Posted by: bux-bux
These will really piss off the surfers
Highly doubt it, no different than jet skis. There’s plenty of room for all out there.
ebikes on the Shore
Why would anyone want to replicate the cycling experience on water?
Posted by: Couch_Surfer
Why would anyone want to replicate the cycling experience on water?
Good point, not really sure. Whatever floats your boat I guess.
Posted by: FLATCH
Posted by: Couch_Surfer
Why would anyone want to replicate the cycling experience on water?
Good point, not really sure. Whatever floats your boat I guess.
I see what you did there.
Posted by: tungsten
Well, not everywhere, but most places.
Posted by: FLATCH
Posted by: Couch_Surfer
Why would anyone want to replicate the cycling experience on water?
Good point, not really sure. Whatever floats your boat I guess.
I never got that bit, either. Boats were invented for water, skis/boards for snow, and bikes for land. With the notable exception of towed watersports and surfing, why do people try to reinvent the wheel by making these hybrids?
$9k USD, too! For that price, I'l buy a kevlar surfski, and still have some left over for a half-decent bike..
Posted by: mmm..bacon
Posted by: FLATCH
Posted by: Couch_Surfer
Why would anyone want to replicate the cycling experience on water?
Good point, not really sure. Whatever floats your boat I guess.
I never got that bit, either. Boats were invented for water, skis/boards for snow, and bikes for land. With the notable exception of towed watersports and surfing, why do people try to reinvent the wheel by making these hybrids?
$9k USD, too! For that price, I'l buy a kevlar surfski, and still have some left over for a half-decent bike..
There are e-foils you can get now to have fun without major surf or wind. That's pretty cool. A lot cooler than a goofy water bike.
For 20K, those e-foils better be fun.
Posted by: mammal
For 20K, those e-foils better be fun.
Totally! Well compared to say, an S-Works e-bike, only one of these expensive toys enables me to do something new.
Saw a dude doing 70ish down Indian river drive on a Suron yesterday .... Was in a Carhadt jacket an jeans so can only hope he's not taking the thing on any trails...
They can hit 110k km/h. The other problem when they hit your local trail is the torque. A Honda CRF250 puts out 15.5 lb-ft of torque, a Sur Ron puts out 382 lb-ft of torque. Also dirt bikers tend to have a clue, e-moto riders not at all.
The damage I've seen these things lay down in one run is apocalyptic for bicycle trails.
I was riding with a buddy (who owns an ebike) and while we were at the trailhead, two guys were unloading their Sur Rons.
Just at that moment, a Ranger pulled up and asked for their registration as an OHV.
The two guys threw a fit but were kept off the trails.
I am not sure what the answer is here. This was in the US.
I do think it is like the side by sides...they are fun toys but they also gave 4 wheeling an easy button and now they are swarming and destroying 4x4 trails. I know the actual jeepers hate them.
I ride an ebike along with my regular bike and it is ridiculously fun. But i go out of my way to be as low impact and courteous to other trails users as I can. I highly doubt many who buy them are doing the same. It is a shame.
Nice to see that the enforcement was in place and effective, at least.
I know only one guy who has an eMTB, and he is also a dirt biker... his region has recently closed the trails to motor vehicles, and he is not fit enough for MTB, so he chose the eMTB over riding his dirt bike illegally. Somewhere like this I think is totally fine for whatever you want, rip it up. Even dirt bikes for all I care. I think the issue of trail wear is with already MTB/hiking trails where users expect a certain standard of trail quality, if you will.
I wonder if we will see eMTB only trails on the shore. Signage here seems pretty well respected.
It’s an odd human trait that we find making something easier makes it better. From a zillion kitchen appliances to cars with electronic gizmos. I rode my heavy aluminum hardtail up the Legacy Climb in Squamish today. And down Recycle and the Pseudo Tsuga trails. I had great fun. I only stopped to pee and take a picture and eat some stale gel cubes from last year. (First ride of the year) Would full suspension make it more fun? Would and electric assist motor have been better? For me, riding has an aesthetic aspect. If you ride up under your own power and descend that’s better than using an assist by motor or shuttle. In rock climbing the pinnacle seems to be as clean as possible. The less aid one uses the better. The harder an activity is to accomplish, the greater the perceived reward. Plus the manufacturers and others seem to be pushing ebikes as a way to grow their business. It is assumed that growth will be good for the sport but I do not agree.
I don’t see many ebikes in Whistler other than older folks like a bunch of my friends. They are all new to riding or never rode a lot with one exception and they are all in their late 60s or early 70s. I think the young riders that like the descents simply pay for a park pass and a DH bike because that is less costly. Are ebikes becoming ubiquitous in North Van? Is ebike use a real problem or a perceived one? It seems to me that if a rider for whatever reasons replaces their bike with an ebike but does the same rides it’s not really much different. Of course the marketing thrust seems to be more riding in a given amount of time or because it is usually less tiring that will have an impact on the trail wear and probably a negative perception by non riders.
When I had done my ride today and was loading my bike in the truck, I noticed a fellow unloading his ebike from a North Shore type rack. Took him three tries. He didn’t look like a rider. Full face but no pads and shorts. Somewhat fleshy. Maybe he had pads in a pack but I didn’t see that. I think part of the ebike "hate" is that we see ebikes as not us. They didn’t pay their dues kind of thing.
To me a motor and battery complicates something that should be more simple. More complex without any real benefit. A dropper is more complex but a massive benefit. Suspension is similar but I’m quite happy on my hardtail. I have a Trek Remedy too for rougher trails. It’s more of a safety thing for my old bones though.
I tend to think that for many people, features=status.
To give a motoring example, I specifically bought a 22 year hatchback (I'd had the same model previously). It cost $1500. Other than very lightly assisted power steering it has zero driving aids. It has these funny lever things to get the windows up and down ;) Being the 'high end' model, this one does at least have a radio! But not much else. Not even much power....I think a massive 106bhp. I have to change between gears by trying to move a lever with one hand and push a pedal with another foot at the same time. What a palaver! Yet I really enjoy driving it, especially ripping up and down the S2S from time to time. I've clearly never broken the speed limit as that would be very naughty, but if I did, the little car would probably take every corner from Squamish to NV at 130kph just fine and not drink much gas doing so. But there is an expectation in society that you 'have' to have a vehicle with ALL the features, weighs two tons and has 500bhp. It's a huge waste of the planets resources and at the end of the day more numbing to drive. Might as well drive itself. How dull is that?
But apparently this is the future of mountain biking. All the features and a bike that does almost everything for you. With all the electronic integration going on, they are the SUVs of the bicycle world. You'll never have to engage your brain or heart again.
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