued! Ride Time I took the FS 700 to Peaslake to explore the Surrey hills, full of singletrack, twists, turns, climbs, jumps and trails. The perfect place to put the Lapierre eMTB through it's paces. Straight out the car park a daunting climb sits ahead of us. Bosch CX system It has been raining the previous week so the surface was real sloppy, fortunately the Hans Dampf tyres kicked in here and I found the increased torque of the new Bosch CX motor completely take the sting out of the climb, staying in the saddle with the weight over the back end the bike flew up and just kept on pulling all the way to the top! I am used to riding the standard Performance Bosch motor and the CX was noticeably different, smoother, torquier and quieter under strain. Even giving it a hammering across the Surrey Hills in typical UK weather! Suspension Now to the singletrack downhill riding, I had previously had a quick tinker with the shocks to set up for my weight. At this point I have to say I have been a Fox suspension man for many years so was keen to see what RockShox; in particular the Pike's had to offer. The front end felt lighter than I was used to with the bike popping over roots and drops with ease. I could tell why Lapierre have crossed their OST+ rear suspension design over from the famous Zesty and Spicy bikes. The rear end hugged the trail and zapped up every bump I could throw at it. The rear Monarch did well to ensure maximum traction was felt without bogging when getting back on the pedals hard. Let's not forget the dual stage setting on the rear, should you wish to dart up a fire road with ease by locking it out. The Pike's really took me by surprise, I see why so many trail riders voted to bring back the Pike's and why they were a sell out last year! I felt the forks a lot lighter on the front end and seemed a little more progressive, they soaked up the trail, felt smooth and although some say their isn't as much adjustment as the Fox Float's I'm more of a just-get-on-and-ride kinda guy. In fact I left the compression damping fully open at the front and just let the bike do the work all day! I thoroughly enjoyed riding the setup, no quarms there. Drivetrain / Brakes I was really excited to try out the new Shimano XT 11 speed setup. Having only ridden Sram 11 speed on a previous bike of mine I am a Shimano guy at heart so was looking forward to the new XT equivalent. As with all things XT you come to expect super sleek components with hints of silver polished surfaces and smooth crisp operation. I have to say the new 11 Speed XT is just that. Moving away from 2x10 setups and onto the more versatile 1x11 the wide range cassette really gives you maximum versatility and optimum gear ranges both bottom and top. The extra range of 11-42 over traditional 11-36t setups mean that that extra gear or so was present when climbing, although I didn't use the 42t much of the ride it really came into it's realm when I passed 5 other eMTB's on a climb of which I was the only one who made it up without stopping, the light 42t worked in harmony with the extra torque of the Bosch CX motor to step it up a notch and allow me to spin freely up the climb with ease. Needless to say the bottom range of the gears meant I could hit maximum attack on the flatter fire roads to get to the next trail section swiftly, I didn't find myself running out of gears at either end of the spectrum. Lapierre have matched the drivetrain with Shimano disc brakes on larger rotors on the FS700. As expected the servo action of the Shimano levers felt smooth and progressive and allowed a decent amount of modulation to come to a halt quickly without locking up. Whilst these were faultless for the UK singletrack I was riding, I'd imagine they would fade a little for alpine riding on long descents. But for the type of rising I was doing; short bursts of single track, fire roads, technical sections and climbs they were great. Finishing Kit The Lapierre Overvolt FS 700 is finished off with Easton stem, seatpost and Nico's own design signature bars. I liked the wide and pinned feel to the bars and the shorter stem (I was riding the Medium frame) which suited me well. To round off the components, Lapierre have spec'd the bike with a Mavic wheelset on sealed through axle hubs and wrapped these with the famous Schwalbe Hans Dampf tyres which my tyres of choice anyway.. Ideal! Conclusion The Lapierre FS 700 performed well and exceeded my expectations. It was felt light for an eBike and really flowy, the bike is well balanced and a little air time just came natural on the bike. Without feeling front or rear end heavy the bike was a whippet to ride. A short video opportunity: You'll notice in the pictures, the only thing I changed was the straight saddle post to a semi release dropper post, in fact it's about the only thing the bike is missing. Adding a decent set of pedals and a dropper made this bike complete. It left me wondering why they didn't factory fit a dropper... But then I remembered that the bike is only £3700 and rivals its competitors by hundreds considering the spec: XT 11 Speed, Pike RC's up front, Monarch at the rear, Mavic Wheels, Hans Dampf and not forgetting the latest and greatest Bosch Performance CX motor and highest capacity 500Wh battery pack. What more could you want. This is a killer bike for the swag! Hope you enjoyed the review. Check out the full spec here: Lapierre Overvolt FS 700 2016 eBike.
