The haters!!!!

[Tony]

Well I haven't bought my first e bike yet, but will get one soon. Have been doing the usual internet research and have come across so many misinformed small minded opinions.... wow!!!!!! What is it with these people who get so irate about ebikes??? What is their problem? Look, now I'm getting irate haha
I feel like compiling a list of anti e bike comments i've discovered on the net in forums etc

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

Well I haven't bought my first e bike yet, but will get one soon. Have been doing the usual internet research and have come across so many misinformed small minded opinions.... wow!!!!!! What is it with these people who get so irate about ebikes??? What is their problem? Look, now I'm getting irate haha
I feel like compiling a list of anti e bike comments i've discovered on the net in forums etc

Hi Tony,

That’s the reason I started this forum. I posted to Reddit and MBR and got tired of all the negative comments. It’s a safe environment here and we can all just geek out on EBikes!

 

[Hedge Monkey]

I only ride am
Pointing and shouting ebike cheaters ect...
What happens when battery goes flat
LOL.......
Always ride alone
Mind my own business
Find it very rude upsetting and ruins my rides.
When out minding my own businesses on a very short window of opportunity to enjoy myself after a 60 hour week.
Why should I endure crap like this.
I have some epic rides bridle paths
Down hill
X country ect .But even a Sunday afternoon road ride can be ruined by such comments..
Cheat ect..
I find small minded comments and opinions very frustrating as sean as those that do probably haven’t even ridden a e bike.
I hope this changes so I can find confidant to go out at times when others are around

 

[thebarber]

I always tell em to ask their mum about batteries, she's got a top drawer full of em.
To which the usual reply is well see ya on the downhill, so I wait for em to show me how to do it.......

 

[Dax]

I only ride am
Pointing and shouting ebike cheaters ect...
What happens when battery goes flat
LOL.......
Always ride alone
Mind my own business
Find it very rude upsetting and ruins my rides.
When out minding my own businesses on a very short window of opportunity to enjoy myself after a 60 hour week.
Why should I endure crap like this.
I have some epic rides bridle paths
Down hill
X country ect .But even a Sunday afternoon road ride can be ruined by such comments..
Cheat ect..
I find small minded comments and opinions very frustrating as sean as those that do probably haven’t even ridden a e bike.
I hope this changes so I can find confidant to go out at times when others are around

Try these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anker-Headphones-Lightweight-Sweatproof-Travelling-Black/dp/B01N6DC2ZE

 

[Kernow]

Quite funny really the other day at s trail centre I bumped into an old friend who rode in a group I uses to ride with , we stopped for a chat and my mates and her group carried on . She was a bit negative about me now riding an ebike bike and said she didn’t want one because she would lose her fitness
I explained I was actually riding more now and my fitness hadn’t suffered , in fact it had improved . Anyway I said I should ride back to the finish with her as everyone had gone ahead , to be fair I left my motor turned off and we started up the first climb , I still got complaints about cheating and it wasn’t fair etc , even though I hadn’t even turned the motor on . ?

 

[Cinnamon]

Kind of understand haters...it is very annoying to realise that somebody is having more fun than they do..?

 

[R120]

I have seen the biggest jump in fitness i have ever had since i got the e-bike, i am riding more, and trying more stuff than i used too - i find it doesn't make my ride easier, just makes me try harder stuff!

The thing with fitness and e-bikes, and i am no fitness guru, but talking form my experience, is they enable you to sustain an optimal level of effort for longer - on a normal bike you might find you knacker yourself out quickly, whereas on the e-bike you can keep going for longer - i hardly ever take breaks on my rides, usually just one coffee stop on my loop, whereas before i would pause a lot after challenging climbs etc.

I have also found the climbs i was doing in boost when i first got the bike, i can now consistently do in trail mode, and that i hardly use boost at all, as i find minting traction easier in trail on all but the silliest climbs

I have only come across one hater, last weekend, he was in a group who all came over to check out my bike when i stopped for a coffee, most where super into it, yet this one guy was just telling the rest of them that e-bikes where a waste of time and not capable of riding the same terrain as normal mtb's!

 

[npatrix]

I would respect the opinion of an hater, after he ride an eMTB for 2-3 hours... then he would know what he is talking about, before expiriencing is just prejudice and resistance to change!

