May 10, 20178 yr Hello everyone, Just thought I'd introduce myself. I am new to the e bike world and have just literally come in after my first ride on my new e bike that I received on Monday. The bike I have purchased is a Giant Road E+ 2 and this switch to e biking is due to a combination of factors including age, leg & knee pain, really hard breathing on the hills as well as the terrain where I live being hills everywhere and very very few wind free days. I have just last week sold my last normal road bike which had Di2 and I really liked but alas the hills etc were getting the better of me, the week before I sold my Cube road bike. Both these bikes were carbon fibre so the weight of my new Giant is a bit strange to say the least. Got to say after doing one of the bad hills tonight I am really impressed with the effort required to conquer it . Hopefully be posting regularly on here as this has got me excited about cycling again as no more battling force 8 headwinds with just my puny legs for power. Roademan
May 10, 20178 yr this switch to e biking is due to a combination of factors including age, leg & knee pain, really hard breathing on the hills as well as the terrain where I live being hills everywhere and very very few wind free days. Ah those old chestnuts.. welcome aboard cheater.
May 10, 20178 yr Author Thanks for the welcome LeighPing, not sure about the cheater bit though Got to admit though I am going to have a wind up at work with a colleague who stays beside me and is a Strava junkie, also a lot younger. I used to pass him on the good old manual road bikes but he's in to it big now. So a few days of my Strava times will egg him on a bit before I come clean and tell him I have a Yamaha logo as well as Giant logo on my new toy. If anything it will help him up his game.
May 10, 20178 yr Welcome. I've gone the other way. I was so unfit that i could only use a powerful electric bike. o gradually worked my way down in power. Now at 64 I've started on a road bike. I notice the difference in weight too. It's weird how I can pick it up with one hand and hold it upside down in the air to walk it past my car. I'l still be using electric bikes for shopping, etc. When I'm I'm out on my road bike, I look for electric bikes to shout "cheat" at.
May 10, 20178 yr he will destroy you on the flat and down hill on a road bike i cant beat them even with a dongle on the road.
May 10, 20178 yr Author Thanks for the welcome and glad to hear you are starting on a road bike at 64. I am 58 and i was hoping to get some of my fitness back again and get a normal road bike as I do feel more satisfied knowing it is 100% of my effort that get me there. having said that though I did notice tonight that other than uphill my motor was idle and it was me pumping the power in just like the good old days, this of course due to exceeding 25 Kmh.
May 10, 20178 yr Thanks for the welcome LeighPing, not sure about the cheater bit though Got to admit though I am going to have a wind up at work with a colleague who stays beside me and is a Strava junkie, also a lot younger. I used to pass him on the good old manual road bikes but he's in to it big now. So a few days of my Strava times will egg him on a bit before I come clean and tell him I have a Yamaha logo as well as Giant logo on my new toy. If anything it will help him up his game. There's lots of banter to be had in all walks of the cycling world. Ebikes are getting to be pretty much accepted now. Although, it's been difficult from some to do that. They're a technological advance, made to be used and enjoyed. You seem to be getting the best from yours. Enjoy the forum. It's a good'un.
May 10, 20178 yr Author he will destroy you on the flat and down hill on a road bike i cant beat them even with a dongle on the road. That's a pity, I was thinking downhill I may have had a bit of advantage with the extra weight plus I can power along on the flats. Not really a lot of flat road on daily commute though. Still he will be wondering how an old codger like me has all of a sudden got my times down.
May 10, 20178 yr you will spin out unless you up the front sprocket size if its a bosch motor down hill as they gear them for 15mph. a dongle will remove the speed limit tho as other wise over 15mph you are riding a 20kg plus bike. and remember with all that extra waight you got to slow it down as well they do bite if ur not careful
May 10, 20178 yr Author Yes, I suppose there will always be individuals who look down their noses at Ebikes but I suppose they are more than likely to be the younger ones that are in to it in a big way with all the Lycra etc. Got to say I always try and go as fast as I can on my bike but was never into racing anyone, only doing it to satisfy myself. I am of the opinion if the Ebike allows people to carry on cycling when they struggle on conventional bikes it has to be a good thing. Those that sneer may themselves appreciate power assistance some day. Read a report on the Giant E+ 1 in Cycling Plus this month (more expensive model of my bike) and they had nothing but praise for it.
May 10, 20178 yr Author It's a 34/50 crankset which is classed as a compact and is pretty much standard on the road bikes, rear cassette is 11/32 which is what I had on my Dolan Di2. Probably will spin out right enough as I used to do it on my road bikes.
May 10, 20178 yr Author I agree with the stopping side of things as I did notice tonight that the brakes were not that great, hoping they will improve as the pads bed in but it is only mechanical discs whereas the E+ 1 has hydraulic discs.
May 10, 20178 yr Author Yeah, I will try and get some pics up tomorrow night if the weather is good before it gets dirty, though I do have a nice shiny Park Tool PCS 10 stand to stick it in to clean it. It's a job hiding the stuff from the wife as the stand came today and I already have a Park Tool PRS 20 stand that is only 6 months old and now surplus. Need to keep her out my shed. Edited May 10, 20178 yr by RoadEman
May 10, 20178 yr Author Brilliant idea that. She didn't like it at first but she packing her stuff in shed now, seems a right shame mind you but these bikes aren't cheap. I'm sure she understands!
May 12, 20178 yr Author Not had time to log on over the last couple of days and last night was a flop as I only had an hours sleep and had to be up at 5:00 am to cycle in to work on my new toy so did nothing but doze in the chair yesterday evening. What is the easiest way to add photos, if someone lets me know I will post a couple of my bike. Thanks in advance for any advice.
May 12, 20178 yr Take a look at this guide on how to insert an avatar pic and upload photos. You may find it useful.
May 12, 20178 yr Author Take a look at this guide on how to insert an avatar pic and upload photos. You may find it useful. Thanks for that LP, I found the sticky explaining it and was in the middle of uploading when your reply came in, unfortunately I couldn't add the text after. Better luck next time I guess.
May 12, 20178 yr Author Apologies for the pics of the Giant without any text, but I should maybe have added that first. However that is my new toy and got to say I am very impressed with it. Takes the pain out of the hills though I do spend all of my time on the flat and slight inclines just using 1 man power and that man is not a sprightly youth anymore. Got to say I passed a lady who is in to competitions on a road bike tonight while climbing a hill and I do kind of know her. I feel bad as I never spoke to her when passing as I felt guilty knowing how much effort she was putting in to get up the hill, I actually held back for a minute to avoid passing her but in the end had to do it. After passing I had to go full tilt just in case she caught me up and passed me. Oh dear, need to get a sign for my back saying BAD KNEES & POOR LUNG CAPACITY!!
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