Quietkat fat bike

[Centaur]

I have been riding bicycles since childhood, and was really serious about them for years. I raced mountain bikes and road bikes years ago, and have ridden for fitness in my later years, but at the tender age of 75, putting quality time on the bike was getting harder and harder. Today, I plopped down the bucks for an electric bike that I can use for fitness as well as getting into the back country for fishing and hunting. You don’t have to use the electric option if you still want a workout, but the boost of power from the motor is really nice when old legs say “enough “ on steep hills or technical terrain.
Years ago, I would have called electric bike riders cheaters, but I am way past that now. I can still get good exercise on this beast, but when the old legs and lungs cry out for help, it is there.
Anybody else riding an electric mountain bike?

[Headhog]

Electric bikes for us senior citizens are the only way to go. Several years ago I met a fellow from North Carolina at a motorcycle rally. He started talking about owning a bicycle shop near Asheville. At that time he told me his biggest sellers were electric bikes to seniors. You get the best of both worlds. You can get the exercise you want, but if you need it the electric boost can help you make a grade.

I haven't switched yet at 73, because I mostly ride on a 20 mile repurposed railroad line. It's actually a state managed trail for bicycles, walking or horses. It runs right through our town and has a very limited grade. My sister-in-law has been using an electric bike for a few years now.

Paul

[daytime dave]

I'm still on a regular mountain bike. I'm able to ride almost like before I broke my leg.
I think the electric bike idea is a good one.
I like to ride on sections of the Erie Canal. It's level and goes for miles. At camp, in the Adirondack's, there are lots of trails where we ride.

Keep us updated on the bike and how you like it.

[Sir Henry]

Glad you started the thread. I’m searching for a fat bike I can ride in the winter on Wisconsin snow. Maybe an electric one would work for me.

[RetiredSeabee]

I have been on the fence looking at e bikes for a couple of years. At 68 I am in pretty good shape but need to get more exercise. The prospect of riding a traditional bike anywhere but level ground doesn’t appeal to me. This part of North Carolina isn’t mountainous but certainly not flat. I look forward to hearing how well your new ride works for you.
Now I need to search the web for Quietkat bikes.

[North Country Gal]

The bike (and trike) world is currently undergoing an e revolution. I know a couple of bike shops who now report that the majority of their sales are bikes/trikes with motor assist.

This is all relatively recent. Oh, there have been electric motors on bikes for a very long time and only a few years back, no serious rider would even consider going e. That has changed, drastically, with improvements in technology. We now have professional racers using e-bikes as training tools on their light workout days to save wear and tear on their legs while they practice technique. We now have people in urban areas using e-bikes for commuting instead of their cars. Motors and batteries are lighter than ever.

The new breed of motors are known as torque assist. They use sophisticated sensors to gauge how much effort you are applying to the pedals. The harder you pedal, the more assist they provide. Also very important is that these new motors have almost no pedaling resistance when you have the motor turned off, so just like riding a regular bike. When you turn the motor on as you pedal, it's almost seamless, plus you have several levels of power assist you can choose.

I have two e-trikes and one very high end e-mtb. The e-mtb is a new breed called a super light. The lightweight e-bikes use a smaller, less powerful motor and battery, but they only weigh six or seven pounds more than their analog bike counterparts, so they ride and handle the same. Here's my Specialized Turbo Levo SL (super light). You'd have to look very close to know it is even a e-bike.



Please, if anyone has questions on e-bikes or even non electric bikes/trikes, please don't hesitate to ask. I'd be glad to help. One more point I'd like to make is that I have no problem going back and forth between e-bikes/e trikes and bikes/trikes without motors. I often ride both kinds of bikes/trikes in a single day. As some of you know, cycling is my first love and passion, not shooting, though I love shooting, too.

[North Country Gal]

And here's my e-fat trike which I ride in the winter out on our snow and ice covered roads. It allows me to ride on ice that would be too dangerous to ride with a regular two-wheel fat bike.



And for comparison, here is the e-fat trike next to my non-electric racing trike.

[BigAl52]

Ive got a Salsa Cutthroat. There isnt any electric motor on mine and I intend on keeping it that way for as long as I can. Ive been at it steady for over 10 years and ride 125 miles a week currently. I bought an Lectric bike for my wife and it sits in the garage unused. Ive done alot of research on electric bikes and there are tons of them out there. But with the supply chain issues some of the bikes for sale require a wait after paying for them. So much so that some people have canceled there orders. Ive watch Kyle from Bolton ebikes quite a bit and he seems like he would be good to buy one from. For me Im waiting until my local shop gets a few more choices in. I think having a local shop that will work on them is key. Lots of people around here though are riding Rad Rovers. Its a popular brand. YMMV

[Sir Henry]

And here's my e-fat trike which I ride in the winter out on our snow and ice covered roads. It allows me to ride on ice that would be too dangerous to ride with a regular two-wheel fat bike.



