Trek Fuel EXe vs Cannondale Moterra SL

[Voltameter]

Hello,

I'm in need of and eMTB now that I am disabled with Long-COVID and recovering. This means my body has trouble producing energy and if I over-exert I get sick for a week, but if I manage my energy right I think I could be doing some short-ish eMTB rides this year. Right now in my recovery I can do around 1.5hr of light exertion (Heart Rate under 120bpm).

My background is years of racing enduro, riding the gnarliest shit around, and huge missions. Obviously things are gonna have to change; shorter rides, less aggressive. Before I got sick I was riding a Pivot Firebird and a Chromag Stylus.

My LBS stocks Trek and I've been looking at the Fuel EXe that I would extend the fork to 160mm and probably size up on. I know with this bike I won't be flying blindly into chunder, but can it handle aggressive terrain? Another bike I'm looking at is a demo Cannondale Moterra SL. I'm leaning towards the Fuel because I don't need much range, will be riding with my analog bros, and I'll have LBS support. But the Cannodale is cheaper (demo with warranty) and would offer more assist for my disability.

Can anyone offer me their experience with these bikes and which would best fit my unique needs?

 

[Integralnz]

I have the EXE. Great bike. The Cannondale might suit you better with a bit more power and range as you ride your way back to health.

 

[Twisted Fork]

Because the ex-e forces you to put in a lot more effort and higher cadence to get the most return from the system, it may not be the best choice for you at this point in your recovery. I’ll regularly hit 170+ bpm still while climbing in moderate to steep single track. Keeping under 120 would be difficult in many situations. You’ll probably want a motor that has higher torque output at lower cadences, like a Yamaha or Bosch.

It’s a very capable and lively descender, especially with a 160mm fork in mullet configuration.

 

[Mteam]

Dont worry about whether the Exe can handle the terrain, it'll handle pretty much anything you would have ridden on your previous bikes - maybe slightly slower ,due to a bit less travel at the back, but not by much. The bike itself is very capable, especially if you use a 160mm fork, and some people use a 62.5mm stroke shock to gain an extra 5mm of travel on the rear.

If you're always riding with people on regular bikes, then the TQ motor will do what you need - ie keep your heart rate down and give you a whole load of range, its only when your speed increases to beyond normal bike speeds that the battery consumption increases significantly.

I havent ridden the cannondale, but it does look really good, full power in a lightweight package, it gets decent reviews. Maybe its the better bike of the two?

 

[Kubiertas]

Hey @Voltameter I also suffer from long-covid. A little more than three years now.
I uses to ride a niner rkt rdo. So mostly cross country here in the flat Netherlands.
I love my fuel exe. Should have bought it earlier. But I thought I could recover faster.
I went over my limits to easy when riding my analog bike. I just ended up trying to ride the way I was used to. And then a couple of days later the punnisher walked in…..

So sorry, our use cases are not comparable. But I am very happy with my fuel ex-e. More than enough power for me. (I’m a very big guy)

 

[BouncyCornetto]

Hello,

I'm in need of and eMTB now that I am disabled with Long-COVID and recovering. This means my body has trouble producing energy and if I over-exert I get sick for a week, but if I manage my energy right I think I could be doing some short-ish eMTB rides this year. Right now in my recovery I can do around 1.5hr of light exertion (Heart Rate under 120bpm).

My background is years of racing enduro, riding the gnarliest shit around, and huge missions. Obviously things are gonna have to change; shorter rides, less aggressive. Before I got sick I was riding a Pivot Firebird and a Chromag Stylus.

My LBS stocks Trek and I've been looking at the Fuel EXe that I would extend the fork to 160mm and probably size up on. I know with this bike I won't be flying blindly into chunder, but can it handle aggressive terrain? Another bike I'm looking at is a demo Cannondale Moterra SL. I'm leaning towards the Fuel because I don't need much range, will be riding with my analog bros, and I'll have LBS support. But the Cannodale is cheaper (demo with warranty) and would offer more assist for my disability.

Can anyone offer me their experience with these bikes and which would best fit my unique needs?

Sorry I'm late to the party. I suffer ME/CFS with energy producing issues particularly in mitochondrial. I also get very sick for 2-3 days from over exertion. Hard Cardio for more than a minute or two makes me ill fast.

I only got into emtb due to the illness and the need for support exercising, never rode normal MTBs.

I went haibike hardtail, to turbo levo, to kenevo, to moterra SL. Light weight, mid travel and full power is absolutely game changing for me.

I thought long travel burly on the kenevo would support me better, but actually just knackered me out muscling it around. I could do more on the levo! Very depressing.

If you have an energy condition like ME or long COVID I would prioritise light weight and motor power equally as top priority in order to extend time on the bike and get the most out of it.

My condition is moderately severe and I struggle to walk 5 mins down the road, so YMMV. I feel like an athlete on my moterra SL and more like an 80 year old on my own too feet haha. I can ride a lot more time and more aggressively on the moterra due to the lower energy cost of manipulating the bike.

I've even learned my first (small) bunny hops on moterra SL!
I could front and rear wheel lift the levo okay but not manage flat hops, but could barely even do wheel lifts on the kenevo lol.

I rip up every climb in full turbo and moterra SL is powerful enough but not overpower for my needs, I couldn't even ride on an SL bike properly. I started on a 60Nm haibike hard tail and could barely climb on it on turbo and an easy gear due to the excessive cardio. I'd say I need 80nm minimum to not die on the steepest climbs.

I take methyl B vitamins, trace minerals, COQ10 and beta alanine supplements before a ride and it helps to reduce the damage and up my performance / ride length.

Sorry for big info dump. Hopefully my experience can help you or other energy impeded riders!