Santa Cruz announces all-new Heckler CC e-bike

[ichnusa]

[LazyTrailRider]

And days after the best looking and lightest e-bike launch, they're not really looking that svelte

 

As someone on Pinkbike said: "There's nothing new with SCs offering here that wasn't available 3 years ago, on a Levo."

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

As someone on Pinkbike said: "There's nothing new with SCs offering here that wasn't available 3 years ago, on a Levo."

Yeah,I saw that. ????

[Me rida my bicycle]

As a Santa Cruz fan and previous owner (Tallboy2 and Highball2) this just looks out dated. Hopefully it looks better in real life than pictures.

The new Trance and Reign looks so much better and way cheaper, OK granted they are alu but does weight really matter on a e-bike?

[Markellis]

There is an interview on pink bike (I think) where a Santa Cruz designer said that in 5 years time he expects up to 50% of their new bikes will be e-bikes...it will be a sad day if that is genuinely the way the industry is going

[Grease_Monkey]

There is an interview on pink bike (I think) where a Santa Cruz designer said that in 5 years time he expects up to 50% of their new bikes will be e-bikes...it will be a sad day if that is genuinely the way the industry is going

It is... I heard (and it's just hearsay, that's why I won't mention shop names and quote it as fact) - that a certain bike shop moves around 30 E bike units per month, now their top selling product.

 

I like ebikes, but it will be a sad day when they replace normal bikes are the norm rather than an n+1 item.

[NotSoBigBen]

It is... I heard (and it's just hearsay, that's why I won't mention shop names and quote it as fact) - that a certain bike shop moves around 30 E bike units per month, now their top selling product.

 

I like ebikes, but it will be a sad day when they replace normal bikes are the norm rather than an n+1 item.

There are few of us sad about that unfortunately, many feel we are just haters and should leave the healthy, able bodied e-bike riders alone ....

[LazyTrailRider]

There are few of us sad about that unfortunately, many feel we are just haters and should leave the healthy, able bodied e-bike riders alone ....

 

I'm able bodied, but I'll be honest, pedaling bikes around under my own steam if really good electric assistance is available is becoming less and less attractive and seems a bit silly just for the sake of being a purist.

 

I'm on a bike to enjoy the trails and the thrills they bring, not just to build watts and chase uphill strava KOMs. I haven't worried about an uphill segment in years, it's the tech downhill segments which tickle my fancy. More competition results in more viable e-bike options becoming available in more refined forms; I'm all for being able to smash more trails in an hour or two's outing than I currently am able to.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

I'm able bodied, but I'll be honest, pedaling bikes around under my own steam if really good electric assistance is available is becoming less and less attractive and seems a bit silly just for the sake of being a purist.

 

I'm on a bike to enjoy the trails and the thrills they bring, not just to build watts and chase uphill strava KOMs. I haven't worried about an uphill segment in years, it's the tech downhill segments which tickle my fancy. More competition results in more viable e-bike options becoming available in more refined forms; I'm all for being able to smash more trails in an hour or two's outing than I currently am able to.

PREACH!!!

[Me rida my bicycle]

I'm able bodied, but I'll be honest, pedaling bikes around under my own steam if really good electric assistance is available is becoming less and less attractive and seems a bit silly just for the sake of being a purist.

 

I'm on a bike to enjoy the trails and the thrills they bring, not just to build watts and chase uphill strava KOMs. I haven't worried about an uphill segment in years, it's the tech downhill segments which tickle my fancy. More competition results in more viable e-bike options becoming available in more refined forms; I'm all for being able to smash more trails in an hour or two's outing than I currently am able to.

true and if I could afford a good e-bike I would get one to play on the trails with but but..., I am more fit now than ever before in my life and being able to ride 80-100km trails in a morning feels great (I am not a small guy) that is a feeling that no e-bike is going to give you and most probably more range to???????? Edited February 13, 2020 by Me rida my bicycle

[ChrisF]

As a Santa Cruz fan and previous owner (Tallboy2 and Highball2) this just looks out dated. Hopefully it looks better in real life than pictures.

The new Trance and Reign looks so much better and way cheaper, OK granted they are alu but does weight really matter on a e-bike?

 

any threads on these options ?

 

 

Looked at the Scott options today .... even as a Scott owner their ebikes looks leaves me cold ....

 

 

 

What options do we have in terms of ebikes ?  (link to relevant thread would be appreciated) :

 

 

EDIT ... comments updated after some drooling in various bike shops ....

 

- Spez ... outside my budget.... The LEVO makes a lot of sense at the lower end of the budget.  Bit more expensive than the other entry levels, but all parts seems full spec .... or am I missing something ?  And it actually looks good.