And for comparison, here is the e-fat trike next to my non-electric racing trike.

I like the e-fat trike. I want something for the county roads in the winter.

[markiver54]

My only concern would be sitting so low on the trike and not as visible, if there is other traffic on the road. Otherwise, I like the concept.

[Sir Henry]

My only concern would be sitting so low on the trike and not as visible, if there is other traffic on the road. Otherwise, I like the concept.

I see lots of short vehicles running around and a lot put high whip flags on them. Some of the county roads allow them and they have the right of way. Big trucks (heavy) are also not allowed in the winter

[North Country Gal]

Visibility the trikes has not been a problem. We always use flags and blinking lights, front and back, and mirrors when out on the road.

And trikes do have some safety advantages over upright bicycles. Trikes are always more stable, especially on fast downhill runs. Steering is much more precise. They are not prone to wander as traffic passes. You can safely pull one of the front wheels off onto the shoulder if need be without danger of tipping over.

As for use in city traffic, I would advise caution because of the low seating position. An upright bike may be a safer option when you need to see oncoming traffic and react, quickly.

I have and ride both trikes and upright bikes. There are trade offs with both kinds of machines.

[Shakey Jake]

I bought my wife an electric bike last month. She uses it to ride to work since gas prices are so high. She works at the county library and it's only 3 miles from the house. She really likes it so far.
Jake

[fortyshooter]

Where do they hide the battery on those bikes? Stack of D cells?

[Centaur]

This is the bike I got. Put over 12 miles on it this morning, with over 500 feet of elevation gain, and it was great. Kept it in eco mode while climbing, and got a good workout without killing myself. Think I am going to really like this outfit.

[North Country Gal]

The battery on e-bikes is usually hidden in the downtube - the tube that runs from the front end down to the pedals. The actual motor is part of the crankset (pedal) assembly. The batteries are Li-ion rechargeables.

The range you get on a battery charge is a matter of what power setting you use and how much you use the motor and how much you use the motor is also a matter of how the bike is geared. On our e-bikes and e-trikes, we only use the motor to climb the steepest hills and, because of the way our trikes and bikes are geared, we can still climb without the use of the motor. The workout we get, then, is totally up to us.

We typically use the motor on our e-trikes for maybe 10% of our riding to get up the steepest hills (and our area is all hills). Even so, we can still get 180 miles or more on a single battery charge. If we chose to run the motor full time, we'd get less than half of that.

[BigAl52]

I might also mention that there are also rear hub motors which is in the center of the rear wheel. Some ebikes have a battery behind a panel in the area between the downtube and seat post. Sonders does this.

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[markiver54]

This thread inspired me to go take a look at our local cycle store/shop today. Their name is Sycamore Cycles, and only about 4 blocks from my house. They have mostly "Specialized" brand. Top of the line I would guess at those prices! .
And so many options to consider.
Don't know if one can be afforded, in this lifetime. Who knows though. With the way things are going, we might all be needing one in the future!
Shop is: www.sycamorecycles.com.
These guys know their stuff!

[BrokenolMarine]

Tina and I rode recumbent trikes for a couple years, then she had to quit because of foot problems. I had a Catrike Road that I used like a mountain bike for the gravel trails they had in the parks... they had done the railroad thing with High Bridge Trail, and even converted a Railroad bridge that was GREAT. For someone with a lower back injury and two bad knees, the Recumbent Trike was a godsend. It was like riding a recliner. Position was supportive, and comfortable, and if you needed a break, you just stopped and rested, you were in your recliner after all.

My Catrike Road

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Tina on her Catrike Villager:

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HIGH Bridge:

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After riding for a while, I got the idea I could ride longer distances and set the goal to ride a Trike in a Bucket List Item. A Marathon. I got a Catrike 700, a stiff frame racing trike and trained for nine months to do just that. two weeks before the race I road 28 miles in 2:40. I was ready. About two months before the race I had suffered a clot behind my right calf, and thought it was over, but ... they cleared me. With strict instructions.

My 700... it was a rocket as far as trikes go, I loved it. I had customized it a bit, added a climbing gear for hills and it was good to go.

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I started the race with the rest of those in Wheelchairs, (I was not competing, just riding it.), but at the two mile mark, following a hill climb, I had a flash of pain in my head and my legs and arms got weak. I pulled over and spoke with an officer. They medivac'd me off the course. The diagnosis was a mini-stroke or severe migraine. With the weakness and slurred speech... Mini-stroke was most likely. Too soon after the DVT was one comment.

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I had always hoped to ride again, but the strength never returned to my legs. We sold my two trikes and all the riding gear, but I had waited eighteen months, hoping the therapy would bring me around. I still miss the rush of the 700.

[North Country Gal]

Thanks for sharing that, Marine. We've discussed this before, just between the two of us, but I know many others will appreciate the story. For sure, nothing matches a recumbent trike for comfort.