eMTB owners photo and ride thread.

[georgehenry]

After the Rain!

My two off road rides to work on Sunday the 22nd of March and Monday the 23rd of March 2020 were in sunshine in contrast to my four rides on the 9th to 12th of March, so I took a few pictures and have ordered them from the start of my off road route to the end.

Field boundary track after Eashing Farm Bridge that takes me over the A3

View from track towards Shackleford

Cutmill Pond

Forrest track Lower Puttenham Common

Track across Broomfields with brown cows in the distance

Close up view of the cows as I exit the track across Broomfields

Beautiful Crooksbury Common

More spectacular views from my traverse across Crooksbury Common

Another lovely spot on my route, High Mill Pond on The River Wey

Nearly there and a tree down to overcome on The North Downs Way near Farnham Railway Station.

One thing that will not stop me is the worrying Coronavirus pandemic. My new job (I always think of it as my new job, even though I have now been doing it for over 10 years) is classified as a key worker role so my beautiful cross country ride to work is now officially sanctioned by the government!

 

[Dom T]

How wonderful georgehenry. I too an utilising my bike to get to work, but no where near as good as your ride. I think I'd go nutts if I couldn't do so, so much so I've been for a couple of night rides too.
Not being able to ride any mountain bike trails is gonna be a tough on.
How are you all ?
Covid 19 certainly messing us about some.
Frontline for me and hubs not relishing it at the moment and also had to self isolated for the week before as both me and hubs had some symptoms.
It's going to be a very rough ride, SARS and swine flu were pants, but not so long lived and done with quite quick.
Just hope we get the protective equipment we so very much need. The government has actually just changed the rules so our protection has gone from wow to wtf !!! We've gone from long sleeved gowns, face visors, gloves and full protective on masks to plastic apron gloves and pathetic goggles. It's mortifying as we now feel unprotected. We are well aware that ITU need it most, but we are also very aware that because there's not enough to go round we've had our protection down graded. Your healthcare assistants, nurses, doctors will work hard, but you'll loose staff left right and centre one way or another, hope there'e no deaths.
Hence it's more important now for me to be able to get out for some exercise.
However, please heed the rules, be good and behave.

On another note we've had to cancel our trip to them lovely Cairngorms in April until further notice, but it's on hold for now and we have a year to re book somewhere. What we will now be doing is making a new ,bigger, bike shed for the bottom of my very small garden and I will try and make sure I put up pics of our efforts.

 

[georgehenry]

Hi Dom T,
Me and my two children are as far as we can tell well. Although they are both young adults they live at home with me and are really very dependent still, as a lot of young adult children are nowadays. We do all get on very well and all muck in with household chores.
I have been off for four days since last working on Monday.
When I last worked I saw some real fear from some people.
It worries me that you do not have the right protective gear. Somebody should n
be moving heaven and earth to sort that out.
I do not think any health system in the world is designed to cope with the influx of seriously ill people that might result from this virus.
After taking those pictures and having some time to upload them I thought they might cheer up those who viewed them. I know I am lucky with the off road route I can take to work, and really enjoy riding my bike in the fresh air.
I have seen many emails in my inbox in respect of my workplace and ways they are trying to make it safer for me to do my job. Fingers crossed.
I return to work on Saturday for a late shift.
I and a mate had planned an adventure holiday riding off road motorbikes in Vietnam flying out in April but that has of course been taken out by the pandemic turn of events.
We had only paid for our plane tickets and not the actual holiday. The flights have now been cancelled that should mean we are refunded but I think it could be a long drawn out process rather than a straight forward one.
Any way take care Dom T and keep yourself as safe as you can.

 

[Dom T]

I've found a route that I've not met anyone one on as yet except for some road traffic on a big road I have to cross.
I didn't meet a soul until the roads and then stuck to the roads on them sections.
I will cease to do it if we go to total lock down and exercise is not allowed (my roller trainer is at the ready).
Last night was fantastic and if any of you clapped believe you me we healthcare workers were very appreciative, I'm not a crying person but it reduced me to tears.....thank you for supporting us NHS workers, we will be there for you all no matter what.

 

[sjpt]

Very nice. We aren't that lucky, but still have some excellent very quite roads and paths to use.

I am ashamed to say we didn't clap. We forgot ... what a feeble excuse but sadly true.

 

[georgehenry]

That looks a lovely route.

 

[Dom T]

Thank you...... it's a great route as I very rarely see people on it.
There are always other routes from it too to keep to myself.

 

[georgehenry]

Well I have just done five days at work, and if I have managed not to catch this dratted virus I am now not back at work until the 16th of April.

I say five days work but for the first two of them I was on call at home and did not get called in. I was of course poised and ready like a coiled spring.

The remaining three were late shifts and enabled me to enjoy my cross country route to work and road ride home. 12 miles cross country and 10 miles home on the road, so 66 miles in all away from the lock down in the fresh air.

 

[Dom T]

Well guys I've been naughty, that'll teach us to have a lock down... Hubs will be able to utilise the haibike for spare battery and motor as well as lots of other bits. I'll salvage my reverb and Zee's and put them on my new commute/mess about/longer ride hard tail. I'll be able to use a bottle cage and probably some panniers as well....plus the upside is another shimano battery and motor to go with the Spectral-On
My new one coming...and then my real baby...

 

[Deere John]

Local trails explore today again!

