A couple of week's back... I had written about how we were going to purchase an electric-assisted bike for my wife... who has to ride a fair distance to one of her regular workplaces. It is a bit short for driving (and takes up the car, so that it is tricky for me to pick up the kids, we don't live near the school...) and just a bit too far for comfortable riding. Today was my first turn at the bike (well, it really was bought for my wife... so, I shouldn't complain!) on a longer ride... and I have to say, it is AWESOME!
However, an e-fiets (fiets is the Dutch word for bike) really takes the edge off the longer rides. The motor kicks in to help you boost your speed quickly up to the desired level... so, you don't have the slog of getting yourself up to speed with just your legs. The boost is pretty gentle, and as we have a middle mounted motor, you don't really feel it too much out of balance with the bike. Front mounted motors are definitely cheaper... but you really notice the difference... it is like being towed!
One handy thing is that the motor only helps boost your speed and keep it roughly level... so, if you don't pedal... it won't do anything at all! If you only minimally pedal, I guess you could game the system like that... but then you will find that you drain your battery something terrible!
Speaking of batteries, we opted for the mid range battery... which should last us around 80-110km depending on the way we use the bike... today, I think we racked up about 50 km between us... and we had drained roughly 50 percent of the battery... so, a pretty decent buffer to get home for the recharge!
Even without the motor, it is a much better bike that we have ever owned... my wife said that she had ridden one leg today without the motor... and it is still better and easier to ride than most of our old clunkers... and definitely easier than the bakfiets (the big truck bucket bike...).
The boost will cut out at around 25-28 km per hour... but you can always leg it for an easy 30 km per hour speed... although, at that speed... it is a touch dangerous as the bumps and dips in the road or bike path can be a bit jarring... I kept to around 22-25 km per hour.... which is flying along already! There are 5 levels of support (just like gears on the car I guess..) plus the manual (leg-ual???) gearing system.... I ended up using boost level 2 or 3 for most of the ride... and the bumping up to 5 for the long straights.
This thing is really great for starts... you find yourself going from a standing start to cruising at around 22 with a couple of seconds.... and although The Netherlands has no real hills, there are a couple of bridges... which this thing just demolishes... you don't lose any speed at all!
You do find that it still gives you a decent leg workout... as you want to supply most of the power from your legs, otherwise your battery will drain fast... the purpose of the assist is mostly for that initial acceleration up to cruising... and then a slow constant assist to keep you at a slightly higher than normal pace.
Speaking of fast... now that the air is freezing in The Netherlands... when you are travelling this fast on the bike... it gets pretty damn chilly! I will really have to dress for the occasion next time... maybe a thicker jacket... and something for my head! My face and head were frozen!
I definitely will do a review of this particular bike when I get the time... but I have to say that I'm pretty much hooked! I'm going to curse every pedal with the bucket bike from now on!
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