Geekzone Cycling Thread

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2103 posts

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#3279222 5-Sep-2024 11:15

JPNZ:

mudguard:

That's the thing, my rides are already two hours or so, I'm not sure how much longer I can stay out there!

If time is an issue and you only have two hours to ride then as Dan said you'll most likely do twice as much distance anyway.

I don't really want to turn it into an e vs meat debate, but doing twice the distance or speed doesn't always work (if trails are tight or busy etc).

I've done some very limited testing and the e-bike was obviously easier

Twenty minute hillclimb on my normal bike, heart rate average was 161, max 180

Same twenty minute climb on the e-bike was 127 and 164 so quite a lot easier. So I'd roughly need to ride 22% farther or faster.

roderickh

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#3279223 5-Sep-2024 11:21

Senecio:

You're the first person I know who has ridden an e-bike and come away not convinced. Must fitter than the rest of us!

I phrased my sentence wrong!
The ebike was awesome in every way, if it was my primary method of commute, easily justified!

At my current cycling skill set and time allocated and to be used once a week for fitness? not convinced at this stage (and the cost!!)

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roderickh

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#3279226 5-Sep-2024 11:26

elpenguino:

Technofreak:

One of the best ways to reduce effort/increase speed is reduce weight, your weight or bike weight. Off road bikes are significantly heavier than road bikes. This is why I like my carbon Giant.

Good point and zooming in on that photo it looks like the seats are quite far down. Another way to increase your speed for the same effort is to adjust the seat to be as high as possible, until , but not quite, your hips start rocking up and down. Allows you to use the leg muscles more efficiently.

A high seat does make stopping a more considered task though. And then you become very aware of camber and which foot to put down :-)

Missed these posts guys - I actually feel like my current bike is slightly too big (frame size) for my height - can anyone here confirm/compare? it's a 21 frame size and I'm 178cm. When I got it I watched some YT videos for seat height adjustment and tried the whole book against wall etc to measure inseam - the current (lower) seating position appears to be closest based on those tests..

Tyres were a 26" MTB but I changed to the spare more road tyre looking 26x1.50 set that the seller also gave at the time.

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geoffwnz

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#3279228 5-Sep-2024 11:32

For seat height, sit on the bike and put your heel on the pedal. Leg should be straight.

For easier dismount, a dropper post is amazing. And a game changer while riding varying terrain also.

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mudguard

2103 posts

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#3279248 5-Sep-2024 11:52

roderickh:

Missed these posts guys - I actually feel like my current bike is slightly too big (frame size) for my height - can anyone here confirm/compare? it's a 21 frame size and I'm 178cm.

That's an older form of measurement and does sound like a large if not an extra large frame. I'm exactly the same height and used to ride bikes that were 17-18 inches.

roderickh

213 posts

Master Geek

#3279254 5-Sep-2024 12:05

mudguard:

roderickh:

Missed these posts guys - I actually feel like my current bike is slightly too big (frame size) for my height - can anyone here confirm/compare? it's a 21 frame size and I'm 178cm.

That's an older form of measurement and does sound like a large if not an extra large frame. I'm exactly the same height and used to ride bikes that were 17-18 inches.

Aaaaaah! what's the newer form of measurement? I was referring to https://www.evocycles.co.nz/bike-size-guides (and yes now I can see the "21" appears to be past my height range)

So following that link if I were to search for a second bike to replace this one - somewhere in the 53-56cm range?

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mudguard

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#3279321 5-Sep-2024 16:18

roderickh:

So following that link if I were to search for a second bike to replace this one - somewhere in the 53-56cm range?

The cm thing is more for road bikes. A bit annoyingly mountainbikes have a new, and not that easily measurable figure called Reach. It's in mm and for example at my height which is also 178cm, a medium reach can be from 450-475mm. Now people prefer longer or shorter, but that's kind of the middle for modern bikes. Older bikes (like my 2014 Specialized) had shorter reaches. The trend has to increase the reach figure as generally bikes are getting longer and more stable.

Reach is useful as it gives an indication of how big or small a bike is when standing. So it's not influenced by how you have your handlebars or how high or low you have your seat. But it's tricky to measure on your bike. Probably the easiest way is to get broom or something that sits nice and vertical and place it in front of your bottom bracket (or the crank bolt). You then measure the line below.

The reach measurement is the solid line

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mattwnz

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#3279325 5-Sep-2024 16:28

mudguard:

Senecio:

You're the first person I know who has ridden an e-bike and come away not convinced. Must fitter than the rest of us!

Well I've ridden a few and that's not so much the issue. The issue is for me is if I'm going to spend $10-$15k on a new ebike I'll never ride my old bike.

I'm very much a weekend warrior, maybe two rides per week at best (due to travelling for work). So if I only had e I'd struggle to maintain my fitness as I ride so little.

That is why I wouldn't get an e-bike unless I was using it to get up hills for downhill mountain bike tracks. Or regularly communing longer distances and needed the 40km/h + speed benefit you can get. Otherwise I would lose a lot of the fitness benefit from it being 100% powered by legs.