Can you see the trail?

...no, I thought so. Me neither!

Well, got back and took the route along this electric transformer station. I think they could share some, scrimp bastards, put up a quick charger station here

 

[Charliefox]

Certainly, an interesting and painful week. Stupidly, I took yet another heavy fall over the handlebars during a night ride on Thursday, and have definitely learnt that I don’t bounce as easily as I did when I was younger! It wasn't helped by one of the clips not releasing on the pedal. Sadly the fall didn’t do my Magicshine light a lot of good either!

I didn’t drag the bike out until today, and as the first three photos show, it doesn’t pay to leave a bike wet and dirty.

The rest of the photos are from an afternoon ride today, on Ashdown Forest.

Painful to be back in the saddle, but it seemed a shame not to make the most of the lovely weather.

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That must have been a good test for Bosch seals!!!

 

[georgehenry]

Lockdown Ride, Surrey Hills, Ridges and views around "Hascombe" 16 miles

Climbing out of the valley

Bluebells in the wood.

Field with a view

View looking in the other direction towards the village (Other side of ridge) from the picture above this one. Good views in both directions.

View from another ridge path into the next valley along (Picture 6)

Looking back up the ridge through mature beech trees.

View from the top of Hascombe Hill, site of an Iron Age Hill Fort. If you enlarge the picture you can see large airplanes at Dunsfold Aerodrome where they used to make Top Gear.

Coming full circle descending of Hascombe Hill.

Last look back into the valley shown in picture 6 above, from the ridge seen on the other side of the field in that picture, then back home.

As you know my bike is a workhorse used to take me to work and back, so this is a bit of a novelty, just riding for the exercise during the lockdown.

Hascombe is a lovely Surrey Village with spectacular ridge paths and great views within easy reach of my house. 16 miles in total for the ride. 40% battery used. In places quite steep and technical with many roots to enjoy. The whole area gets very muddy in the Winter.

 

[georgehenry]

Another Lockdown Ride.
The exercise ride above was done on Sunday and today I thought I would do another one. This one was 22 miles, mostly off road, and my knees and back are letting me know after being bounced around a lot, perhaps full suspension beckons. I used 41% of my battery by the time I got home. Total potential range on my original 400Wh battery now in its 6th year, 53.6 miles. Meaningless as most of us know as it depends on so many factors.

Mill Pond Bramley

A nice view from a long track

Views towards Blackheath and The North Downs over Hirst Hill Farm

Garden retaining wall before Gates street Farm. I do like an old wall.

I Might have to do my back exercises before bed tonight! Probably spent too much time on my sofa in the lockdown.

If I haven't done myself too much of a mischief I could ride one of my electric bikes to work on Thursday.

I have learnt on these exercise rides where I have chosen some demanding tracks on purpose that if I continue to use this bike purely for leisure after it has finished its commuting duties when I retire in about a years time I would probably make a few changes.

The main ones being a better front fork with more travel, lower gearing for steep technical climbs, perhaps even a dual front chain ring set up that can be done on this bike, a dropper post, and good off road tyres front and rear. Or I could just spoil myself with a new bike. Or both of course.

Being a skinflint I could just get the entry level full suspension Yamaha Haibike and have the benefit of two batteries that would be interchangeable between the bikes.

 

[Dom T]

Well there's nowt better than a new bike day, just a pedal to go and some bolt checks, as well as battery charge....it will go out for it's first exercise tomorrow hopefully

 

[Croxden]

I had mine last week, OnBike did all the checks all I had to do is go riding.

 

[georgehenry]

What a difference a day makes, sunny and warm yesterday, rainy and cold today.
Glad I did another one of my sporadic Lockdown Exercise Rides Yesterday.

I planned my route so I could do a small trespass to get up close and personal with a Nic Fiddian-Green Horse Head sculpture. There are a number on the land of the Wintershall Estate visible from the countryside close to where I live.

He has another installation located at Marble Arch in London called Still Water.

I guess if I did more of them I would get more used to riding my electric bike for leisure rides but at the moment rather than range anxiety I end up getting closer to home with a battery that is too full and have to up the assist and pedal gently to reduce the battery to a level I am more happy to store it at.



I rode just 12 miles yesterday, but with quite a few challenging single track hills to climb, but still had to up the assist to get the battery level just under 70%.

 

[Shurm]

Had a great ride the other day, that's where I came from (Accrington)



and over that hill (Great Hambledon) I'm going !!


After that its up another hill (Hambledon) and looking back



Then its a downhill to a reservoir (Clow Bridge)



Cycled round that and looked back at the reservoir and Hambledon before heading home.



Not bad for me considering I'm not that fit these bikes really do help you get out and about

 

[Dom T]

I'm liking the new bike, much fun and exceptionally quiet. It's the E7000 shimano motor, less torque, but somehow more responsive.
Went out together the other day for our exercise, then he broke off and went home I continued for another few miles.
Shrum, what bike have you got ?
Here's my day infact I've been out on my bike everyday bar form last thursday since I got it.
Oh and new pedals too more bling to come.

 

[Shurm]

Hi Dom T, its a Cube Acid One 500 it does everything I need it to but it does get some abuse

 

[Dom T]

They are designed to do so, are they not ?
My other full sus is this one but currently not seeing much MTB action. That see's most of the abuse and I make no excuse for the pink bits