On Sunday 31st January 2016 the E-Bikeshop Owners Club visited Peaslake to check out some new hidden trails that we had not ridden before. A fun filled day with a great turnout. We met at Holmbury village hall at 10.30am where there was enough parking for us all to gather. After setting the bikes up and a quick brief we were all excited to set off and get riding. For a late Jan ride we had 13 people attend this ride with a couple of new faces included too. This ride was led by fellow E-Bikeshop Owners Club member Ken also part of the 100% club!. Ken and Chris ride the Peaslake area frequently, it's their local play heaven, so they had planned out a new route for us to tackle that also included two new trails! This time of year the trails can get very muddy, we had plenty of rain in the previous week and a late January ride was set to be a sticky one. Considering it was supposed to be raining all day, the weather actually held off and we didn't see a spec of rain all day, awesome! The first climb out of the car park was a little ambitious, with a steep climb over slippery mud, it set the par of what to expect, but to our surprise the trials were impressively flowy with only sticky parts in some places. We rode up to a the famous 'Yoghurt Pots' trail first which to our surprise was actually closed for trail maintenance. So we then headed straight over to 'Telegraph Row' which we have done before in the summer but this time round the terrain was a lot different and it almost felt like a completely different ride. This then led onto a new really slippery trail that cambered through the trees and ended with a muddy bog which I don't think anyone actually managed to pedal out of! Unfortunately a time to rest naturally came at the end of this trail and club member Bernie had a puncture. So after a quick pitstop and some arm pumping inflating a new tube, we were back up and riding in no time. After a few short climbs we headed over to the 'Barry Knows Best' trail. Which we all loved last time we were here. The trails had loosened up a little since we last visited, but despite the soggy ground, the trail was still fast and flowy with lots of berns, twists and turns down the side of the hill with some extra jump additions should you wish to take that line. We all enjoyed it so much most of us decided to ride back up and do it again, whilst some stayed at the bottom to catch some breath and a few snaps. From here we then crossed the road and headed up a killer climb called 'Heart Attack'. Yes, you can guess why it's called this, it really is a shocker. Fortunately we all made it up on the eBikes, but it's still hard going even with the assist! Once at the top we rode a short distance over to a new trail Chris and Ken had found that darted off in a sly opening in the trees. It's one of those trails you could easily ride past without noticing, fortunately we had the boys local knowledge as we navigated down this one! This trail was a little more demanding with fast flows, drops and jumps should you wish to ride it fast. If not you can easily navigate around them. We played here for a while as a few of the members quickly gained confidence and decided to practice some air time! This trail was fantastic, we actually rode up from the bottom and did it again, that's the beauty of being on eBikes I suppose! You can tackle the climb again to find the fun descents and repeat them as many times as possible! From here we took some more trails over to the Peaslake village store to grab some refreshments. At this point, Ken decided he had left his keys at the top of the last trail, and asked to pinch my brand new Lapierre 2016 bike I was testing to blast over and find the keys. A while later he returned with a smile on his face, at this point I thought he had found the keys, but he said they weren't up there! We later established they were in his bag the whole time! A great ploy to get some extra ride time on my new test pilot! After a slice of cake, coffee and of course a natter we headed back up the hill and rode 'Barry Knows Best' for another time, we then headed over to 'Yoghurt Pots' to find it was back open so we had a blast going down that. Finally a few of us extended to route to include one more trail that involved a demanding climb to get to, but once at the top we enjoyed a fast long trail back down to meet the others back at the car park. Conclusion All in all it was a fab ride with the usual lot and some new faces which was nice. It's great to see so many out on the bikes in January, it'd be easy to take a pass when looking out the window, but the weather held off and we all had a blast! It's worth noting the ride didn't go trouble free, we had a couple of mechanicals: 1 Puncture, 1 snapped chain link & one bent hanger. Ken also had an error on his bike, but we think it's because he rides too fast! Many thanks to all who came, glad everyone enjoyed it, a special thanks to Chris and Ken for leading the ride, the banter and being such all round great chaps. Really looking forward to the next ride, of which we are already planning for... We will of course publish all the photos on the club page in the next few days, don't forget to tag yourself in them. The E-Bikeshop Owners Club is a closed group of riders, if you have purchased a eBike from us and want to get involved, please get in touch.
