A couple of hard truths today...

[GrayFox]

I am in my eighties and today I was on a nice ride and starting up the steepest hill in the neighborhood ( keep in mind that I live in Florida) when I had a chain drop on my Vado Sl 5.0 ,ugh. I have almost 1000 miles on the bike and this is the first trouble I have had with the bike.

After getting the chain back on I found that I was still in a high enough gear that I could not start the bike. I had to point the bike downhill in order to get started again. I am afraid that the size large Vado is a smidgen to large. After I stop I have to stand on my ‘tippy toes’ in order to keep the bike in fairly upright position. This also makes starting the bike uphill more difficult.
To add to the aggravation, my Garmin 830 locked up several times during the ride. This is due to the ‘Ebike Field’ app that displays the power mode and battery level that I installed on the Garmin.
All in all a pretty rotten day on the bike.

 

[steve mercier]

I am in my eighties and today I was on a nice ride and starting up the steepest hill in the neighborhood ( keep in mind that I live in Florida) when I had a chain drop on my Vado Sl 5.0 ,ugh. I have almost 1000 miles on the bike and this is the first trouble I have had with the bike.

After getting the chain back on I found that I was still in a high enough gear that I could not start the bike. I had to point the bike downhill in order to get started again. I am afraid that the size large Vado is a smidgen to large. After I stop I have to stand on my ‘tippy toes’ in order to keep the bike in fairly upright position. This also makes starting the bike uphill more difficult.
To add to the aggravation, my Garmin 830 locked up several times during the ride. This is due to the ‘Ebike Field’ app that displays the power mode and battery level that I installed on the Garmin.
All in all a pretty rotten day on the bike.

I have thought that I will need to convert to a step-thru ( such as the Benno Remi Demi or Cube Compact sport ) for safety long before I hit 80. Having a frame that is too large for the rider is unsafe at any age. I fully understand that tippy toes feeling and I sure don't like it.

 

[Luto]

Order the Medium, wait for it to come, and sell the LARGE (if you can float it). Too old to have your last few bikes be WRONG. Smaller frames are easier to handle and more nimble, all things being equal, more fun. Tomorrow will be a better day

 

[fooferdoggie]

tippy toes is normal if your seated.

 

[Latitude]

I am very happy that my first ebike is a step-through (age 65 when I bought it). My inseam is less than 28”, so it would be a good choice even for a younger person. Can’t imagine trying to swing my leg over the top of a 27.5” wheel plus a trunk bag. I imagine we will be seeing increasing numbers of step-through model options on bikes as the frames can be made pretty stiff, and the crossbar of less importance structurally.

 

[john peck]

Often not easy to get a good frame fit. I have the same tippy-toe issue, but I love the bike.
Yet to get the proper leg extension on the pedal turns stops into a balancing act. I´ve had to
accept a saddle height 1/2¨ lower than I´d care for, but the power of the bike does compensate.
If I make it to 80, I´ll probably get a step-thru.

 

[RandallS]

Dropper seat posts shouldn't be viewed as just for the MTB crowd. They can be a fairly easy solution for the tippy toes scenario. The downside is the current situation where you can't really get the same level of comfort as a suspension post like a Thudbuster or Suntour NCX.

Personally, i have a PNW Coast, which is an externally wired post and super easy to install. It also has an air powered suspension although it isn't nearly as plush as my Suntour post. As a 30" inseam guy, it makes a huge difference for me. So, if you are riding without a suspension seatpost now, give a dropper a try as there are no downsides that I can think of. Alternatively, if you DO ride with a suspension post, think about the typical surfaces you normally ride on and decide if you can forgo some riding comfort for a more simplified stop and start stature. I have both and plan to keep both of them as I have different needs for different rides.

Just my $0.02

 

[reed scott]

Dropper seat posts shouldn't be viewed as just for the MTB crowd. They can be a fairly easy solution for the tippy toes scenario. The downside is the current situation where you can't really get the same level of comfort as a suspension post like a Thudbuster or Suntour NCX.

Personally, i have a PNW Coast, which is an externally wired post and super easy to install. It also has an air powered suspension although it isn't nearly as plush as my Suntour post. As a 30" inseam guy, it makes a huge difference for me. So, if you are riding without a suspension seatpost now, give a dropper a try as there are no downsides that I can think of. Alternatively, if you DO ride with a suspension post, think about the typical surfaces you normally ride on and decide if you can forgo some riding comfort for a more simplified stop and start stature. I have both and plan to keep both of them as I have different needs for different rides.