JPNZ

1520 posts

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#3279422 6-Sep-2024 07:55

mudguard:

I don't really want to turn it into an e vs meat debate, but doing twice the distance or speed doesn't always work (if trails are tight or busy etc).

No, me either there has been enough debate already.

Just a comparison, I ride 8.5km each way to work (mostly flat, one overbridge, 40% cycleways) and I normally do it on my hardtail XC bike. Its around 20 mins regardless if I do it on the ebike or HT. If its a headwind the ebike wins but its very much of a muchness. Average speed is very similar 22.5kmh +/- (obviously includes about 8 traffic signals)

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Handsomedan

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#3279429 6-Sep-2024 08:58

mattwnz:

That is why I wouldn't get an e-bike unless I was using it to get up hills for downhill mountain bike tracks. Or regularly communing longer distances and needed the 40km/h + speed benefit you can get. Otherwise I would lose a lot of the fitness benefit from it being 100% powered by legs.

This is why it was so appealing for me (in fairness it took until I was 55yo to drop the hammer though):

My favourite part of MTB is descending at speed - an eBike is perfectly suited to that (or at least an eEnduro bike)
I haven't been really fit since I was a teenager, so I was constantly walking my bike to the tops of climbs, resting and pulling in lungfuls of air at the top of anything and hating pinch-climbs and any real uphill sections.

My eBike has opened a whole new world of Mountain Biking for me - I actually enjoy the climbs. I am defintely working harder for longer, as I am able to climb, then descend more regularly and I am doing different types of trails to those I would have in the past - more like when I was in my 20's. I get home after a ride and I still feel it for a couple of days - I am working far harder than I was on my meat-powered bike.

Horses for courses though - I wouldn't recommend one to my kids - 17/19 years old respectively - they're both fit, are capable of climbing and don't need the assistance - they would both be able to keep up with me on most climbs if I wasn't in Boost mode and they won't run out of gas as quickly as I would anyway (whether assisted or not - I only have so much stamina).

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geoffwnz

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#3279483 6-Sep-2024 09:36

E vs meat powered is purely down to individual circumstances. As previously mentioned, if it's the tipping point where having the motor means you'll actually get out on the bike, then it's suitable for you. I'm still doing endurance stuff at age 50 and still fully capable of grinding out the climbs.

Dad got his e-bike at around 72. He was, at the time, still fully active on the normal bike so didn't outright need it at that point but got convinced after a cycle tour that included e-bike rentals and did the research and got his own. Does 40ish km of road and cycle trails almost daily on it and has done the Taupo Cycle Challenge 60km mtb section a couple of times now as his only ever mtb "races" and first real experience of bike park trails.

Hopefully by the time I need the motor, they'll be lighter and longer lasting (and cheaper) so I can continue doing endurance events as long as possible. :-)

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davidcole

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#3280251 9-Sep-2024 10:42

Anyone switched or added a gravel bike? I'm ex-road (3x Taupo and 2x Taranaki rider). When my son was old enough to start riding I bought a fairly cheap MTB ($700ish). It has a 36/22 and a 11-34 cassette - was the cheapest I could get with hydraulic brakes.

Mostly do trail rides on the hutt river/eastbourne lighthouse, some road and occasionally up a trail (Te Whiti Riser and across the Firebreaks to Stokes Valley).

On the road I find the rpm a little high but not disgusting. Climbing is good.

I prefer drop bars, so was considering a gravel bike. Probably a fairly low end one, I can't justify 3k on a bicycle. But what would that be like up the riser and trails?

I guess not the end of the world since my son will be taking over my bike so there will still be a mountain bike here.

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Senecio

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#3280255 9-Sep-2024 11:20

I mentioned it earlier in this thread. I haven’t bought a gravel bike yet, but it will be my next purchase. It will replace my road bike that I bought in 2013 with rim brakes and it only takes 25mm tyres. With the state of NZ roads I’m going to replace it with gravel bike for more tyre clearance, comfort, slightly slacker geometry and just generally having a more suitable bike under me for the conditions.

Handsomedan

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#3280259 9-Sep-2024 11:31

I've seen a trend towards people putting drop bars on XC MTBs as they can sometimes be bought at a cheaper price, but still have solid gearing and are robust, but light enough to be used as pseudo-gravel bikes.

Geometry of them means they are more suited to trails, but still work for the more road-oriented riding of a gravel bike too. Plus you'll inevitably get a short-travel susepnsion fork too, to help when off-road.

Something like this, perhaps:
Drop bar 26er - Tyler_Reid's Bike Check - Vital MTB

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#3280261 9-Sep-2024 11:39

On a personal note - got out to the forest with my eldest son, which was nice.

He's a pretty strong rider, so with me on the eBike we were actually able to keep pace with one another for a change.

Of course, he had a go on my eBike and made it absolutely fly, so it's nice to know what it's ultimately capable of!

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