Truth is if you've just spent your hard earned cash on a top spec conventional mountain bike you must be pretty gutted when someone is having more fun on an eBike. I think it's really a case of 'don't knock it 'till you've tried it'. I for one have found that, surprisingly, my Specialized Kenevo can do anything my previous conventional mountain bikes can do and it does it better!
I used to apologise to riders I overtook on the 2 mile hill into my village. I will admit, I did feel kind of bad blasting past them. "Don't feel bad, I'm cheating".