Just joined club Cytronex

[eTim]

Hi all,

Just picked up my first ebike - a Cannondale Synapse from No Hills in Winchester . A friendly bunch of people, had a test ride on the Synapse and the Claude Butler Urban 500 before deciding on the Synapse (there wasn't much in it!), there is a short stretch of quiet road just behind the shop, with a short steep hill and a longer plodding hill to try the bikes on, ideal.

I went for this style of ebike as I will use it for commuting (45 mile round trip Andover/Basingstoke) and leisure and I want it to contribute to my fitness (I am average fitness at the moment aged 42), living in Hampshire there are plenty of hilly back lanes to ride along. This bike is a normal road bike with a front hub added, it will be easier getting up those hills, extending my ride and enjoyment and when the battery runs out I can pedal along as I would with a normal bike, the best of both worlds.

I've stayed away from full-on electric bikes (tempting as they are) as I don't believe it will do anything for my fitness levels, all the work would be done by the bike, which is not what I'm really after.

I'll post a review once I've done a few miles.

Tim.

 

[Pedalo]

Welcome to the forum Tim, and to the Cytronex club
It's an excellent choice. I went through the same thought process as yourself. I only use the motor on hills and as a consequence my range is greatly extended. I've been using mine for a couple of months now and my fitness level has shot up.

Your commute is quite a long one. You may need to charge your battery at work - or you'll only be able to use the motor very sparingly.

Interesting you said there wasn't much in it between the Canondale and the Claude Butler - £600 seems quite a lot to me!

Enjoy the bike!

 

[jerrysimon]

Yes welcome from another older Cytronex 7300FX owner. Its a great bike.

I think he meant difference in performance not cost. I agree on a 45 mile round trip your probably gonna need to recharge at work or have a second battery.

Regards

Jerry

 

[Barnowl]

Hi eTim and welcome.

Good luck with the bike. I hope you get as much enjoyment from it as I have from mine. The Cytronex Synapse sounds like just the right machine for your requirements. Good choice.

PS Just noticed the 45 mile round trip.

Eat plenty of donuts.

 

[eTim]

Thanks for the welcome, I have bought the second charger to leave at work already. I think I may have to build up to the commute with training rides and maybe doing a part car journey the first few times, but I expect to be doing the full whack once my fitness levels get better.

About the difference between the bikes - there wasn't much difference in speed and effort to propel the bikes uphill, the CB was slightly slower, I felt the most difference was between the quality of the components, drivetrain being the main one, and the Synapse is just sexier !

I went for a quick blast (11 miles) this evening, just to run the battery down, ready for an overnight charge to start conditioning runs tomorrow, I was amazed how easy it was to pedal at 20mph on the flat (no assistance). The front light that came with the bike is incredible, on pitch black narrow country lanes opposing cars were pulling over in passing places to let me through, they probably thought I was on a motorbike (I also fitted front and rear strobes). I think I'm going to love this bike.

Whilst at Winchester, THE Super 6 Ultegra was there, lovely, but out of my price range. They had also converted a tandem to an eTandem, now that was a funny site to see, Mark and one of his mechanics riding it (how do you turn those things around), apparently it belongs to an MP.