Did eBiking get you back into mBiking?

[Smaug]

I kind of got into eBiking about a year ago and was always looking for the next eBike or eBike adventure. I still have a hankering for an eMoped and an eRoadbike.

But I joined one mBike (mechanical bike) group ride and I liked the camaraderie and the idea of REALLY getting into shape. Bought a nice road bike two weeks ago. (Trek Domane AL3) Now, I've joined a local bike club and am committed to getting into the kind of shape these road cyclists are in. I THOUGHT I was in decent shape from all the ebiking. I ride further and faster, but underestimated/forgot how much harder hills are on an mBike.

Watching the Tour de France updates on YouTube is also inspiring.

Any of you get back into biking with eBikes, then decide to go whole hog and get more serious about mBiking?

 

[Django]

I kind of got into eBiking about a year ago and was always looking for the next eBike or eBike adventure. I still have a hankering for an eMoped and an eRoadbike.

But I joined one mBike (mechanical bike) group ride and I liked the camaraderie and the idea of REALLY getting into shape. Bought a nice road bike two weeks ago. (Trek Domane AL3) Now, I've joined a local bike club and am committed to getting into the kind of shape these road cyclists are in. I THOUGHT I was in decent shape from all the ebiking. I ride further and faster, but underestimated/forgot how much harder hills are on an mBike.

Watching the Tour de France updates on YouTube is also inspiring.

Any of you get back into biking with eBikes, then decide to go whole hog and get more serious about mBiking?

I enjoy both. The ebike is great for riding with my wife and for getting into shape in the spring and avoiding injury and for times that I don’t feel like working as hard. I still get out on the gravel and road bikes, but I have grown to prefer my time on the ebike.

Our e-bikes are class 1 and I rarely use the assist above eco, so the workout is still pretty good. On the flats I tend to ride at 20+, so most of the assist is getting up to 20 and on hills.

At 67, I have grown to appreciate the assist. My days of racing mountain bikes and hardcore group training rides are long behind me. My focus has greatly changed. Cycling is a very diverse activity and I am enjoying the recreational aspect very much. Twenty years ago it was a different story. It’s all good.

 

[pagheca]

I am thinking about that. If I wasn't in a place where every road is so steep, I would certainly have restored my old acoustic bike, or bought a new one.

p.s. Regarding the Tour de France, I was on vacation in France this summer, doing a relatively long road trip in, not checking the news. All of a sudden, south of Bordeaux, I reached a point on a local road where I couldn't pass: it was the Tour de France. A pretty amazing spacetime coincidence, considering the probability to intercept the Tour by chance exactly on the right day. I had to go back to Bordeaux to get across it. A de... tour of more than 100 km. However, I was pretty early and therefore I couldn't even watch it pass.

 

[Chuy]

I can’t answer your question because I don't have an ebike yet. I’ll be converting my mtn bike to an ebike someday soon’ish. I retired two years ago and don't have the legs to be riding everywhere unassisted. I also visit my mom once a week; she lives 30 miles away and I would like to ebike to her house instead of burning a quarter tank of gas in my truck every time. I don't anticipate the ebike cutting into my regular bike-riding time. My other bike is a 1980’s Nishiki road bike. She has downtube shifters and still rides and handles like a vintage Supra.