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Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

lemond.com

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Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#91
post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So? The lights are also integrated on a VanMoof, but they're integrated in the right place. They used to put them in the right place on the Specialized Turbo but in the latest models they moved it up the the bar again, can't imagine why.

So complaining that they don’t have the right mount point for a light when one doesn’t need to be mounted shows that the product either isn’t a good fit for you, or that you are grasping at straws. I think it is unlikely that a carefully designed bike like this missed something simple like that. Much more likely you are kissing something.

It’s a simple matter of geometry. The bar is too high for the light to effectively light the road.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#92

Coming from conventional bikes, I don't understand who this is for. Carbon fibre frames are prohibitively expensive and the market for them serves very involved, often professional or semi-pro cyclists whose performance bottlenecks are imposed by the bike instead of themselves. Ditto for some of the other details on the bike, like the medium-dish carbon rims — all for the sake of weight savings and aerodynamics (sinc…

It’s not uncommon in the biggest urban markets to bring your bike indoors overnight. The ability to easily lift the bike and carry it upstairs or just pick it up so you don’t sully the carpet is important.

Low weight isn’t just for speed.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#93

I get wanting light weight, my current aluminum ebike is 80 lbs, but my current ebike is a Juiced Ripcurrent S fat tire with 1kWh battery and I completely out speed and out range my friend who has a Turbo Vado SL while being much more comfortable and spending 1k less. The main downside with the weight is getting up on a bike rack to drive it somewhere, but they have rack with ramps now designed for heavy ebikes. I kn…

I saw someone riding a cargo ebike with a kid on it and went home excited to get one. Then I discovered it weighs over 70 pounds, which I can’t imagine working since to get it to my basement storage area requires carrying up several steps then down several more through the cramped bulkhead door. Maybe some people are strong enough for that not to be a significant annoyance, but I’m not one of them.

> I saw someone riding a cargo ebike with a kid on it and went home excited to get one. Then I discovered it weighs over 70 pounds

I mean… I wouldn't expect even a normal cargo to be lightweight, an ebike would only add to that.

70lbs is on the low side for cargo bikes, to say nothing of cargo ebikes.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#94
post #21

~12kg for anyone wondering. Minimum bicycle weight in the Tour de France is 6.8kg (~15lb). It's possible to make bicycles significantly lighter than this, but most manufacturers don't because of the rules of the Tour. I do recommend to anyone who hasn't done it yet to take a moment and marvel at the technological accomplishment that is the bicycle. The car takes far too much credit but ultimately it can only work by…

Minimum bike weights serve 2 important roles other than "it's just the rules": 1) Fairness: While differences between bike manufacturers are large, the competition is about primarily athletics & setting standards allows less well resourced rider teams to compete. 2) Safety: Lighter bikes may compromise on strength/safety. Tours are already dangerous enough as is, a bike breaking poses a danger to all riders on the co…

> 1) Fairness: While differences between bike manufacturers are large, the competition is about primarily athletics & setting standards allows less well resourced rider teams to compete.

FWIW that's one of the reasons why F1s have a minimum weight (also allow for a wider ranges of driver physiques).

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#95

What does "Assistance up to 20 mph" mean?

Most e-bikes are "assisted" rather than having a motorcycle-style twist throttle. You pedal and the motor contributes some additional power until you reach a certain speed (typically 20mph in the US, 25kph in Europe). At this point the motor stops assisting and the rider is contributing 100% of the effort. If you stop pedalling the motor stops assisting, regardless of your speed. In other words the motor will help yo…

> beyond that it's just your legs pushing a heavy bike.

Much of this bike's point is that it's a lighweight e though, at only 26lbs.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#96

Coming from conventional bikes, I don't understand who this is for. Carbon fibre frames are prohibitively expensive and the market for them serves very involved, often professional or semi-pro cyclists whose performance bottlenecks are imposed by the bike instead of themselves. Ditto for some of the other details on the bike, like the medium-dish carbon rims — all for the sake of weight savings and aerodynamics (sinc…

It’s not uncommon in the biggest urban markets to bring your bike indoors overnight. The ability to easily lift the bike and carry it upstairs or just pick it up so you don’t sully the carpet is important. Low weight isn’t just for speed.

Exactly. Carrying at 50lb ebike up a three story walk up is a hassle, but 25lbs is relatively easy.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#97
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You cannot put a Vespa on the bike rack of a bus. You cannot carry a Vespa on a train. You cannot check a Vespa as luggage at the airport. An e-bike is categorically different than a scooter.

In the US, I don't think it'd actually be legal to travel on an airline with a battery the size of the one in this bike - it appears to be a 250 Wh unit, and I understand the legal limit for lithium ion batteries is 160 Wh.

> I understand the legal limit for lithium ion batteries is 160 Wh.

For two batteries, with airline approval. According to the TSA, this can alternatively be a single battery up to 300Wh, again with airline approval.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#98

I'm always confused by people of working age who ride bikes like this. What's the attraction of a more expensive and heavier bike that's no faster than pedaling yourself?

Yeah excellent question. Hot and humid climates make this appealing if you don't need to pedal; perhaps you can get to work without needing a shower. But considering the likely cost due to name, weight and components it feels very niche nonetheless. It's difficult to justify a bike that's thousands when an annual bus pass might be a few hundred.

> It's difficult to justify a bike that's thousands when an annual bus pass might be a few hundred.

2000 is table stakes for quality ebikes.

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#99

Coming from conventional bikes, I don't understand who this is for. Carbon fibre frames are prohibitively expensive and the market for them serves very involved, often professional or semi-pro cyclists whose performance bottlenecks are imposed by the bike instead of themselves. Ditto for some of the other details on the bike, like the medium-dish carbon rims — all for the sake of weight savings and aerodynamics (sinc…

> whose performance bottlenecks are imposed by the bike instead of themselves I'm a fluid dynamics researcher, and I'll tell you the money these people spend on "aero" and "weight saving" and "higher drivetrain efficiency" stuff is 99.9% snake oil. Unless you are among the top 1000 road bike racers in the world. Increasing your exercise load by half an hour per week, or spending a little time understanding and implem…

>spending a little time understanding and implementing aerodynamically efficient body posture

You might be interested in what we're up to [0], get in touch if it interests you.

[0] https://bodyrocket.cc

Re: Greg LeMond’s New 26 LB. Carbon Fiber Ebike

#100
For what it's worth, the Taiwanese company Gogoro already has an e-bike on the market that ships to the USA (the Eeyo 1s) that has the same weight, same range, and same motor wattage at the same price point. The design is a little more stylish too in my opinion, although it lacks fenders (which the Prolog has). [1] [2]

Personally, I've looked at the Eeyo bike but can't really justify the price, given that you can buy a very nice full carbon non-electric bike from Bikes Direct for less than half the price. Even Gogoro's core product, an electric scooter, which is much faster, powerful, and more versatile, retails for less.

[1] https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/28/21344679/gogoro-eeyo-1s-e... [2] https://eeyo.bike/us/

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