First e-bike : Need advice for 300m elevation gain with a child
Posted by Longjumping_Skirt515@reddit | ebikes | View on Reddit | 6 comments
Hi everyone!
I’m completely new to the e-bike world (just started researching yesterday) and I need some guidance.
My situation:
The Goal:
Casual rides with my 3-year-old son.
I live in a hilly area. Every time I go out, I have to go down and then climb back up about 250m to 300m (around 1,000 ft) of elevation gain.
The Load: Myself + a 15kg (33lbs) child + the bike itself.
I visited a local dealer today who recommended a city/utility e-bike equipped with a Bosch Performance Line CX motor.
My Questions:
Is the Bosch CX motor powerful enough for this kind of elevation with a child on the back?
Should I stick with a "City/Trekking" frame for convenience, or would an e-MTB be better for the climbing part? (I'm leaning towards a step-through frame for safety when mounting the bike with my son).
Are there specific brands or models known for being "hill-climbing beasts" while remaining family-friendly?
Budget is around 3000$
Thanks for your help
Inciteful_Analysis@reddit
Bulls Bikes make Bosch mid-drives and sell in Switzerland. They are a German brand so should have established support. They have some SUV style models that blur the line between mountain bikes and commuters. Prices are reasonable. You could also look at some variants of the Specialized Turbo Como and Turbo Vado on sale for under $3000 (in the US anyway).
The Aventon Ramblas will easily outperform a Bosch CX on hill climbs. It can be equipped with a rack and is within your budget. Either way, you'll want a cassette with a wide range (eg 11-50t) and a chainring in the 34t to 40t range.
In this review you can see the (original) Ramblas easily beat the Bosch CX Race edition. The standard CX is even slower.
https://youtu.be/CLkiRd7ZnV8?t=175
KostyaFedot@reddit
Why no trust on local dealer recommendation?
I went to LBS and they knew exactly, because they are locals.
And my case was very similar. Except, I couldn't afford Bosh one, they got me Yamaha one.
With midmotor you could climb anything it just a matter of speed vs cassette size.
MTB only makes sense on real trails.
I got MTB as loaner and it was no difference on bad and steep roads compared to hybrid Except MTB feels like barge on pedaling.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
a bosch cx paired with a casette woth a gravel or mtb range(11 or 12 speed with something like a 11-51 for example) will climb anything unless you yourself are really heavy.
the frame doesn't do all that much to climbing performance. for muscle powered bikes and really steep stuff, the posture you have on the bike will dictate how well ypu can stand in the pedals during a climb and keep the front wheel down, but that's usually not an issue with sufficiently powered e-bikes.
trekking frames tend to be more relaxed and upright, while mtbs tend to be either more nimble and shaped for the climb(cross country) or longer and slacker for the descent(enduro, dh)
BassesNBikes@reddit
This is the correct answer. Mid-drive motor e-bikes that can trade off top speed for torque using the drivetrain are capable of astonishing climbs. M
oldgrump65@reddit
What country / region are you in? Since you're using metres for elevation and $ for currency, I'm guessing Canada, Australia or New Zealand. I apologize if I missed other countries.
I live in the USA, so my recommendations will probably be useless to you. If you let us know, someone local to you may be able to make a better recommendation.
Longjumping_Skirt515@reddit (OP)
I live in Switzerland, I just tried to make my post universal !