Going through youtube is impressive the first ride on a eMTB, from PROs to beginners, everyone is really impressed... some will say is not for me, but all say great fun!!!

I say, definitely for me!!!
I still burn the same calories or more, as I ride more time, I go faster, I try much more technical stuff, I evolve faster, doing more difficult tracks... and I have much more fun!!!

 

[Tony]

I always tell em to ask their mum about batteries, she's got a top drawer full of em.
To which the usual reply is well see ya on the downhill, so I wait for em to show me how to do it.......

 

[outerlimits]

When they tell me i’m Cheating, I just say “ yeah it’s awesome, I’ve now got like 50 Strava KOM’s”
It’s funny watching them fire up after that. ???

 

[fos'l]

If you think it's bad in your area you need to visit Orange County, CA where there's a bunch or e-haters (used to call them e- on MTBR) that equate e-MTB riders with terrorists, pedophiles or the like. IMO, the real problem is they hate seeing anyone else having a good time.

 

[Rab]

I have seen the biggest jump in fitness i have ever had since i got the e-bike, i am riding more, and trying more stuff than i used too - i find it doesn't make my ride easier, just makes me try harder stuff!

The thing with fitness and e-bikes, and i am no fitness guru, but talking form my experience, is they enable you to sustain an optimal level of effort for longer - on a normal bike you might find you knacker yourself out quickly, whereas on the e-bike you can keep going for longer - i hardly ever take breaks on my rides, usually just one coffee stop on my loop, whereas before i would pause a lot after challenging climbs etc.

I have also found the climbs i was doing in boost when i first got the bike, i can now consistently do in trail mode, and that i hardly use boost at all, as i find minting traction easier in trail on all but the silliest climbs

I have only come across one hater, last weekend, he was in a group who all came over to check out my bike when i stopped for a coffee, most where super into it, yet this one guy was just telling the rest of them that e-bikes where a waste of time and not capable of riding the same terrain as normal mtb's!

Absolutely agree! I’ve been MTB-ing for nigh-on 30 years, but health problems (and a move to a Very Hilly Area) prompted a switch to battery power.

Since then, I’ve lost weight and toned up, I go much further than I ever did, really enjoy my rides and ride nearly every day. I’ve also found that I use lower, or no assistance more often.

Rarely do I meet with disapproval - most people are positive, or at least inquisitive and I am seeing more and more e-bikes out there.

The odd hater I can just dismiss as Ill-informed.

 

[elyhim]

The hate is generally on the internet. In the USA it is tough because these haters are actually running the local groups which advise landowners and land managers to ban the EMTB's. Their last excuse is - There's going to be too many people on the trails. Or my favorite - The EMTB riders ride laps and will cause more erosion. These people literally have made the argument that too many people outside, people spending MORE time riding the trails is BAD for the sport, bad for access.

They just cannot accept change.

Ride where you want, leave when asked - that's my motto. I'm going to stop posting on their websites, stop talking about access. Stop asking permission - they will never give it anyway.

 

[Doomanic]

I was chatting to a couple of blokes on Yeti SB5.5s or something. How light??? Anyway, while they weren't acutally negative, they didn't really see the point of eBikes for them (young, fit, capable riders). Then they both had a go on mine. Big grin central. When I left them they were discussing hiring a couple of bikes for a weekend and hitting Afan. Job done.

 

[R120]

I had a different experience today, went over to Boxhill and was hitting some of the downhill tracks, then coming back up the road, which of course on a Sunday is choc a bloc with roadies (literally so many cyclists in the road cars can’t get by).

Anyway as I am finishing one downhill run and about to turn on to the road back up, a pretty serious looking roadie comes over, I thought he was going to have a go, but instead asked if I could pace him and his club up the hill as he had seen me doing a couple of loops.

So there I was at the head of a train of 5k plus road bikes who where effectively drafting me up the hill, as I can maintain a steady 15mph up Boxhill. Felt like a team time trial in the TDF!

Pretty impressive as they stuck to my wheel all the way up, they sprinted off into the distance as I got to the top.

 

[npatrix]

So there I was at the head of a train of 5k plus road bikes who where effectively drafting me up the hill, as I can maintain a steady 15mph up Boxhill. Felt like a team time trial in the TDF!

You should have a picture of that... a MTB pace a few road bikes through a hill

 

[R120]

yeah it was quite amusing, and a good example of no matter what you ride, we all love cycling!

