4 ms·

That made me question who this is for. Looks like it's only for racing bikes that have taken off the rear mudguard. And those bikes are typically used to exerci

by portly 2mo ago

That made me question who this is for. Looks like it's only for racing bikes that have taken off the rear mudguard. And those bikes are typically used to exercise.. Which makes me wonder about the cleaning after it rained..

KeplerBoy 2mo ago
Nobody who rides a road bike would be seen dead with something like this. There are proper road ebikes for that.
- skeeter2020 2mo ago
  and no one who rides a legit road bike would be seen dead on a "road ebike".
  - Lio 2mo ago
    We get old boys in our cycling club that want to keep going out on the Saturday social ride. I don't have a problem with them riding an eRoad bikes, I like that they can keep coming out with us, but like you say I wouldn't want to ride one myself.
  - jorgen123 2mo ago
    It depends what you use them for. I use one as my commuter. Most days I ride it with the motor set to just overcoming the added weight of the system plus my heavy backpack. That is uphill, against the wind both ways, of course. I only use more engine power when I have a bad day or am just done pushing hard. But I am on my bike, not in a car. Life is good. On the flats, I get no benefit since the motor cuts off at my normal cruising speed of some 20 mph. It just feels like a solid bike in that mode, a bit heavy, of course. I have taken it on a few regular non-commute rides as a test and must say it did not make me lazy or weak, or suffer less. Easy of riding is not me. In the end, it is the rider that makes the ride.
  - KeplerBoy 2mo ago
    Meh, there are plenty of reasons to use one. Might be injury, old age or just keeping up with ones spouse.
Toutouxc 2mo ago
Only commuter and bikepacking bikes have mudguards, almost nobody puts one on a mountain bike or a proper road bike, regardless of whether they’re electrified. This looks like it’s more for these “sporty” categories of bikes.
- conorcleary 2mo ago
  That's a big blanket statement
- michaelt 2mo ago
  > Only commuter and bikepacking bikes have mudguards, almost nobody puts one on a mountain bike or a proper road bike I suspect this depends on the weather in your area - road cycling clubs near me often require mudguards for "winter club rides".
  - Toutouxc 2mo ago
    That’s interesting. Our winters are often wet and annoying. You don’t see many roadies out there before at least February. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a proper road bike with mudguards in the wild.
    - michaelt 2mo ago
      I suspect people who are enthusiastic enough cyclists that they're doing 20mph+ club rides even in the winter have separate summer and winter bikes. And yes, once your winter 'proper road bike' has mud guards, tyres with treads, and an all-weather-riding design people might start calling it an 'adventure bike' or 'gravel bike' instead.
  - skeeter2020 2mo ago
    You must be from somewhere where winter means rain vs. large amounts of snow. I can see if you're doing a road ride with a group (where they often run tight) they'd ask for fenders. Here a road bike would be useless once winter hits.
  - 2mo ago
analog31 2mo ago
What I've noticed in my area is that people just don't ride on rainy days. If I'm at work and it starts to rain, someone will offer me a ride. It doesn't occur to people that a bike can get wet. Bikes are sold without mudguards, and the aftermarket ones are flimsy and don't fit very well. (The steel ones that came with my 1983 Schwinn frame being the exception). "Who this is for" is the great un-answered question in American cycling. The reason is that our biggest untapped market is people who don't ride at all. The marketing looks like lifestyle marketing: Here's what's wrong with cycling and how we solve it. Here's what you will look like.

by portly 2mo ago

KeplerBoy 2mo ago

Nobody who rides a road bike would be seen dead with something like this. There are proper road ebikes for that.

skeeter2020 2mo ago
and no one who rides a legit road bike would be seen dead on a "road ebike".
- Lio 2mo ago
  We get old boys in our cycling club that want to keep going out on the Saturday social ride. I don't have a problem with them riding an eRoad bikes, I like that they can keep coming out with us, but like you say I wouldn't want to ride one myself.
- jorgen123 2mo ago
  It depends what you use them for. I use one as my commuter. Most days I ride it with the motor set to just overcoming the added weight of the system plus my heavy backpack. That is uphill, against the wind both ways, of course. I only use more engine power when I have a bad day or am just done pushing hard. But I am on my bike, not in a car. Life is good. On the flats, I get no benefit since the motor cuts off at my normal cruising speed of some 20 mph. It just feels like a solid bike in that mode, a bit heavy, of course. I have taken it on a few regular non-commute rides as a test and must say it did not make me lazy or weak, or suffer less. Easy of riding is not me. In the end, it is the rider that makes the ride.
- KeplerBoy 2mo ago
  Meh, there are plenty of reasons to use one. Might be injury, old age or just keeping up with ones spouse.

Toutouxc 2mo ago

Only commuter and bikepacking bikes have mudguards, almost nobody puts one on a mountain bike or a proper road bike, regardless of whether they’re electrified. This looks like it’s more for these “sporty” categories of bikes.

conorcleary 2mo ago
That's a big blanket statement
michaelt 2mo ago
> Only commuter and bikepacking bikes have mudguards, almost nobody puts one on a mountain bike or a proper road bike I suspect this depends on the weather in your area - road cycling clubs near me often require mudguards for "winter club rides".
- Toutouxc 2mo ago
  That’s interesting. Our winters are often wet and annoying. You don’t see many roadies out there before at least February. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a proper road bike with mudguards in the wild.
  - michaelt 2mo ago
    I suspect people who are enthusiastic enough cyclists that they're doing 20mph+ club rides even in the winter have separate summer and winter bikes. And yes, once your winter 'proper road bike' has mud guards, tyres with treads, and an all-weather-riding design people might start calling it an 'adventure bike' or 'gravel bike' instead.
- skeeter2020 2mo ago
  You must be from somewhere where winter means rain vs. large amounts of snow. I can see if you're doing a road ride with a group (where they often run tight) they'd ask for fenders. Here a road bike would be useless once winter hits.
- 2mo ago

analog31 2mo ago

What I've noticed in my area is that people just don't ride on rainy days. If I'm at work and it starts to rain, someone will offer me a ride. It doesn't occur to people that a bike can get wet. Bikes are sold without mudguards, and the aftermarket ones are flimsy and don't fit very well. (The steel ones that came with my 1983 Schwinn frame being the exception). "Who this is for" is the great un-answered question in American cycling. The reason is that our biggest untapped market is people who don't ride at all. The marketing looks like lifestyle marketing: Here's what's wrong with cycling and how we solve it. Here's what you will look like.