We are proud to announce a new world electric bike long distance record has now been set by e-bikeshop.co.uk sponsored - The E-Bike Cycle Tourists. After 901 hours of e-biking over 220 days at an average of 75 kilometres per day across 12 countries, the e-bikeshop.co.uk-sponsored e-Bike Cycle Tourists have set a new world e-bike long distance record. On January 20 Gary and Rachel Corbett passed the old mark of 16,047kms (9971 miles) – which was set by German Maximilian Semsch who circumnavigated Australia in 2012 – in the Algarve region of Portugal to officially claim the coveted world long distance e-bike record as their own. Over the past nine months they have cycled through England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Holland, Spain and Portugal and are due to fly to Cyprus in early February where they will continue cycling while waiting out their Schengen and UK visa exclusion period. Far from calling it quits now that they have claimed the record, Gary and Rachel have recommitted to continue cycling, with the aim now to have cycled at least 25,000 kilometres by the time they return to Australia in August 2016. From there the plan at this stage is to continue e-biking in Australia during the Australian 2016/17 summer before travelling to the USA in 2017 to continue their record-breaking ride. With at least two more years of e-biking in front of them, who knows what their kilometre total will be when they finally call it quits! The bottom line, Gary said, was to eventually set a record that will take someone else a “hell of a lot of cycling to break”. The e-Bike Cycle Tourists chose to ride Haibike xDuro Trekking RX E-Bikes with the Bosch Performance crank drive motor and 400wh battery system for the record attempt and are towing Tout Terrain Mule single wheel trailers. Since setting out from the e-bikeshop.co.uk shop in Farnham on April 23, 2015, Gary said both of their Haibike Trekking e-bikes had performed brilliantly and had not missed a beat while riding across all sorts of terrain in temperatures ranging from below freezing to more than 40 degrees. “While we have gone through a lot of consumable items such as brake pads, brake rotors, tyres, chains, chain cassettes, rear wheels and a Sram hub, the Bosch performance crank drive motor and Haibike e-bike combination on both bikes has not missed a beat, it has been amazing,” he said. The only thing that had to be replaced was a Bosch controller on one of the bikes and this was only after it was damaged after the e-bike fell over. Wherever and whenever possible during their travels Gary and Rachel have promoted e-bikes as a fun, healthy and environmentally friendly form of transport. They said the interest in their e-bike long distance record attempt had been overwhelming, with people at times queuing up to talk to them about their trip and their Haibike e-bikes/Tout Terrain trailer combination. “We have also done radio interviews, have been featured in several newspaper stories and in specialist e-bike/cycling magazines, the interest in our trip has been amazing,” Gary said. “We have also had people – mostly in the over 40 age bracket – who have emailed us to tell us that we are an ‘inspiration’ and that our trip has motivated them to purchase an e-bike and to start cycling after a break of many years or to switch from a traditional bike to an e-bike. “This is fantastic given that all we are doing is what we love to do – cycle, but I guess we have proven that if two people of our age – 60 and 57 – can set a world e-bike long distance record, then e-bikes are suitable for anyone of any age – no matter what distances are cycled.” Both Gary and Rachel also said they were personally delighted to have set a new world e-bike record after cycling for an average of 75 kilometres per day during 220 days of cycling. With just six days of wet weather cycling during that time, Rachel said they had been incredibly lucky with the weather. “I think we are the only people in history who have cycle toured in Scotland and never saw rain,” she joked. “We also only had one day of rain in Ireland, which was amazing given the dire predictions before we arrived from so many people of what we could expect from the weather.” Above all else the e-Bike Cycle Tourists claim they are delighted to have proven conclusively that it is possible to go long distance cycle touring on an e-bike. Gary said they were told by many people before they set off that what they were planning was not possible due to the daily drama of having to charge their e-bike batteries given the decision not to carry a back-up solar charging system. “While it is true that we did have reservations before setting out about how easy it would be to find mains electricity outlets on a daily basis to charge our Bosch batteries, the truth of the matter is that we should never have worried,” Gary said. We discovered that there are always many charging options available from campgrounds, cafes, friendly farmers, e-bike charging stations and even when all else failed from people whose doors we knocked on. When you have to get out of your comfort zone to get your batteries charged it is amazing how many wonderful people you meet who you would otherwise have never spoken to. “On different occasions this led to complete strangers offering us accommodation, meals, showers, coffees, maps, bike servicing and in Ireland a call out was even put out over Facebook for the e-bike community to show us a “real” Irish welcome. The result was a long list of people throughout Ireland who selflessly offered all sorts of assistance. “We have had such an amazing time over the past nine months that we don’t want to stop, we intend to keep pedalling and to continue to promote everything that is great about e-biking.” With thanks to both Gary & Rachel (The e-Bike Cycle Tourists) above for the interview.
