Do you ride your EMTB with people on acoustics?

[EMTBehave]

I have seen and heard a few people saying it's better not to ride EMTB with people on acoustics as it's not fair and you will leave them behind etc etc... but so far for me this is nonsense and hasn't been a problem at all when I have gone riding with my (fitter) friend. My logic is:

• You can tailor the EMTB power delivery to behave similar to an acoustic... Eco mode on my new Bosch basically just compensates for the additional weight of the bike and not much more. It's pretty brutal on steeper uphills.
• If I do go faster uphill then I don't mind waiting at intervals for people to catch up as usually I have nice scenery around me to enjoy.
• Flats and downhills are pretty much all the same speed on EMTB as acoustic and great fun with friends.

Seems to me that this springs from prejudice and that there is no real reason for people with EMTB's should not go riding with people on acoustic bikes. As long as you have common sense and consideration for the people you are with then it's just like any other bike ride with your friends and wasting time worrying about that stuff seems pointless.

So what do you guys think, do you happily ride your EMTB with people on acoustic bikes or do you sometimes downgrade yourself to fit with the crowd?

 

[steveo]

I dont have my emtb yet (orbea fs wild) should have it soon. But have a few freinds that have them. One has a specialized with a brose and other has a focus with a Shimano. Never had a problem out riding with them. They just use eco mode. Its definitely a bit more easy on them but i think they still got a decent workout.

 

[Levo-Lon]

I ride with a younger rider, he is far fitter than me.
I got an emtb so I could enjoy riding More.

I still go out on my normal bike with him but I just can't keep up and end up physically ...word begins with F and ends with a D ..I don't get any pleasure from being to tired to enjoy the ride.

On my Levo I simply keep up and follow.. especially up hills.
He's a goat , I'm a old git lol ,I've enjoyed the last few months more than I can say.
Long live Emtbs I say.

My wife loves her Levo, and I like the fact we bike together at the same speed.

Enjoy your new best bike ?

 

[outerlimits]

When you first get your eMtb you loose a few friends, but gain a few more over time.
It’s the best way to find out who your real friends are and those who have their seat-post stuck up their ass.

 

[drjarvis2003]

Yes, i do quite a lot and if its somewhere that we all know quite well like the Golfie, then i put in a couple of runs while the rest of the guys are doing the big climbs. I have got the timing within a few mins to get them at the top. Ebike can come in handy for the rest of them, as its not the first time i have been the one to run back to the van for spares or tools for someone else.

 

[GrahamPaul]

All the groups I ride with are mixed groups. It was the encouragement of the riders in these groups which convinced me to get the EMTB (let's be honest, the youngsters got fed up waiting for this old git to stuff his lungs back into his chest after gasping his way to the top of every climb ). Occasionally I get one of them asking me for a swop on a long climb - I can usually fail to understand...

 

[Pdoz]

Discover what a TRAXmtb is! Bike Trailer - Bike Hook - Bike Attach

Buy one and the puffers will WANT to ride with you!

 

[Levo-Lon]

When you first get your eMtb you loose a few friends, but gain a few more over time.
It’s the best way to find out who your real friends are and those who have their seat-post stuck up their ass.

If "friends " don't want to know you after you get an ebike,,they never were your friends..
Besides you won't be hearing their jealous comments as you be gone ?

 

[EMTBehave]

When you first get your eMtb you loose a few friends, but gain a few more over time.
It’s the best way to find out who your real friends are and those who have their seat-post stuck up their ass.

WTF how can you lose a friend over an ebike?

 

[b45her]

i've ridden with ebikes on my normal bike and with normal bikes on my ebike.
i would imagine most groups generally ride at the pace of the slowest climber.
no one i ride with gives a toss what bikes people are on.

the only time ive ever shot off on an ebike is on the last drop of the day, rather than climb with the normal bikes i sometimes blast up get a drop in then catch back up before the top.

 

[Gary]

You can tailor the EMTB power delivery to behave similar to an acoustic... Eco mode on my new Bosch basically just compensates for the additional weight of the bike and not much more.

Don't kid yourself.
unless you're running tyres that have 70w more rolling resistance per tyre than your mates tyres your bike even in eco is not equal to any of your normal friends bikes. If you feel like you're putting in the same effort to go the same speed as them you're simply not as fit.

 

[Kaelidoz]

Hell yeah 2 of my friends got mtb because of my emtb. We can switch bikes and enjoy them all.

 

[Kaelidoz]

Don't kid yourself.
unless you're running tyres that have 70w more rolling resistance per tyre than your mates tyres your bike even in eco is not equal to any of your normal friends bikes. If you feel like you're putting in the same effort to go the same speed as them you're simply not as fit.

True on my yamaha PW but I remember that you can fine tune the assistance level on some bikes, right?


With my bike I just turn the motor off when it's unreasonable.

 

[mak]

Don't kid yourself.
unless you're running tyres that have 70w more rolling resistance per tyre than your mates tyres your bike even in eco is not equal to any of your normal friends bikes. If you feel like you're putting in the same effort to go the same speed as them you're simply not as fit.

