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AJ

AJ, is our Boss Of Bikes and he’s kind of a big deal (according to him)! He’s been a bike tech for the past 10 years and has been messing about with bikes since he can remember. He has a keen eye for detail and is very patient and meticulous when fixing bikes. He rides a Riese and Muller UBN 5 almost everywhere with his trusty Vaude panniers and ABUS helmet.

New Year, New Commute – 5 Reasons to Upgrade your Commute with an Ebike

Right!!! It’s winter, the weather is terrible, it’s cold and wet and can be icy as well, although climate change seems to have solved the problem with snow. ha ha.

You’re riding your commuter bike because it’s safe and you’re not worried about the damage the weather or a potential spill could cause to it, but it’s heavy and slow, the brakes are crap and it just makes you sad.

Now it’s January, you’ve got some Christmas money and you want to cheer yourself up as it’s still mid winter. what do you do…buy an e-bike, and here’s why!
You can have larger heavier tyres with good puncture protection on an e-bike that give you plenty of grip, this grip not only gives you confidence in the corners in bad weather and on mud and leaves but allows your brakes to stop you on a sixpence. Your brakes are only as good as your tyres and without the grip a 2″ plus tyre can give you, even the best disc brakes are pointless. The rolling resistance of all the extra rotational mass from your tyres is entirely negated by the large mid drive motor on your shiny new e-bike making you happy and almost smug as you fly past the crowd uphill on their grimy hybrid bikes. With the same knowledge that when you fly down the hill at 40mph+ you can stop safely at the bottom.
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2. E-bikes are super durable

If you go with a belt drive and hub gear, there is very little winter maintenance, apart from keeping an eye on your brakes and tyres, of course.
You can ride all year round with the satisfaction that very little will go wrong, particularly on a high-quality e-bike.
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New Year, New Commute – 5 Reasons to Upgrade your Commute with an Ebike

Right!!! It’s winter, the weather is terrible, it’s cold and wet and can be icy as well, although climate change seems to have solved the problem with snow. ha ha.

You’re riding your commuter bike because it’s safe and you’re not worried about the damage the weather or a potential spill could cause to it, but it’s heavy and slow, the brakes are crap and it just makes you sad.

Now it’s January, you’ve got some Christmas money and you want to cheer yourself up as it’s still mid winter. what do you do…buy an e-bike, and here’s why!

3. You can wrap up warm on an e-bike

Unlike a normal bike, when you get to a hill you aren’t going to be working any harder than you would on the flat, meaning that when you get to the top you don’t need to strip off because you’re not sweating profusely and overheating. Also there is no weight penalty of layering up and wearing all the clothing that will keep you comfortable, as your powerful mid-mounted motor does a lot of the work for you on the hills, on a regular bicycle you are carrying all that extra clothing against the forces of gravity.
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4. You can carry as much as you like:

Much like wearing lots of warm clothes, you can carry even more on an ebike without any weight penalty. You can carry an extra waterproof to put on if it rains as well as a waterproof cap or helmet cover, you can carry a change of clothes in case the worst happens and of course all the usual work nonsense like a laptop. You can use two high quality waterproof pannier bags as the extra weight really doesn’t matter and when you decide to get some shopping on the way home, knowing you’ll still be blasting up the hills, even if you have to push the bike into turbo mode.

5. It's not 'cheating'

Now, I was just like you two years ago, determined to ride a normal bike in all weathers!

Road bikes are fine in the summer and spring, they are light and fast, but you have to wear a back pack and you get very sweaty, especially your back. You may not have good changing or storage facilities at work and you’re really going to need to bring a towel and have a shower, as well as somewhere safe to store your expensive road bike.

So, I bought a hybrid for the autumn and winter months, it had a pannier rack and mudguards and a hub gear with a belt drive for low maintenance. But it was slow up hill and it made me sad. I still sweated profusely climbing uphill on my way home every day and it took me much longer than riding my road bike as it was far heavier. Also, I had picked a lightweight hub gear, which turned out to be a bit crap and the bearings were toast after one season, having been soaked for 6 months.

My resistance was at an end; I got a Riese and Muller Roadster. It was a revelation! It didn’t come with a rear carrier, so I fitted one pretty quickly, I also added a Kiox, because I wanted to be able to connect my phone and upload and download data and routes. I haven’t looked back.

The Roadster is affordable, but it comes with the Bosch Gen4 Performance Line CX motor which is still top of the range and a 625Wh battery, which, if I’m honest, only needs to be charged once a week if I’m only using the bike for my 10 mile daily round trip to work and back.

I changed the tyres to something faster rolling and with greater puncture protection and slimed the tyres, as I don’t like punctures and the weight doesn’t matter to me anymore.

But why is it not ‘cheating’ I hear you ask. Well, most R&M bikes have a power meter display and the motor has strain gauges built in, something that would cost you hundreds of pounds to install on a regular bike and add weight, but is included on all Bosch bikes that include a display. I know how hard I’m working and I know if I’m being lazy, I push the same amount of power and produce the same amount of watts and therefore I know I’m getting just as much exercise and burning just as many calories as I do on my road bike.

My commute takes me the same amount of time as on my road bike, but with less toil on the hills and on an ebike, your average speed is always 16mph as this is the legal maximum assisted speed on the flat, but also readily achievable on the hills, as long as you don’t mind spinning your legs fairly quickly.

We have a fantastic selection of Riese and Müller bikes perfect for commuting, from the fast and light UBN to all-rounders like the Charger4, perfect for all terrains and conditions. Let us find the perfect bike to upgrade your commute, book a test ride  for come in for a chat today!  

Experience the pleasure of an ebike Commute for Yourself

  • We’re here to answer any questions, call us on 01453 834300 or email hello@edemo.bike
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