With the launch of the new Gocycle G3 a big question on the horizon will be, what's the difference between the Gocycle G2 & G3? You should find this article helpful where the difference will be explained. Gocycle have not changed the format of the bike completely - Why? Because if something works, why change it? Therefore the same design characteristics of the frame geometry, angles, wheelbase, wheel size, posture & overall size remain the same, great news! What has changed are some of the vital components and the technology used within, this article outlines some of the main differences between the G2 and the G3. Visuals The first step will be how the Gocycle G3 looks vs the G2. They look very similar, however you'll notice their is a fancy new colour scheme available - Electric Blue. This colour looks amazing in the flesh and is a great addition to the current palette of Black, White or Grey. Lighting The new G3 has completely integrated lighting cables, whereas the G2 has internal cables that extrude the frame on each end. This gives a cleaner look and neater installation. It's worth noting here that although the lights are available as an optional extra on both Gocycle G2 & G3. They look similar but there are not backwards compatible between models. The new G3 lighting system has different bolts and mounts. Daytime Running Light The new Gocycle G3 has an integrated daytime running light for extra visibility over the G2. The standard dash on the G2 does not have this feature, nor can it be retrofitted. On the G3 it's completely integrated within the dash module. Dashboard The dashboard see's some revisions for the 3rd generation over the Gocycle G2. Firstly we see an edge-to-edge display for a sleeker look. We also see some addition to the dash LED's too. The addition of the 4 blue LED's represent the front daytime running light settings. Along with integrated rotary shifters, re-designed brake levers and comfort grips. Battery Range The Gocycle G2 has a 10.75Ah battery whereas Gocycle have managed to fit a larger 13.5Ah battery into the same space on the G3. This leads to up to 25% more range whilst keeping the weight to a tee. The range figures calculated (depending on rider input) on the Gocycle G2 offer up to 64km (40 miles) whereas the G3 now hosts up to 80km (50 miles). Whilst we are on the battery we also see a new BMS for faster charging over the G2 and also a moulded in charger connector, so the charger connection will feel more positive and should prevent the rubber seal on the G2 ejecting the charger plug. Comfort The grips on the G2 are standard round grips, whereas the G3 offers oval ergonomic grips for greater comfort. The saddle on both G2 & G3 has some small revisions but remains the same comfort. The pedals on the Gocycle G2 were rubber moulded whereas the G3 pedals have been widened & added some extra grip on top, they also benefit from new quality sealed bearings. PitStop Wheels The wheels on the Gocycle G2 and G3 remain a similar shape, the lightweight wheels actually feature a different locking mechanism on the G3, as like the G2 the cam levers remain, but the user has a secondary Hex Lock system to show that the wheels are positively engaged. Weight Weight is always important on any portable / folding bike, but even more so on a electric bike version. The fact that the Gocycle is portable is key to it's design, it's actually one of the lightest / smallest compacted electric bikes on the market at 16kg. Therefore it's important that the G3 doesn't way lots more than the G2 even with all the new features and bigger battery. We are surprised that Gocycle have managed to keep the weight the same across both generations, the G3 only adds 300 grams to the overall weight! Conclusion As you can see there have been many changes between the Gocycle generations. Of course there are many other changes from the G3 over the G2, certainly too many to delve into detail. But to name a few: New high quality bearings, improved fitting hub cap, concealed lighting cables, integrated seat tube collar, kickstand tab for easier deployment, new and larger heatsink cap, motor vibration mounts, the crank wave washers have been reduced to one apart, new integrated steerer and stem adjuster, a pivot back plate, pedal rpm magnet is now removed, a new anti chain-slap module & even the gearbox bearing arrangement had been modified. Want to learn more? You can view the full specification / overview on both models here: Gocycle G2 & Gocycle G3. You may also find our in depth review of the G3 helpful here: Gocycle G3 Ride Review
