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E-Bikes on Tygerberg MTB trail


energizer2k

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It was that specialized e-bike, im pretty sure. The only specialized i know with such a large down tube is their e-bike. Plus its my local trail and i have ridden up their may times and witnesses pros climbing speed, this was the same speed a motor bike would ride up there.

Then you ride a moto like a pansy... 

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Their website says 32kph... 

 

:-) 

Consider me corrected, then. Must have been the other way around. Giant 25 & Spez 32. 

 

I dunno.

 

Anyway. I'm all for them. And why not? It's NOT a motorbike. You still have to pedal to get to the top, it's just that you don't have to pedal as hard. 

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My answer is a big no!!

1. Limited speed.or not it is possible to mod them to go faster, thus becoming dangerous on the trails.

2. Your mate/wife/so cannot keep up with you, time you learnt some patience, and rode with them, not them with you, thats what relationships/friendships are about, grow up.

3. We all started riding slowly and thus learnt our skills and built them up to where we could ride our bikes safely, and control them at speed. IMBA RULE, ride whithin your skills.

 

 

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk

Edited by deanbean
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Consider me corrected, then. Must have been the other way around. Giant 25 & Spez 32. 

 

I dunno.

 

Anyway. I'm all for them. And why not? It's NOT a motorbike. You still have to pedal to get to the top, it's just that you don't have to pedal as hard. 

 

I am for them in the pedal assist guise.. but anything that can accelerate you faster than say a normal cyclist is a bit off putting... 

 

We have enough issues dodging joggers and their associated pets now we gonna have gung ho charlie on his 32kph electric bike buzzing everyone... 

 

Gonna end in tears.. 

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Okay - let me ask now, so that we can get an accurate idea as to what the real reason for the "BAN THEM!" response is. 

 

WHY don't you want E-Bikes on the trail? Cogent arguments, please. 

 

Perhaps through this, fears / concerns can be addressed and either de-bunked or expanded upon. 

 

Aaaaand GO

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I am for them in the pedal assist guise.. but anything that can accelerate you faster than say a normal cyclist is a bit off putting... 

 

We have enough issues dodging joggers and their associated pets now we gonna have gung ho charlie on his 32kph electric bike buzzing everyone... 

 

Gonna end in tears.. 

Gung ho charlie won't have the skills necessary to buzz everyone on the trails unless he's built them up over time, and even then the motor only kicks in when he's pedalling. 32kph is the limit. It won't accelerate to 32kph all the time. Even the spaz one only has a 250w motor, and that's not enough to get ME to 10kph on the way up a trail unless it's as flat as a pancake, and then I'd probably be doing that speed anyway. 

Edited by Myles Mayhew
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Okay - let me ask now, so that we can get an accurate idea as to what the real reason for the "BAN THEM!" response is. 

 

WHY don't you want E-Bikes on the trail? Cogent arguments, please. 

 

Perhaps through this, fears / concerns can be addressed and either de-bunked or expanded upon. 

 

Aaaaand GO

 

 

They gonna dominate the KOM segments....  :whistling:  :ph34r:

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Okay - let me ask now, so that we can get an accurate idea as to what the real reason for the "BAN THEM!" response is.

 

WHY don't you want E-Bikes on the trail? Cogent arguments, please.

 

Perhaps through this, fears / concerns can be addressed and either de-bunked or expanded upon.

 

Aaaaand GO

Edited my post, tapatalk posted before I posted my reasons

 

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk

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I don't see the problem with it.  Let's go back to basics here.  Cycling is an outdoor sport to be enjoyed by many people.  Not just the those who are fisically strong enough for a specific trail.

 

A week and half ago a friend and myself went into the Alps.  His wife who is currently not in the position to have do the trip with us came with on an e-bike.  She was able to keep up with us and we had a lovely 5 hour ride in the Alps.  What is wrong with that.

 

If I want to get my wife an e-bike to keep up with me on the trials why not?  At the end it is a win win for me.

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So here's a thing......My wife (who isn't a MTBer in any sense) tried riding some trails with me at NF and a few other venues. The most she could handle was 10km at a very slow pace, with me following and yawning in the background. She really enjoys it, but is not the type to get into the whole cycling fitness thing doing races etc. She is one of many GF's or wives who would like to ride with their better halves, but certainly doesn't like being put in the hurt box or riding outside her comfort zone. So when I say we doing a 40km ride she's out, although she would like to ride with us she doesn't as she honestly doesn't see the point of going out and spending 3 or 4 hours hating every minute of it.

 

This is the reason why I been toying with the idea of getting her an Ebike. Basically being able to go out on a longer ride with her being able to enjoy what we all enjoy. Who knows maybe this will entice her to get fitter and stronger to one day ride a normal MTB and be able to do a race or even a stage race later on as a couple.

 

I don't agree that Ebikes should become the norm on trails with guys simply ripping up the trails and pissing other riders off. But I believe they do have their place and with the proper control could introduce a lot of potential MTBers to the sport.

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Gung ho charlie won't have the skills necessary to buzz everyone on the trails unless he's built them up over time, and even then the motor only kicks in when he's pedalling. 32kph is the limit. It won't accelerate to 32kph all the time. Even the spaz one only has a 250w motor, and that's not enough to get ME to 10kph on the way up a trail unless it's as flat as a pancake, and then I'd probably be doing that speed anyway. 

 

Thats exactly why i'm saying pedal assist is cool... 

 

Its when the guys get clever and have the little 100w button

 

*edit

 

battery tech moves so fast in 6 months there will be bikes with 3 hours and 300watts on board... is all im saying. 

 

Trail centers and trails will have to adapt and make some rules before its out of hand

Edited by the nerd
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My answer is a big no!!

1. Limited speed.or not it is possible to mod them to go faster, thus becoming dangerous on the trails.

2. Your mate/wife/so cannot keep up with you, time you learnt some patience, and rode with them, not them with you, thats what relationships/friendships are about, grow up.

3. We all started riding slowly and thus learnt our skills and built them up to where we could ride our bikes safely, and control them at speed. IMBA RULE, ride whithin your skills.

 

 

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk

1- yes, that may be a problem, but even then the pedal assist is still there. Some may have the necessary skills to hardwire them to put in a different motor so that it can spin faster, but that's the minority. 

2 - what if she / he wants to ride with you all the time? Like Bateleur above, it's a case of enjoying a 5 hour cycle in the alps, or getting to places that they wouldn't ordinarily have the fitness to get to... 

3 - skill will be a problem no matter the speed, and just because they are now fast it doesn't mean they'll be able to tackle trails that are beyond their skill level or can all of a sudden hit that gap or drop. If anything they'll just be grinding the jeep track at a faster rate. Just because you can now go 32kph on a segment of trail, you still need to be able to handle a bike. Red herring, that one. 

Edited by Myles Mayhew
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If you want to train and spend time with your wife why can't you do that? 

 

Life does not allow some people the luxury of a hard training ride and a stroll with the wife as well. Why not combine the two?

 

My father in law rides with someone who has a pace maker, he cannot allow it to go above 145bpm. so the whole group waits at the top of the hill for 10 min for his heart to chill out. They are not racing snakes, we are talking, an average speed of 13km/h.  

 

Strava is not really an issue as it will be quick to tell who is chilling at 90 bpm taking KOM's.

 

Unless someone puts a gun to your head and forces you to ride an e-bike its not going to decrease the joy you get from your ride.

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