Taff

One of the later photos shows it a bit better. Now that I'm travelling further, I take a flask and some butties and enjoy stopping for a while. I think that's the confidence of knowing I've the power to get home whatever. i got home about 7:30. I was up the mountains on Wednesday as well so I think I'll have a few days off!

Ha ha - wrong tunnel! AND I'm not telling.

Nope - it's on the border. Wrexham/Shropshire/Cheshire. Link below will show you the route. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - May 26, 2013, 12:40 PM

Another 56 miles today with 2000 ft ascent. Lovely day but cold out of the sun/in a wind; and a solid headwind on the way home. Plenty power left (2 bars) on reaching home. It was actually a tough ride; as I figured that the canal paths would be a doddle - they weren't - big mistake. Previously along towpaths that were paved/tarmaced/gravelled I could have a comfortable tootle along. Not today. There was mile after mile after mile of rough, root strewn, stoney ground and it was hell to ride. Hey - maybe it was 'The Hell of the North'? I certainly wont be doing that again. As I said a big headwind so I was glad I took my wind proof jacket. [ATTACH]5817.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5818.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5819.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5820.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5821.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5822.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5823.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5824.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5825.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5826.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5827.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5828.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5829.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5830.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5831.vB[/ATTACH]

Out tomorrow - can't wait.

Yes. Have a look at the BH Emotion Neo Cross for example.

Agreed! I had to type more letters here.

Yes. I think it is 'sticking' as sometimes I can feel a higher input and sometimes I can't. It's due its first service soon so I hope they will look at that. In top gear I would be over 15mph. In lower gears I am finding I can 'control' the torque better.

Not sure what they claim but I would take any claims with a pinch of salt. It's a great bike and I'm thrilled with it. If you use the battery 'sparingly' you would get a longer range. My last run included 3000ft of ascent; was 56 miles and still a little power left. There's a small hill to run up at Onbike - I think you'll enjoy the experience.

Nice looking bike indeed. Bit lighter so that helps as does 30 gears. Never seen this bike before. Was it a special edition? Seems fairly flattish there?

is this the Neo Race? It's a seriously good looking bike. Where are you riding?

UPDATE 7 - 56.5 miles - Longest Ride ever. Planned today as the weather seemed fine. It was pretty dull all day apart from the last hour. BUT it was dry. I decided to go Chester way and pick up the canal towpath and go (part) through Chester on that and pick up the NCR5; which I did. When I had crossed the River Dee on the way back I decided to follow NCR5 for a few miles. By this time I knew today was going to be a big one! I used the suspension forks again. I started with a FULLY charged battery and just used ECO on the steeper bits. Slowly pedalled up the lesser slopes myself. The first of 5 battery indicator lights went out at 32 miles. This was just were I left the coast and started to climb. The second light went out 3 miles of climbing later. What a dummy I am - I had intended to get to the dual-carriageway and walk across and carry on up the other side. I completely forgot this was the A55 Expressway and was as busy as any simile you want. So I pelted down the A55 and got off ASAP. I carried on for home leaving the Eco setting on as by now my legs were tired. Passed a serious (just happened) car crash and later stopped to watch a Flintshire Cup Village cricket match - which was nice. The 3rd light went out at 48 miles. Shortly after this, being near to home with 2 lights left on I thought I'd take a turn off and try to use up more of the battery; at 48.5 I turned off and up for Brymbo. I got to somewhere around 50miles and down to 1 battery light - ******. I carried on up and up about 500 ft up and bang down to zero; more or less the same time as my iPhone battery gave up. I figured that it might be best to turn around and make for home. I did and I'm glad to say I still had power left when I got home. The ride ended up being 56.5 miles with a massive 2967 ft of ascent. The ride link will show the first 51 miles, I worked out the balance on my mapping software. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - May 19, 2013, 9:22 AM So what are my current thoughts? I think this is a fantastic bike. All comments welcome. [ATTACH]5775.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5776.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5777.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5778.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5779.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5780.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5781.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5782.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5783.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5784.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5785.vB[/ATTACH]

Here's an example of Nuts. [ATTACH]5757.vB[/ATTACH]

Following on from d8veh's advice, I'd strongly suggest you test ride a Neo Cross. Have a look at my thread (link below) which is giving feedback on this bike which I've had for a couple of weeks. It's a great bike to ride assisted or unassisted. I've also given feedback on other bikes I tested as well under different threads. http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bicycles/14551-i-have-brand-new-bike.html

Just 1. Garden soil should be electrified so that every time a cat p***** or s**** on it, it gets a shock. That'd do it.

UPDATE 6 Woke up earlyish and the weather seemed fine. I decided to go east which means dropping down to the River Dee and eventually having to climb back from it. I decided to take it easy and roam about a bit - which I did. I used the suspension forks as it seems better. I started with a FULLY charged battery and just used ECO on the steeper bits. Slowly pedalled up the lesser slopes myself. Oh well done me. I was amazed to find that the first of 5 battery indicator lights going out was at a whopping 32 miles! (It might actually have been 38) The ride ended up being 43 miles with 1230 ft of ascent (which also surprised me) but looking at the profile you can see lots of up and downs. I was tiring towards the end but determined not to use extra power along the flat; however I had to at times due to headwind. The final climb was great to do with battery assistance after having struggled with this for years. It was here that I used MORE than ECO and could tell the difference. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - May 14, 2013, 9:06 AM So what are my current thoughts? I still have the highest regard for the riding quality and battery assistance on this bike. It is a pleasure to ride both unassisted and assisted. However - my AB and C are all sore so I'm going to try a fat gel seat for next time. I have bought a bike bag that sits on the top of the frame and that's great to hold my camera and keys etc. Using a bike rucksack is brilliant and I don't even notice it. I think Alex may be correct that the level of assistance is 'sticking' at a higher level than Eco. I have a hot bath planned in a bit and a few beers for tonight - because I'm worth it. All comments welcome. [ATTACH]5743.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5744.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5745.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5746.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5747.vB[/ATTACH]

I've had one but not used it for years. Can't remember why. I've decided to try it on my new bike as my a*** is sore after today's ride. I'll let you know what I felt after next ride.