- Santa Cruz, will reserve comment until I can see it ....

- Giant ... need to do my homework on these

STANCE (first in their full susspension range), 29er with NX/SX components   

TRANCE, 27,5, new suspension for less bobbing, nice components ... costs more than the LEVO

- Scott .... nice spec, not so nice in real life, maybe it will grow on me .... slowly growing on me.  620Ah battery, but also SX/NX components ...

- Trek ... I am not a fan of the brand.  But their lifetime warantee on their frames, motors AND batteries means I owe it to myself to have another look at their EX5 (if only they had stock to look at)

- Merida, the one I saw in store was 15k more than the Scott.

- what other brands should one be looking at

 

PS - are there any threads dedicated to comparing the various brands ?

 

sorry for the almost off topic post.  But I am looking for information ....

Edited February 14, 2020 by ChrisF

[Me rida my bicycle]

any threads on these options ?

 

 

Looked at the Scott options today .... even as a Scott owner their ebikes looks leaves me cold ....

 

 

 

What options do we have in terms of ebikes ?  (link to relevant thread would be appreciated) :

 

- Spez ... outside my budget.

- Santa Cruz, will reserve comment until I can see it ....

- Giant ... need to do my homework on these

- Scott .... nice spec, not so nice in real life, maybe it will grow on me

- Trek ... 

- Merida, the one I saw in store was 15k more than the Scott.

- what other brands should one be looking at

 

 

 

sorry for the almost off topic post.  But I am looking for information ....

https://www.dragons.co.za/giant/e-bikes/getep219-trance-e-bike-e2-pro-2019

Baie nice en die pryse is ook nie te wild nie. Oom wat saam ons ry het 1, ek was regtig impressed met dit op 'n kort spin.

[ChrisF]

[Pure Savage]

Had to laugh today, saw this on Instagram. It was in the same post:

 

Who the advertisers of the e bike believe are buying the bike:

 

 

Who is actually buying the e bike:

 

 

Think Santa Cruz should update their marketing material to more accurately portray the buyers of the bikes!

[ChrisF]

At the Stanford Classic MTB event the ebikes started 10 minutes ahead of the main field, for both the short and long distances.

 

 

Ebike field for the long distance, about 9 or 10 ebikes

 

 

 

 

The ebike field for the short distance, about 8 riders

 

 

 

Very interesting mix between older, younger and unfit riders ....

 

 

The Stanford Classic has a nice twist to the plot, in that friends and family can head out to Stanford Hills farm and see their riders at the second water stop, which is next to the farm's restaurant.  Turns out that after 30km of hard riding the one ebike was still 3 minutes ahead of the two racing snakes (on the Satuday ride).  I spoke to these two gents on Sunday morning.  Seems it was an interesting race.  Downhill and flat sections they would would catch up to the ebike, get him in sight ... then on the hills he could keep his speed and steadily pull a gap .... They literally caught and passed him in the last km of the race.  So certainly an interesting dynamic at the very sharp end of the field.

 

 

Now the rest of the field was even more interesting to me.  The top 10 riders had passed the bulk of the eriders by the 30km point.  One of the eriders was a lady, who decided to wait for her partner on a normal bike.  Visually she appeared to be young and fit, but not confident to ride a long MTB on a normal bike.  The ebike provides her the confidence to do such an event.  She waited at the water point until her partner got there, and they finished the ride together.

 

And then some of the "unfit" riders came in .... looking good.  For better or worse, these ebikes gets them out into nature.  And even with the e-assist, they got a damn good workout !

 

 

Worth noting that this was a FUN ride, no seading involved.  So the impact of the eriders is null and void.  Still these types of events provides an invaluable view into the world of mixing MTB and eMTB into the same event.  

 

Some thoughts :

 

- Even with a 10 minute head start, all but 1 of the ebikes were passed in the first 90 minutes.  Obviously some of this catching happened along single track sections.  In fact on Sunday morning the gent on the orange bike pulled over for faster riders to pass him .... got fynbos into the derailure, which broke and his race was over.

 

 

- It may be better for the ebikes to start 10 to 15 minutes AFTER the normal riders.  As the faster riders pulls away from the ebikes, the ebikes can not affect the race outcome, nor the seading of any of the faster riders.

 

- For this event the ebikes were a fun ride only, thus no positions allocated.  Thus the impact on positions as eriders pass the slower riders cant impact on the eriders "position".  And frankly, the same level of mutual respect applies to eriders passing slower riders, as when the faster riders had to pass the eriders ....

 

 

 

interesting times ahead.  Only certainty being that we are going to see more and more eriders at these events.