Riding an E-Bike on the Trails

If you are a regular mountain biker who hits the trails a couple of times a week then I'm sure you must have seen an e-bike or two by now whizzing by you on the uphill. Or maybe you just thought it was a really good rider or that you were just really slow! If you saw that bulky plastic box looking thing on the frame then it most likely an electric motor and its most likely an e-bike or electric bike.

Now when we say an electric bike we don't mean that it moves on its own without any effort from you. It's more of a pedal assist bike where you do some work and the electric motor does some of the work at the same time. By doing this you still get to pedal but it's much easier climbing the hills than if you only relied on your own power. And they have adjustable settings to control just how easy it is for you on your end.

The performance gains will vary based on what electric motor the bike is equipped with. Many manufacturers use Bosch motors and they work by using a torque sensor that detects when you are manually pedaling and provides power as needed. The electric motors usually put out about 250w of power and can peak around 500w. You will typically have settings on the motor for how much assistance you would like it provide. The more assistance you ask for, the shorter the battery life. Battery life varies as well but most will give you about 5+ hours of ride time if not abused. They do take a few hours to charge so make sure you allow time before your ride to get a full charge.

There are some downsides to e-bikes as well. One big one is that if your battery dies then you are manually pedaling a 50 lb. bike potentially uphill and that's not fun at all. And if you think you can carry an extra battery with you then think again because they can weigh in at 5 pounds so maybe if you bypass your water it will be ok to take an extra one! The cost of an e-bike is a bit more than a regular mountain bike as well. Plan on spending $4500 for a decent bike with a good electric motor. Another big downside to e-bikes is that they are banned on many trails so make sure see if that applies to your area before making the purchase.

When it comes to downhill performance an e-bike can be fun for straight down descents thanks to the extra weight making it more of a tank over the terrain. But if you like to take jumps and corner fast then it will suffer compared to a regular mountain bike because of the added weight. In fact, many people buy e-bikes just to do multiple downhill runs where you can't shuttle yourself to the top and have to ride up.

Overall e-bikes are good for people who don't get out much but want to keep up with their friends who are more experienced riders and in better shape. They are also good for recovery training after an accident or surgery to get yourself back on the bike. Or if you simply just don't like to pedal and have a few extra bucks it can be your dream come true!

Posted by Jim Bernstein