Do ebikes take the fun out of cycling ?

[Tugwell Gibson]

Great video. And makes me glad I didn't spend 1000 s on a full German mountain bike. As I have absolutely no wish to do what he's doing lol.

This is from youtube I thought it quite appropriate to this thread.

Is e-MTB lazy?

 

[LeighPing]

But realise I'm probably in the minority.

The times they are a changing.. I'm on some regular bike forums where they rage about ebikes a lot. Although, that's toning down a bit now. Probably due to them becoming more mainstream and desirable.

You're not an oddball and probably in the majority. It's the vocal minority that make it so. You can taste the hatred for people that can outgun their pain on those forums. Whether they mean to, or not, is irrelevant to some.

I sometimes feel a bit guilty when overtaking. I have an urge to competitively tailgate the competitive sand-kickers. Knowing that it's not hurting me as much as it's hurting them. It's naughty and doesn't endear me, I know. However, smiling inwardly.. Some you win, some you lose.

 

[Tugwell Gibson]

I

I should just say
We are at a high point in those woods. Having explored very steep downs. And me towing him on a line is working great. Very quick and almost seamless.

 

[Tugwell Gibson]

Another bit of fun on our ebike. I say 'our'. Because we are all benefitting from it. My son loves that his dad will cycle anywhere anytime with him. And give him a tow if needed.

Yesterday we had a family party. Few drinks at someone's house etc. I drive us all there too, car back home and then rode my ebike to the party. Me and son then rode home later. Mostly downhill so easy for him. Wife was out of the equation as she was getting a lift to the train station and working away.

When I got back everyone was very curious to see this bike that will go uphill across two towns ridden by a 50 year old 17 stoner. All in about 20 minutes. Then the blokes wanted a go lol.

 

[flux]

I bought my E-bike as an alternative to using a motorbike to commute. I'd never considered cycling in the past as i didn't want to turn up to work all sweaty and have to deal with changes of clothes etc.
When i bought my first e-bike it was a gamble, i thought it might not be for me or i'd only use it in fair weather ,but i couldn't of been more wrong. I've only missed about two days all winter so far and although you definitely still get a great cardio workout , you can dial it back if you overheat and let the motor do some work. Once you hit town they are also fantastic when you are stopping and starting all the time and you don't need to be going through the gears all the time.

If i cycle for leisure though, i still take a normal bike. I wouldn't say its 'more fun' , but if i have no time constraints on where i need to be then i don't really feel the need for the e-bike.

I think they both have their place and both are definitely still fun.

 

[2Lazy]

I bought my E-bike as an alternative to using a motorbike to commute.

If i cycle for leisure though, i still take a normal bike. I wouldn't say its 'more fun' , but if i have no time constraints on where i need to be then i don't really feel the need for the e-bike.

I think they both have their place and both are definitely still fun.

I'm much the same. I bought an ebike as an alternative to my car for commuting. A year on and I've only used the car for commuting on a handful of occasions even through the depths of winter. Commuting on the ebike is great fun and it's saving me money I would otherwise have to spend on petrol and parking.

For leisure I still use my regular bike as I can take my time and I like to get some exercise. My ebike has a hub motor and riding it, even when pedalling, feels like a low powered moped, perfect for commuting, but not the experience I'm looking for when riding for leisure. That is why I'm looking at buying a crank drive eMTB for longer/off road leisure rides as it will offer the best of both worlds.

 

[flux]

I'm sort of on the fence if the e-bike actually saves me money, but its certainly better exercise. The purchase cost and inevitable battery replacement costs are still very high.
I've got a little commuting 125cc that does 120MPG, parts cost buttons for it and it cost less than most e-bikes to purchase.

 

[2Lazy]

I'm sort of on the fence if the e-bike actually saves me money, but its certainly better exercise. The purchase cost and inevitable battery replacement costs are still very high.
I've got a little commuting 125cc that does 120MPG, parts cost buttons for it and it cost less than most e-bikes to purchase.

For me car parking is £6.50 a day and petrol £1.50 a day + wear and tear on the car, so over the course of a year the ebike has almost paid for itself.

 

[flux]

If i was driving then it would definitely be cheaper. Parking charges are terrible. About £8/day here or a day return for about £3/day on the bus, but they are inconvenient.
Motorbike parking however is free and it probably costs about 20p in petrol.

I (sadly) worked out my break-even point when i first bought it and it worked out at around 1200 miles, but i've since bought a new saddle, a rear tyre and some lights which will add a few more on. Its going to need a new set of cogs on the back at some point too and possibly a brake disc.

 

[Trevormonty]

My cycling mileage has increased dramatically with eMTB. I rode to club ride last night from work then home afterwards, 55km total, club ride was 15km offroad. It must of been beer afterwards as I was cruising around 28-30km/hr (above assist cutoff) for good part of return ride. On manual bike I would've use car.

When MTBing I find my heartrate increases with the assist level. This goes totally against what everybody assumes with ebikes. For me it takes conscious effort to sit back and cruise in higher settings.