Just Registered? Introduce yourself here! - Pedelec Forums

rsscott · #1 (**permalink**) 4th November 2006, 23:02

Hi and welcome to Pedelecs! Why not take a moment and introduce yourself here and tell us how you found the site and whether you are looking to purchase or have already purchased a bike.

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To start the ball rolling I live near Cambridge, UK which is a very flat part of the country. I've been riding electric for the past 18 months mainly to combat the A14 which has got to be one of the worst roads in the country! I started out with a Cyclone MTB-style electric bike before moving onto a Torq for the increased range ready for when we move in the new year. In that time I've covered nearly 7,000 miles on my bikes with the only maintenance being a set of new tyres for each bike.

I started pedelecs.co.uk as there is much resistance to electric bikes on general cycling forums and felt the time was right to start a dedicated website and forum.

Jozz · #2 (**permalink**) 5th November 2006, 02:01

Good move that man!
I'm down south near brighton, where mostly its not very flat at all!
I have 2 electric bikes at home, both homebuilt.
One is a linear recumbent bike, fitted with a crystalyte hub kit.
The other is more for fun, a mountain bike, again fitted with the crystalyte kit, but lighter batteries/lower range.
They are my only means of transport...I gave up cars/motorbikes more than 10 years ago and have done without transport till this year, when I got into this addictive hobby of electric biking!
look foreward to "meeting" you all...
Jozz

Nick · #3 (**permalink**) 5th November 2006, 09:33

As Jozz said, good move that man!

I bought a Bionx kit a month or so ago and found it hard-going genning up on it before sending my hard-earned across the Atlantic, so hopefully this site will help others. I came across the link on http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/power-assist/

I've got a few cycling friends who are very impressed with my setup and although I've read about resistance from unassisted cyclists I've not really experienced it myself - although one guy did noticeably up his effort when I overtook him up a hill the other day.

And they say the English lack the competitive spirit...

Right, who can recommend some decent winter gloves!

Lazybee45 · #4 (**permalink**) 6th November 2006, 00:00

WEll as a "bloody yank" I live in Iowa, which is NOT flat and is NOT all corn fields and pigs (no potatoes either, they are over in Idaho, about 1200 miles WEST of me!) I don't wear a cowboy hat, though my idiot brother in law DOES have one, well he also has cows.....but he decorates with dead animals! 3 deer in his living room and a Coyote in his family room. EEEewwwwwwah! not my favorite!

Anyway, Cedar Rapids is a largish city (120,000) with a few smaller ones dotted around it. It is pretty open compared to what I have seen of England, which is admitttedly not a lot, though I do hope I can come visit one day. We are getting into winter here which means that it can get really cold (like down to 0 F which reealy messes me up because C doesn't translate directly well (0 C = 32+ F) So when I say it is 0, it is REALLY cold. and I have seen it with -34 F before. and I can tell you I don't LIKE that! Walk outside and your nose freezes shut!

Right now it is about 50 F out which is perfect for me! Cedar Rapids is a very good place to live and work and ride a bike!

mark

rsscott · #5 (**permalink**) 6th November 2006, 16:25

Hi Mark,

0'F does not sound like much fun! I guess cycling in those conditions can be pretty harsh!

It doesn't get much below 0'C for long over here which is bearable. I don't mind the cold and the rain, it's the wind!

What are the local conditions like for riding a bike? (i.e. cycle paths, access etc)

helen · #6 (**permalink**) 6th November 2006, 20:59

For winter gloves, the lobster type gloves are a good compromise between a mitt and a finger glove. That way you can still control the brakes and gears. Also consider layering i.e. wearing a thin inner glove. Silk or the wicking type material ones are good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick

As Jozz said, good move that man!

I bought a Bionx kit a month or so ago and found it hard-going genning up on it before sending my hard-earned across the Atlantic, so hopefully this site will help others. I came across the link on http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/power-assist/

I've got a few cycling friends who are very impressed with my setup and although I've read about resistance from unassisted cyclists I've not really experienced it myself - although one guy did noticeably up his effort when I overtook him up a hill the other day.

And they say the English lack the competitive spirit...

Right, who can recommend some decent winter gloves!

JohnInStockie · #7 (**permalink**) 10th November 2006, 18:26

Hi Everyone

Im new to this world of electric bikes, dont know anyone that owns one, and dont know how I even found out they existed. Think I might have gone searching for one of those sinclair Zike thingys and discovered that things had moved on.

Well I live in Stockport, which is between Manchester and Buxton. Its quite hilly, and currently I am commuting to work in a car the 13 miles each way to Sale, but hoping to find a bike that will do the trick for me.

Suggestions Very welcome !!

rsscott · #8 (**permalink**) 10th November 2006, 23:21

Hi John,

welcome to the forum, you've come to the right place! There are many options available to you, 13 miles is a distance most electric bikes should be able to cover on a single charge.

You've mentioned your route is quite hilly so some bikes will be better suited to this than others, perhaps at the expense of outright speed.

Some prefer the eZee Sprint for hills, others the eZee Torq. 50Cycles have also announced a budget Currie iZip (<£400) but we don't really know the performance of it yet. You may also want to consider PowaCycle at around £500, if you have a strict budget - they are doing some decent models too , one of which was reviewed in the most recent AtoB magazine (www.atob.org.uk).

If you've given some more thought to your requirements we can help you narrow down your choices. If you can, I would definitely try to ride a few models before you purchase.

JohnInStockie · #9 (**permalink**) 10th November 2006, 23:31

Thanks for the advice. I have already had 1 other person (no less than David, the editor of A to B) recommend the Ezee Sprint, but when I spoke to 50cycles, they said they will not have any for at least 4 months, and that the Cadence would better suit my purposes.

Does Anyone have any experience with the Cadence? It looks heavy on the pictures, and slow. Can anyone comment?

Also, does anyone have any knowledge on the Diavelo that Powerscoots are promising to stock in the new year. They said to me that they have around 200 pre-orders, but expect to have enough to cover that with the numberous containers of them they have coming in the new year. Is that sales hype?

All advice and experience appreciated.

rsscott · #10 (**permalink**) 10th November 2006, 23:40

4 months is quite a wait, unless you want winter to pass

I don't have any experience of the Cadence myself but I'm sure another member will be along with some advice on that model.

As for the Diavelo, I can't say how accurate the Powerscoot delivery dates are bearing in mind the bike has already been delayed since the beginning of this year! You may have seen this article on the main site detailing a new range of bikes from Schwinn (Pacific Cycles). They have an almost identical spec to the Diavelo which has to be more than coincidence. Whether the Diavelo is based on the Schwinn or the other way around I don't know at this point. However, both bikes are based on a non-electric bike which I saw advertised on an American news network a few months back just to make things even more confusing. I'm waiting for a reply from the UK distributor as to if/when the Schwinn models will arrive in the UK. Schwinn are also sending me some details on the motors, although I suspect they will not exceed the 200W/250W UK maximum (Powerscoots are claiming 400W).

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnInStockie

Thanks for the advice. I have already had 1 other person (no less than David, the editor of A to B) recommend the Ezee Sprint, but when I spoke to 50cycles, they said they will not have any for at least 4 months, and that the Cadence would better suit my purposes.

Does Anyone have any experience with the Cadence? It looks heavy on the pictures, and slow. Can anyone comment?

Also, does anyone have any knowledge on the Diavelo that Powerscoots are promising to stock in the new year. They said to me that they have around 200 pre-orders, but expect to have enough to cover that with the numberous containers of them they have coming in the new year. Is that sales hype?

All advice and experience appreciated.