Last week I had the opportunity to pinch a new Gocycle G3 prototype electric bike for a day to bring an exclusive review of some of the new upgrades and features to you. If you're not up-to-date with the features of the Gocycle, check out the Gocycle G2 to see just how brilliant this eBike is. Gocycle have been working hard over the past few years to refine the 2nd Generation folding electric bike further, based on customer feedback. So how can you improve the perfect you might be thinking? I set out to ride and test the latest revisions on the new Gocycle G3. While I only had a limited time to review the bike (loaned a secret prototype!) I was sworn to secrecy until today.. Let's go! How does it look? The first thing I noticed was the traditional Gocycle style of clean lines and simplicity. It's really nice to see Gocycle stick to this front as the G3 looks just as elegant as the G2, albeit with a host of new technology and futuristic features. Simple but stylish, I was handed the G3 in it's folded, packed down form. I'll come to the docking station further down, but the first thing that was apparent is how small it was as it was plonked down in the corner of the office. New Features? Eager to get looking, I had it up to full form in seconds ready to catch some close up's of some of the new gizmo's. Below I am going to delve a little deeper into some of the changes for the new Gocycle G3. This is not a detailed overview of the whole bike and how it works, you can see that along with the full specification on our website here - Gocycle G3 Specification. Daylight Running Light One of the biggest differences I noticed straight away was the long white line at the front of the dash. Completely built into the handlebar / dash display this light strip looked fully integrated and subtle. The Gocycle G3 is designed by an ex formula one engineer with a heavy automotive background, Richard Thorpe saw that European law changed for all automobiles to include daylight running lights (DRL's) as standard. Whilst this is an electric bike and not required by law, Richard saw the safety aspects of DRL's and set to work to integrate it into the Gocycle G3 design. After all a safer rider is a happy rider! When you pedal the light automatically comes on to allow extra visibility at both night and daytime. The DRL will help other road users see you coming and comes with no added hassle as the patented light pipe technology requires no maintenance / bulbs and draws the power from the Gocycle itself. A complete all in one solution! New Dash Display While we are at the front of the bike, the cockpit has had some revisions too. The new display has been extended for easier viewing and a cleaner seamless look. You'll notice some blue led lights here too. These indicate the mode of the DRL at the front, you can navigate between high and low beam, off & a flashing mode with ease. The red LED's on the left indicate battery capacity in 10% increments and the right LED's indicate speed. The LED's in the middle represent the electronic gear selection. The new display looks far more futuristic and elegant with edge to edge designs that flow over the levers - a nice little touch! Ergo Grips & Shifters More upfront features include some comfy new ergonomic handlebar grips. These were instantly noticeable as soon as you hold the bars. Not only to they feel great but also allow more blood flow in the hand and less strain on your lower arms on longer rides. Also new in the grips are integrated two way rotary shifters. A big step forward from the old buttons mounted below. I must say that these feel really positive as you twist them either way and the instant activation of the control on the dash inspired confidence. On the right, the new shifters allow the user to change up & down the electronic gearing, another new features as previously you could only change up & wait for the Gocycle to auto shift down. On the left hand you can use the shifter to navigate the DRL light system between modes and it also doubles up as the on-demand power control (when enabled). Not grip / shifter related; but you'll also notice in the picture above the new revised brake levers with a much more stealthy look, it's easier on the eye and feel nicer to control on the ride. New Disc Brakes The new disc brake design is aesthetically pleasing to the eye. They also offer easier pad removal, completely internally routed hoses and are slimmer for a cleaner overall look. You'll also notice the front motor had had a few tweaks, with some added bling and neater integration onto the new Gocycle single sided fork. Also note the discs are covered for added stealth and keeps little fingers away! These are also colour coded & vented for extra cooling. New Pedals A smaller tweak albeit a noticeable difference; the new slimline pedals not only look and feel part of the overall quality of the bike, but offer added grip in slippery conditions. This was more apparent when I was actually riding the bike, the G2 pedals offer a rubber surface, whereas the new G3 pedals offer a wider platform and added grip on top. For your average commuter riding in all weather this will help greatly. The pedals also feature new high quality sealed bearings for all conditions. Bigger Battery A big change for the G3 comes with it's higher capacity battery. Gocycle have managed to increase the capacity of the battery, improve the