Just my $0.02

I kinda wish I had not taken the dropper off of my Bolton Raptor. But it was not installed properly and I could not raise it ( the whole thing not the dropper itself ). If I pulled up the outer sleeve even half an inch it ceased to work. They had left no slack in the cable and the cable was stuck in with a bunch of other cables in a poorly conceived internal routing scheme. So I pulled it out. Breaking the cable. I may get another dropper and do an external cable install. I don't have the tippy toe problem but it IS helpful to get that seat out of the way when coming down tricky hills. Putting your butt even six inches back affords a lot of security against that feeling that one wrong move could put you over the bars.

 

[Recontra]

I'm 6'2" and have the Vado SL 5.0 EQ, size XL. Inseam is 32". I love my bike. However, there is no question but that the top bar is WAY TOO high, and there's no reason other than aesthetics for it to be so high. I normally tilt the bike down to throw my leg over it when getting on (and off). The top bar nearly brushes my groin when standing in front of the seat post, and there's no way I could straddle it closer to the front. The size Large frame had a top bar that was perfect for me. However, I liked the overall extended geometry of the XL better, and the fact that it permitted me to more easily adopt a forward-leaning position when riding--much more comfortable on long rides and when pedaling hard. The rest of the bike fits me so perfectly with how I like to ride (mainly road, with some gravel, bike path, and dirt trail thrown in) that I don't mind the top bar height. I rode both sizes at the E-Bike Store in Portland, and the only reason I kept riding and comparing both was my concern about the top bar height on the XL. The size Large felt and rode great. It's just that the size XL rode and felt awesomely perfect! If I did a lot of stop & go and slower speed errands here and there (and less road fitness riding), the size L probably would have been my choice. I can definitely see that with a 28" inseam, the top bar on the size Large could be way too high.

On Specialized's size chart (inserting the measurements into the formula), I'm an XL--even if I reduce my floor to knee measurement by 1" and my overhall height to 6'1". Again, I love my bike, and I have not for one micro-second wished I had the size Large. But I also can confirm the issues with regard to the top bar height.

 

[GrayFox]

I am in my eighties and today I was on a nice ride and starting up the steepest hill in the neighborhood ( keep in mind that I live in Florida) when I had a chain drop on my Vado Sl 5.0 ,ugh. I have almost 1000 miles on the bike and this is the first trouble I have had with the bike.

After getting the chain back on I found that I was still in a high enough gear that I could not start the bike. I had to point the bike downhill in order to get started again. I am afraid that the size large Vado is a smidgen to large. After I stop I have to stand on my ‘tippy toes’ in order to keep the bike in fairly upright position. This also makes starting the bike uphill more difficult.
To add to the aggravation, my Garmin 830 locked up several times during the ride. This is due to the ‘Ebike Field’ app that displays the power mode and battery level that I installed on the Garmin.
All in all a pretty rotten day on the bike.

I have learned a couple of things....
1) The clutch on the rear derailleur was not engaged, I have no idea how that happened...That might have been a contributing factor.
2) I now carry a pair of thin vinyl gloves in my front bar bag.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

However, there is no question but that the top bar is WAY TOO high, and there's no reason other than aesthetics for it to be so high.

Sadly, that's true. I wish Specialized made the Step Through version of Vado SL but it doesn't look they would do it soon.

If anyone looks for a super-comfy e-bike (and can afford it), Specialized Turbo Como has the right geometry. You don't need to leave the saddle on your stops at all!

 

[JeffC57]

I have learned a couple of things....
1) The clutch on the rear derailleur was not engaged, I have no idea how that happened...That might have been a contributing factor.
2) I now carry a pair of thin vinyl gloves in my front bar bag.

I hope your future rides are more enjoyable. I think it is great that you are still riding. I'm 63 and hope to be still riding at your age. I have the Vado SL 5 EQ in a large. I'm 6'-3" with a 34" inseam and find the top bar too high because I can't lift my leg as high as I'd like. Yes, the Spec. size app says I should be riding a XL, but I bought what I could find. Maybe the XL would have been a better fit but there was no way for me to compare at the time.

Has your back wheel been removed lately? That might be why the clutch was disengaged. Mine just came back from the LBS for a tune up & the clutch was disengaged. Also remember if you drop a chain again, be sure to put it back on per the diagram on the inside face of the front sprocket.

Ride on GreyFox!