Might try a ride tomorrow depending on the weather.

Just tried to add this to my Tesco Contents insurance - no can do. Ordinary bike yes; Pedelec no.

here's the Woosh prediction from Hatti's site. Seems about right. [ATTACH]5737.vB[/ATTACH]

Oh decades I reckon lol. I'm 58 1/2.

I'm small and fat but I do hike up the mountains and have been riding my MTB for years. I do have strong legs but I can't say I can compare them. Yes - I wondered that which is why I tried the higher power settings at several different times. At Manifold in April I tested 2 bikes. I've included the links so you can compare my speeds on two different bikes. 1 KTM eRace 650 (Torque Sensor) Panasonic Rear Hub Drive 2 KUDOS Arriba (Torque Sensor) 8Fun Rear Hub Drive Assumptions/Facts I wanted to test the bikes under the conditions under which I might use them i.e. knackered. Thus I did a 7 mile hike first including 700m of ascent. On the bike I carried 2 full water bottles with me. I weigh about 14.5 stone. On each ride I approached the hill with no assist on. The route was 2.61 miles from the Tea Rooms up to Wetton and back with a 20 second ish stop at the top. The hill is about 10-11% no more through the majority of the climb; the average through the climb is about 7.5%. Comments: 1 KTM eRace 650 (Torque Sensor) Panasonic Rear Hub Drive Terrific bike, torque sensor was magnificent and gave a very smooth ride. Beautiful gear changes and lovely smooth rolling along without assist. With assist coped with the hill easily and an enjoyable climb. Very enjoyable descent max speed 39.44mph w/out pushing brakes were excellent. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - Apr 13, 2013, 11:59 AM Comments: 2 KUDOS Arriba (Torque Sensor) 8Fun Rear Hub Drive Good bike, torque sensor was solid but a bit lively when setting off. Gave a smooth ride but it seemed to me that the motor kept cutting out for a micro-second every now and then. Good gear changes and smooth rolling along without assist. With assist coped with the hill easily and an enjoyable climb apart from the glitches mentioned earlier. Very enjoyable descent max speed 33.58mph w/out pushing brakes were good but I was wary of them - hence a slower descent. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - Apr 13, 2013, 12:20 PM (Note the drop in speed at around 1.35 miles. I tried Garry's Neos at Wetton and it sped up the hill - I didn't feel the same today. It would be good if Garry reads this conversation and chips in as he's very experienced with these bikes. I'll perhaps try that this week. As for the gearing, it's something I do naturally, I have more or less the same gears on my MTB. It is natural (on the Neo) to go UP a gear to make the motor do more as it senses the harder effort I'm putting in. It's all fascinating. I'll be interested to see what you make of the Wetton ride speeds compared to the Neo rides.

I have been banging on about this to my womenfolk and it's still not accepted.

No - Battery level and Power assist. I can click it off. I can click it once for Eco; extra clicks produce no change. I hope/think the assist was Eco and not anything higher. I think it would have given me more (and been noticeable) on the steeper sections Alex. Yes and that's what I meant about ascent/speed to find range. I did work hard but I wouldn't have said considerable effort. I think there were 1 or 2 ahem, cough, 'moderate slight uphill runs'. Never really needed to stop and only had a drink of water once. Stopped only for photos really. I'll do this again, and try to be more Eco on the Eco. I imagine that on a 'Cheshire plains' run I will get a stack of mileage.

Update 5 Decided to get up early and get out before the rain. With a fully charged* (see below) battery I set off. This is another tough route that I can no longer do 'unassisted' anymore so really looking forward to this. Lovely ride along and up to the moors near to World's End. Used Eco mode a lot on this ride and on a steeper section I tried a higher power setting but NOTHING - no increase at all - seems like another problem. Also I seemed to experience a real 'drag' - on one or two occasions - when the motor was off. I had to drop right down the gears and even then I nearly came to a halt. Whether the motor is 'sticking' I don't know. Very few people out and about early on a Sunday morning so it was a pleasure. Battery power seemed (to me) to run down fairly quickly to 2 bars and even 1 bar but it did get me home; albeit showing zero power. Route was 26.38 miles with 2198 ft of ascent at average speed of 13.87 mph. Ride Link: Cyclemeter - Cycle - May 12, 2013, 7:33 AM So what are my current thoughts? Very enjoyable to ride the above issues notwithstanding. I think if I had economised on the Eco I would have preserved more power - Eco Eco I know. * I noticed on return (with ref. to the manual) that the battery is fully charged when the light goes green but there is another line that says switch off when the light goes off. I hadn't done that so maybe there is a final trickle charge and therefore my battery was not fully charged when I set off. I'm concerned about the Power and Drag issues but hopefully I can get these sorted when I take the bike in for its first service in a few weeks. On Eco alone I'm delighted with the bike. RANGE: Clearly looking at distance alone is a complete load of cobblers. I think it's probably more relevant to look at Ascent and Average Speed to get an idea of what a full battery can do. Look forward to any comments. [ATTACH]5725.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5726.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5727.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5728.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5729.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5730.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5731.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5732.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5733.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]5734.vB[/ATTACH]