Electric Bikes recommendation

[pentona]

I have been thinking about an electric bike for a while now. My only hesitation is that they are not cheap and there is a possibility that they could be banned on some trail systems. In the States, its already happening; sad to say. Lets hope Canadians have more inclusiveness.

https://www.welovecycling.com/wide/2016 ... ke-trails/

That article is almost 3 years Old. From my research it’s going the other way. More and more areas are opening up to them. Ebikes are advancing at a rapid pace (motored, displays, battery power) and their popularity is growing.....going to see more and more of them around.

Ok, here is a B.C. article from a year ago. It concerns me enough to hold off buying one until they are allowed on all trails as equals to standard bicycles.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british- ... -1.4595145

[Steve-O]

All the local bike shops carry e-bikes. They are being pushed hard. Feeling is that it opens the market to people that want to get out but don't have the fitness. My thought is that we will see more of this https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-s ... htm#257120 as inexperienced riders get in over their heads. These bikes are pedal assist, so you still need to work to get up.
OP never said if it was an e-mtn bike or street bike. I have reservations about the e-mtn bikes. These bikes are getting popular down on the shore and you have people using them to climb dedicated DH trails and people with no clue to trail etiquette. That being said, one buddy of mine is on one and he would no longer be riding if it wasn't for his e-bike.
My feeling is that this market is growing but in a few years there will be 1000's of these bikes getting dusty as wannabes find out it is still an effort to climb and once you get to the top you have to come down and if you don't have the skills, getting a 50lb machine down could lead to trouble for many.

Here is 30+ pages of debate on ebikes on the shore: https://nsmb.com/forum/forum/the-shore- ... re-130284/

[kelbear25]

Check out Volt bikes.
I've heard not good things about the Costco ebikes from a bike mechanic. Said they were poor quality.

[WalterWhite]

All the local bike shops carry e-bikes. They are being pushed hard. Feeling is that it opens the market to people that want to get out but don't have the fitness. My thought is that we will see more of this https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-s ... htm#257120 as inexperienced riders get in over their heads. These bikes are pedal assist, so you still need to work to get up.
OP never said if it was an e-mtn bike or street bike. I have reservations about the e-mtn bikes. These bikes are getting popular down on the shore and you have people using them to climb dedicated DH trails and people with no clue to trail etiquette. That being said, one buddy of mine is on one and he would no longer be riding if it wasn't for his e-bike.
My feeling is that this market is growing but in a few years there will be 1000's of these bikes getting dusty as wannabes find out it is still an effort to climb and once you get to the top you have to come down and if you don't have the skills, getting a 50lb machine down could lead to trouble for many.

Here is 30+ pages of debate on ebikes on the shore: https://nsmb.com/forum/forum/the-shore- ... re-130284/

Sage advice Steve-O - well said.

[Mikesphotos]

I daily commute to and from work (Westside to Kelowna) on an ebike, for the past 5 years. I ride a Bionx conversion built onto a regular cross-over bike. It's amaaaazing. I've got almost 11,000km's on it now.

That said, Bionx is no more, which is a shame since it was all Canadian and they had a good warranty. But the ebike store in town looks like they sell some good ones for not a huge amount.

The big issue is always price, I spent $3k for mine with the bike itself in that price and installation etc. It does what I need it to do, I can get home from work in the summer far faster than in a car stuck in traffic on bridge hill. I have to work somewhat hard going up the bigger hills, but nowhere near as much as I'd have to work on a regular bike, and I can go at 25-30kph up those big hills with that medium level of effort. End result I can get home and not be soaked in sweat, but feel like I got some exercise.

Mine is a 350watt motor, with a 10amp hour battery. The battery lasts me a day basically, which is 25km's or so of riding and about 400m of elevation gain in and out combined. But it's not really degraded much in the 5 years I've had it so that's fine. The wattage (power of the motor) is as low as I'd want to go, in a direct drive hub motor. I'd prefer if it was stronger really, but 350 works. 250 would not work nearly as well for my commute.

If you paths you'd want this for involve a lot of hills, don't go under 350 watt IMHO. But still I think for 2k you could pickup a purpose built ebike with those specs. Of course if your route is mostly flat, you could easily get a 250watt or similar and it would be more than you'd need. You'd probably get 100+ km's from a normal sized battery as well (ballparking 7amp hours as a "normal size") in flat terrain.

Feel free to ping me if you have any questions I might be able to answer.

Mike

[Brushy Bill]

Nothing beats a local company for customer service, Like Electric Fat Bike Company in Vernon.
Those fat tires make for a smooth ride and if it gets real rough the front fork suspension takes care of the whoops.
Very competitive pricing too