He is correct, I have the bosch gen4 motor, eco in the correct gear can climb some pretty nasty dry hills, I did an 8 mile ride yesterday to a friends house with the bike turned off, it was only on the way back I realised I had the wind in my favour and the route must of been down hill all the way .
On the way back eco overcame the wind and climbs but only just

I ride alone , I don't have any friends that's even slightly interested in mtb although I did buy the other half a decathlon e mtb hard tail last month and she's used it twice ( I don't class her as a friend though ) .
I have become slightly obsessed with not venturing past tour mode and every hill I approach I literally talk to myself and say I'm having that in eco or off, I think I need some friends

 

[outerlimits]

If "friends " don't want to know you after you get an ebike,,they never were your friends..
Besides you won't be hearing their jealous comments as you be gone ?

Best to really test the friendship just to make sure. Rode past a friend last week, up a hill, no hands, as I was sucking on a frozen coke, and stole their Strava KOM.
If you stay friends after that, it’s all good.

 

[R120]

True on my yamaha PW but I remember that you can fine tune the assistance level on some bikes, right?


With my bike I just turn the motor off when it's unreasonable.

Ha, I was out with some kids last year and they started moaning about me having assistance, so I turned off the motor and showed them how to use their gears properly.

 

[Pdoz]

Ha, I was out with some kids last year and they started moaning about me having assistance, so I turned off the motor and showed them how to use their gears properly.

Funny, I was out with the sprog today and she didn't seem to mind me having assistance - so long as I shared it. ( see previous post about the trax.)

 

[miPbiP]

yes. I turn if off and regard it as training, and have my eco mode set very low for tougher climbs. I work hard.

I sit in about the same place in the group as when on my bio bike, no showing off.

I help people out if they need a tow, and I zip ahead to open gates, safety spot for road crossings etc.

It's no problem at all. Use very little battery.

But, compared to a full gas e ride, the pace is a bit dull.

 

[Dax]

Don't kid yourself.
unless you're running tyres that have 70w more rolling resistance per tyre than your mates tyres your bike even in eco is not equal to any of your normal friends bikes. If you feel like you're putting in the same effort to go the same speed as them you're simply not as fit.

Yup, well aware my mates are fitter.

This is the nice thing about having an ebike, an unfit guy like me can ride with fit mates, without constantly blacking out/blowing chunks or holding up the group so the fit people get cold and dont feel like they've done and exercise.

I often ride with a mate who races XC, she on a 9kg XC race bike, me on a kenevo. I dial the assist down to 5-10% and we are similarly out of breath. After 25 miles, we both feel like we've earned our cake.

Also good for punishing mates that have punished me on every climb for the last 20 years ?

 

[steve_sordy]

I got the emtb because knee problems gradually led to me not riding with my mates. My problem not theirs, because I hated being the guy at the back that everyone was waiting for. Initially I rode with my old mates and dialled it back of course, although it made no difference on the descents. Even though I was deliberately going slowly on the climbs, from their viewpoint I just accelerated away. I had thought that I had got it just right until one guy posted that I just shot away as though he was standing still! I could be wrong, but I believe that I detected a small bit of resentment because he was always quicker on the climbs than me when I rode an analogue bike.

The only regular rider I go with now is my 12-year old grandson. Neither of us has a problem, and he just can't wait until he gets a go on my bike!

As @outerlimits said, I have lost a few riding buddies, but I have gained a few too! Life rolls on.

 

[Gary]

often ride with a mate who races XC, she on a 9kg XC race bike, me on a kenevo. I dial the assist down to 5-10% and we are similarly out of breath.

Do you also feel even with her on the descents with your 180mm bulldozer?

I don't really see why you even bothered quoting me TBH.

 

[Zimmerframe]

Do you also feel even with her on the descents with your 180mm bulldozer?

He said she was his "mate" .. not his "Mate" ..

 

[miPbiP]

one of my crew is in his 70s. he absolutely kicked arse on XC until a few years, strong as an ox, but his body can't do it now. we all have a lot of respect and affection for him and want him to get an e so he can ride with us but he refuses. would be so great to have him with us again.

 

[cozzy]

Interesting one and I guess depends on the sort of rides you do. I'm (or I was) push up then bomb down as many times as I was able. Now I have an ebike I'm riding up in 4mins compared to a 15mins push and doing 3 times as many runs.
If I want group bantz with non ebikers, then I end up going less runs. Guess it depends what you want out of your day.

 

[118]

Not every one can warrant/justify an eb, so if there's a ride out, with friends, what's it matter if there's a mix? A bike and the riding is to be enjoyed, regardless of whether it's assisted or not...

 

[Zimmerframe]

is to be enjoyed, regardless of whether it's assisted or not...

Asking for @Doomanic .. Does this rule only apply to cycling ?

 

[118]

Asking for @Doomanic .. Does this rule only apply to cycling ?

As he's the 'Master of FOD', I'm guessing not. All battery operated appliances will be incorporated, surely?

 

[EMTBehave]

Not every one can warrant/justify an eb, so if there's a ride out, with friends, what's it matter if there's a mix? A bike and the riding is to be enjoyed, regardless of whether it's assisted or not...

It clearly seems to matter to some people due to the prejudices against ebikes that still existing in many biking communities... luckily I have no exposure to that but I was curious enough to ask the question.

 

[Jdog]

I sometimes ride with acoustics and just turn my assistance down to a minimum and have no issues at all. If I am feeling really nice I even give them a nudge up some of the hills.

#EPOWAH

 

[ggx]

Yep, . Ride usually in mixed group .