BMS technology & the best bit? It still fits within the frame for a completely integrated approach. The new bigger battery hosts up to 25% more range for those riders looking to travel further, I am told that the Gocycle G3 now has a range of up to 80km (50miles) depending on rider input. In this picture you'll notice more red anodized bling which really adds to the overall quality feel of this electric bike. A small tweak I also noticed when unfolding the Gocycle earlier was that they have improved the shock plunger so it no longer flops down (the opposite way to where you want it) when removed, this made folding so much easier as you located the plunger into the LockShock itself. New PitStop Wheel Locking The PitStop wheels are one of the best things I love about the Gocycle. Again derived from Formula 1 technology, this design is so simple, the fact that you can remove the wheels in seconds by use of the cam levers; it's just ace. However previously you got a satisfying click as it engaged, it wasn't always obvious. The new G3 wheel, above (with the wheel removed) you can see the PitStop wheel now has improvements with the cam levers to show a un-locked padlock. You can also see the three triangles do not align. When the cam levers are down, pictured above, you can see that the three triangles simply rotate into position and a locked padlock appears in the window. This is great as it adds safety to the eBike and you can be sure that the wheel is firmly in situ, neat huh? Portable Docking Station As suggested above; the glorious new Gocycle G3 arrived in my office in its folded form, this time neatly packed onto a specific colour coded docking station. The Gocycle sits firmly in position and a protective cover (not pictured) can be zipped on top to add extra protection. To remove the Gocycle from the docking station it was simply the case of just popping the wheels out of the base, unscrewing the thumb turn away from the crank and the whole G3 just pulls away. Such a simple solution to the all common storage problems. Preview Video: So how does it ride? Quite simply, the Gocycle G2 was a great machine to ride and the G3 had a hard job to compete! Never-the-less the ride was much the same if not a little better. The motor seemed to be more responsive and picked up quicker & the Gocycle was a comfy as ever to ride with the new components. One this I did notice was how responsive the gear changes were, both up & down when shifting. You could quickly navigate these using the rotary shifters which really spring back positively in your hand. In comparison to other shifters I have used on other bikes, I was expecting them to feel flimsy or floppy but the G3 upped the game. Whilst I only got a short time to ride the new Gocycle G3, as the winter evening approached the Daytime Running Lights came in real handy. As you can see above it certainly does a good job adding some viewing light into the equation too! I was also assured that the prototype model was not running all the latest firmware updates and I should expect to see even more responsiveness to the controls, shifting and power engagement which is now in it's final approval ahead of production. One of the things that always staggers me is the positioning the Gocycle gives. You'd expect it to feel small and pokey when you ride it, but it doesn't. Now agreed I was so excited to get it out the door, I didn't set the saddle height up etc. But the ergonomic V design to the bike makes it ride like a regular sized machine. Believe it or not the wheelbase is the same as our regular bikes, which is hard to believe when you see it folded into the small docking station. Conclusion I am surprised at what Gocycle have managed to achieve from an already fantastic product. I think the fact that they're engineers at heart, really shows off in the design & structure of the product. Let's not forget that the features listed above are only some of the things I noticed in the short time I had the G3. It's not just the external components that have changed, there's a host of new internal additions that are worthy of a mention too, including: New high quality bearings, improved fitting hub cap, concealed lighting cables, integrated seat tube collar, kickstand tab for easier deployment, new and larger heatsink cap, motor vibration mounts, the crank wave washers have been reduced to one apart, new integrated steerer and stem adjuster, a pivot back plate, pedal rpm magnet is now removed, a new anti chain-slap module & even the gearbox bearing arrangement had been modified. On the software side the Gocycle G3 benefits from loads of updates, the battery has seen significant upgrades too in respect of the BMS (battery management system) which now offers an improved charge & sleep management. On the software side of things, the new Gocycle Connect smartphone app is to be launched to celebrate the G3. Whilst I have not had a chance to play with the finished version I am told the new application (available on both Android & App Store) with additional parameters like distance / time travelled, calorie burn, mpg, litres saved, battery capacity, adjust the top assisted speed & even check the weather! More on that to follow, watch this space! Anyway big words aside, what does this all mean? Simply - The Gocycle G3 is better than ever! I can