I always find the cheating thing a bit weird - I ride mountain bikes as I like to hit trails and features, I don’t ride a mountain bike because I like to post KOM’s going up hills, I know some XC nuts do, but I am guessing for most people we like to ride the fun stuff, and go exploring. E-MTB’s make that more accessible to most people, but also make more terrain more accessible to every level of rider.

If you ride a bike to have fun, and put a smile on your face, then it’s impossible to cheat, because the only person you would be cheating is yourself, and I have never met one person on an e-bike who feels that they have cheated themselves out of something they would have got from a normal bike.

 

[fos'l]

There are two forums, one worldwide and one local (socal) that I don't participate in because the haters are allowed to overrun threads. During the past three years their reasons against EMTB's were ridiculous ranging from closing speed to the fact that physically challenged riders would be stuck in the woods if their battery ran out. Some idiots surmised that riders would toss their batteries in the woods if the power was exhausted which would contaminate the area. Unfortunately these haters have prejudiced local representatives.

 

[Doomanic]

The bile spouted on MTBR has stopped me going on the forum.

 

[npatrix]

There are two forums, one worldwide and one local (socal) that I don't participate in because the haters are allowed to overrun threads. During the past three years their reasons against EMTB's were ridiculous ranging from closing speed to the fact that physically challenged riders would be stuck in the woods if their battery ran out. Some idiots surmised that riders would toss their batteries in the woods if the power was exhausted which would contaminate the area. Unfortunately these haters have prejudiced local representatives.

welcome here, best eMTB forum around the globe

 

[Eastsidebkr]

There are two forums, one worldwide and one local (socal) that I don't participate in because the haters are allowed to overrun threads. During the past three years their reasons against EMTB's were ridiculous ranging from closing speed to the fact that physically challenged riders would be stuck in the woods if their battery ran out. Some idiots surmised that riders would toss their batteries in the woods if the power was exhausted which would contaminate the area. Unfortunately these haters have prejudiced local representatives.

The closing speed thing is rediculous. I just rode with a guy who is a very strong rider without ebike and can blow the doors off most people going up hill mind you! Ive been passed by numerous faster riders going up hill i just pull over or let them pass no biggie! On two way trails its each persons responsibility to check their up hill and down hill speeds accordingly ebike or not

 

[fos'l]

The guys on MTBR have been grasping at straws for three years. IMO, the biggest problems are the so-called moderators who should be titled super-haters. Rob is very aware of the environment there.

 

[Ryder]

Not wishing to go OT here but you were a mod there right? Were you given instructions on what could or could not be done to control the hate? I know it is a touchy subject and suspect it is why you left so feel free to ignore if you don't want to talk about it. I am just curious as to why they allow an e-mtb section and then let haters rampage all over it.

 

[fos'l]

Agree, no need to go OT. I was asked several times by FC, MTBR's owner, to moderate the forum. He wanted it to be a place to discuss different bikes and products related to them. I told him we needed to remove the negativity in order to be successful. Unfortunately, IMO, all the other mods that posted were haters, and nothing improved so I quit. I haven't looked at anything on any MTBR forum since.

 

[Ryder]

Wise move. It is a pity really as MTBR is a great source of info for bikes and always used to be a great forum to participate on.

 

[npatrix]

Agree, no need to go OT. I was asked several times by FC, MTBR's owner, to moderate the forum. He wanted it to be a place to discuss different bikes and products related to them. I told him we needed to remove the negativity in order to be successful. Unfortunately, IMO, all the other mods that posted were haters, and nothing improved so I quit. I haven't looked at anything on any MTBR forum since.

very brave of you... well done mate!!!

 

[fos'l]

npatrix, thanks, seems like it was more my brain finally actuating.

 

[hjscm]

It is all because people just don't understand or even want to understand. I got yelled at and bunch of dirty looks when i rode a trail that according to them is not for ebikes. I told them it was off and they laughed and said you can just turn it on when no one is around. This was not true cause i took the battery out and they still didn't want me on the trail.

 

[Tori]

The bile spouted on MTBR has stopped me going on the forum.

Absolutely, I have been on a few threads there (lurking) and the small-mindedness is astonishing. Only momentarily astonishing, because I am a good study of human behaviour and I realise all too well the ingroup/outgroup bias is very alluring to insecure personalities.