see the portable docking station being one of the advancements that really pays off. With manufacturers looking at neat ways to integrate eco friendly mobility it won't be long until we see these built into boats and car boots for the perfect Gocycle storage solution. Exclusive Product Preview Video: Do you need one? Of course! Need - No.. Want - Yes! It's not until you have ridden the Gocycle until you realise what you'd be without. What we really meant was is it worth the wait over the current G2? The larger range, improved components and features get the thumbs up from me. The tech savvy will no doubt want the latest and greatest & the vast majority of us will always pick the latest tech available. Never-the-less some savvy buyers will notice the £500 price difference and opt in to pick up one of the limited amount of Gocycle G2 bikes left. View the complete specification & features on the dedicated Gocycle G3 pre-order page here. Those lucky enough to be on the list will start receiving the new 'Electric Blue' G3 in March with the Black & White variants to follow slightly later on.
So nice to see some feedback in out of the blue. This review just came in from a customer, purchased in June 2015, now 2500km into his Haibike xDuro Trekking RX electric bike. Where it started I went to pick up the Haibike Trekking RX from E-Bikeshop in person. After payment I was shown to a nice shiny bike and given a few useful pointers on details of using and riding one of these bikes e.g. how to keep the (optional) battery cover in one piece, battery charging tactics and the difference between the SRAM shifters on this bike and the Shimano ones I am used to. One thing I had not been warned about were the four prominent e-bike store stickers stuck on the bike on delivery. They are arguably louder than Haibike's own branding. Whilst I am quite happy to recommend Martin and his business I would rather do so verbally than by riding a two wheeled billboard. The stickers are removable but because you have to do it letter by letter it takes 20x longer than it takes Martin to stick them on! How's the eBike? The Haibike Trekking bike is - as advertised - a very nice machine. The Bosch motor is more than adequately powerful to help propel bike, rider (80kg+) and two well loaded panniers up a several percent incline at 15mph with no more than an ordinary brisk pedalling effort. Initially the effect seems magical as the intervention of the motor appears to suspend the laws of physics a little. The build quality of the electric bike seems as good as I am used to from more conventional quality bike manufacturers. Given that this is a bike with with mudguards, lights, etc. you do get the occasional period of amusement hunting down clicks, creaks and cracks but no more so than usual in my experience. Bosch assistance modes Of the four support modes I tend to use "Tour" which gives noticeable support but (like the other modes) cuts off above 15mph leaving a bit of space for exercise. "Eco" more or less negates the weight of the bike and little more so it largely feels like riding an ordinary bike this size. "Sport" adds a little more zip, I use it when feeling a little weaker or more tired when going up a bit of incline. "Turbo" is borderline silly powerful and I only use it when going up larger and significant hills or (on one occasion) when riding into a gale force wind and rainstorm. Martin kindly did the Bosch Nyon upgrade on this bike and it was well worth it. The mapping and navigation works well but for me the ability to configure to display to show speed, cadence and power (among other things) displayed how I want them is invaluable. It allows me to pace myself as well as the battery in an efficient way. In practice the battery has never run out on me but in order to make this so I have used the electric support a little more sparingly on a couple of longer rides. Factory Accessories All the conventional touring electric bike accessories do the job as intended. SKS mudguards are among the best. The pannier rack with a black powder-coat finish carries even heavier loads well but is somewhat prone to scratching and scuffing where the pannier bags touch/rub over time. This is easily rectified (jot of Hammerite) and/or prevented (black tape on contact area). The BOSCH eBike battery powered light is more than good enough for commuting along lanes that have no street lighting whatsoever. Finally the kick stand works very well indeed both when the bike is loaded with bags and when it is not. It is extra handy when inconsiderate fellow cyclists have taken all the slots in the bike rack at work and I can just park next to it with decorum and grace (and a really heavy steel chain lock). Upgraded accessories Accessories which I have added to the xDuro Trekking RX and which give me pleasure are: + Ergon handlebar grips: I find these the best of their kind and I have them on most of my bikes. + Suntour NCX suspension seatpost: works remarkably well. I clean and oil it every 500km and it works smoothly and quietly. It does not do what a full suspension setup does but it handles inferior road surfaces and the occasional speed bump with ease and it even makes a reasonable attempt at smoothing gravel tracks. + Altura Morph Backpack Pannier: a "convertible" pannier backpack that actually works. There are slight compromises in that it is not the biggest pannier bag and not the very best backpack but it remains a very usable pannier bag and it is more than good enough to be used as a backpack on days when I don't cycle. Health benefits As for the effect on health I do not doubt that riding an electric bike is not the best way to train for the Tour de France! Having said that, if you don't overuse the electric support you most definitely do get exercise (and with the Nyon unit you can quantify it). Personally I also find the electric support is a great excuse remover even if you only use it sparingly. On days when a little sniffly or feeling a little less well the temptation to skip the bike is much less. You know that if you really shouldn't feel up to it you can always cheat and let the bike do the work but in practice (so far at least) that never happens and you pedal away anyway, feeling better on arrival as you so often do when cycling. What's the verdict? When reading about eBikes you see a number of comments over and over again. Two common ones are that they allow you to commute without sweating and that they will have negative impact of health and fitness because the electrics do the work. I feel both of these observations need a little nuance. I am happy I bought this bike. It feels like money well spent & I use it as often as I reasonably can. I expect I could do my commute without sweating at all if I put the bike in "Turbo" mode and stayed under the 15 mph motor cut-off limit. In practice I much prefer to push it over that limit a little from time to time and I use the lower support levels. This means I do sweat a little now and then but not to any extent that a half decent clothing base layer can't handle and a shower on arrival at work is not required at all. The good and the bad points summed up:- With thanks to Roger Francis for this long term review on the Haibike xDuro Trekking RX eBike.
December saw another E-Bikeshop Owners Ride. This one was different, between xmas & new year everyone was eager to get out on the electric mountain bikes, we had to excite! As many of the owners club were busy in the run up to Christmas we planned to join forces with Alex @ eMTB Coaching who was also running a social ride that day. Alex is a friend of the club and we have spent many a ride with his coaching company. The last set in Wales for a day's training and fun on the Welsh slopes. That's a whole other story, but it was great, so deserves a mention. This will actually be the third time the club appeared back at Swinley this year, but it's so much fun, everyone was up for it. With trail changes, weather and different lines, Swinley Forest trails just keep on giving! Anyway, back to the ride.. Getting started We all met in the main car park at Swinley Forest, Bracknell for 10am to promptly set off. Everyone was eager to get out on the trial and burn off some of the calories earned over the xmas week. First up was the mild Blue trail. It was clear from the off that the group was just far too big, with many 'analogue' bikers out too. The trails quickly become clogged, so we took the decision to split from the main group and let some leeway so we could all ride at our own pace. This was good because it meant we were not waiting around or getting stuck on the trails behind other bikers. We followed the Blue route for many miles before splitting off and then joining the Red trail half way round. The Red trail offers slightly harsher terrain and is a little more technical. Onto the Red trail Last time we visited the first part of the Red trail, the 'Tank Traps' section of the trail was closed for felling. Fortunately this time round it was back open so we could enjoy the tight twists and turns on offer. We returned to 'Jump Gulley' half way round the red trail to find to our disappointment it had been flattened out. We played in this for quite a while on our last visit with lots of table top jumps and drops. The forestry commission saw far too many accidents and had to take the decision to close this part of the trail center. This then followed onto the top of the hill, from here you can continue the Red route, but we decided to have a few runs down the downhill sections first. Everyone enjoyed it so much we ended up taking in some new sections of the trails we had never done before. One of which was set down the middle with lots of 'rollable' jumps and twists. We must do this again on the next visit! Conclusion We continued for many more miles along the Red tail and finally joined back on the Blue to follow back to the carpark. Even the Blue trail has some high berms and twists. Swinley really does offer a lot, even though some of us had ridden here many times before, you can take different lines and learn new sections. We were having so much fun, we all forgot to take as many photos as normal so apologies for the shorter ride report this time. The ride landed us back to the main carpark where we enjoyed some hot coffee and as always some decent eBike natter! Fellow E-Bikeshop Owners will be pleased to know the next ride is now live. So make sure to sign up, it'll be a blast! See everyone at the end of January. The E-Bikeshop Owners Club is a closed group of riders, if you have purchased a eBike from us and want to get involved, please get in touch.