Crazy Stupid Commute

[ebubar]

Torque sensor adjustment definitely helped. MUCH more impressive ride with the torque sensor feedback increased. I'm convinced an ebike will make my 50 mile roundtrip doable every day. Oddly, I ended up going through 40 percent of the battery on a 17 mile ride. That wear seemed a bit excessive and I noticed there was a 600 Wh instead of the 983 Wh battery installed. I showed them the online specs for the bike and they're trying to figure out what happened. They originally thought the big battery was an upgrade so I don't think they were trying to pull one over on me. I actually don't think they know a ton about the bike lineup. I don't gather that Stromer's are big sellers for them. There's not much reason that they'd know a bunch about them if they weren't feverishly researching them on EBR for weeks on end seeking the perfect commuter! While they're trying to fix the issue, it gives me pause and kind of leaves a bad taste. If I didn't know the bike specs like the back of my hand, I never would have noticed and might have left with a REALLY expensive flagship bike without the flagship battery! Its $6.5k which is roughly 25% percent off and i'm not sure the $4k premium for the Stromer is worth it compared with the Juiced i've got preordered. I've built one of my commuting bikes from the frame up so have the skills needed for my own maintenance. My regular shop is also ready and willing to help with the Juiced so i'd really only need to contact Juiced for electrical issues. I think i'm leaning towards sticking with the preorder (a new batch arrived so hopefully i'll get one in a couple weeks). If anyone on here might want a discounted ST2S and lives in the Washington DC area, i'm happy to send the name of the shop!

 

[Chris Hammond]

@ebubar I am curious about what kind of speeds you attained with the ST2S. I really didn't research Stromer bikes much due to the price. Does Stromer offer an "off road" mode that allows you to have pedal assist above 28mph? If so what was the max speed you achieved? What were comfortable cruising speeds at various levels of assist, and what kind of power usage were you reading at those cruising speeds? Honestly, I am just curious how the CCS stacks up against the ST2S.

 

[ebubar]

@ebubar I am curious about what kind of speeds you attained with the ST2S. I really didn't research Stromer bikes much due to the price. Does Stromer offer an "off road" mode that allows you to have pedal assist above 28mph? If so what was the max speed you achieved? What were comfortable cruising speeds at various levels of assist, and what kind of power usage were you reading at those cruising speeds? Honestly, I am just curious how the CCS stacks up against the ST2S.

@Chris Hammond It was locked into a demo mode, so I could only do minimal tweaking. Basically, I was only able to tweak the torque sensing so the motor would kick in without me having to mash the pedals. There are only three levels of assist. Level 1 didn't really seem to do much. It maybe offsets the 60+ lbs of the bike. Level 2 is programmable through the Stromer app (which I couldn't do since it was demo mode). No chance to tweak the settings on level 2, but apparently you can adjust settings to optimize speed, range, agility to meet goals. I don't believe i've read anything about an off-road mode to allow over 28 mph with pedal assist and I didn't find it in the settings. I was pretty comfortable and easily cruising around at 24 through DC. No problems going up hills (Rosslyn hill and up Lee Highway on the Custis trail for any DC residents that know it!) and used regenerative braking to stop on downhills, saving the brakes a little. Still not really convinced the premium price is worth it...even with 25% off

 

[michael mitchell]

If you've already built your own bike, I'd recommend getting the CCS. Most people who are comfortable tinkering with their bikes seem happy with it. Plus, your LBS already said they had no problem assisting if needed. For the difference in price, you could buy any out of warranty replacement parts and still come out ahead.

 

[Joan from Maine]

Today is my first attempt at a 60mile round trip commute. I wouldn't even attempt it with a regular bike, I'm not very fit. I got an ebike a week ago and this is the first long ride.

It's limited to 15mph assisted as I'm in England, and I might get tired of such a slow speed eventually but it seemed ok this morning.

I'm looking forward to my return journey, the only thing I didn't like was getting up at 3am this morning, but at least the weather is nice.

I bet none of us get up at 3 a.m. to commute 60 miles round trip! WOW! My commute, rural except for the last 2 miles, on an urban bike path, is 46 miles round trip and I am leaving around 6:15-6:30 a.m. You are a trooper!!

 

[Citycrosser]

So you know about my 30 mile commute. I will link a strava ride from April on my road bike: https://www.strava.com/activities/1489909223
And here is the same ride today on my CCS: https://www.strava.com/activities/1664477964.
This is a pretty fair representation of the time savings for me, I figure I am saving 30-40 minutes each way. This time savings goes up when there is a headwind as it is far easier to maintain high speeds with an ebike as opposed to a road bike.
Traffic stops really do cut into your average speed, so that may be a factor in your ability to save time.
On my commute the northern 10 miles are far slower than the rest; this is the urban city portion; the rest is suburban. I have seen my average speed > 27mph on my bike computer for the first 20 miles on my way in to work, and end up with an average of ~24 mph by the time I get there.
My recommendation is to drive the exact same route you plan to ride and calculate your average speed. That should give you some perspective about just how big of an impact the stops due to traffic lights may have. One of the other big factors is the ability to ride past stopped traffic at lights on a bike. On my ride home in my suburban segment; the road I ride has a bike lane adjoining regular traffic and speed limits range from 40-45 for ~ 10 miles. I am typically faster than car traffic due to rush hour causing lines of traffic at every signal. I see cars pass me, and I pass them, back and forth for a few signals, until I generally leave them behind where a few lights have very long lines.
If you look at the segment splits on the second strava ride from today, you can see the difference in the first ~ 10 or so splits average speeds vs. the rest.

Chris: Be sure to mark your rides on Strava as "e-bike" or make them hidden from leader boards. Some of us take the Strava segment rankings pretty seriously. It appears that you have the KOM of at least one segment but were riding your CCS.

 

[Chris Hammond]

Chris: Be sure to mark your rides on Strava as "e-bike" or make them hidden from leader boards. Some of us take the Strava segment rankings pretty seriously. It appears that you have the KOM of at least one segment but were riding your CCS.

LOL, I was wondering about that. I didn't know there is an ebike setting. I'll look for it. I'm certainly not concerned about records.

 

[ebubar]

LOL, I was wondering about that. I didn't know there is an ebike setting. I'll look for it. I'm certainly not concerned about records.

I've just made all my ebike test rides private. Thus far I've gotten KOMS on every test ride I've done without trying. Noticed it last time i logged in. Oops!

 

[highpockets]

Thanks again for all help. I've preordered a CCS with the 48 V 19 Ah battery, with an inquiry to Juiced about upgrading to the 52 V battery, as it wasn't an option in the online order form. Also planning to go back and test ride the Stromer ST2S locally. It really didn't wow me on the test ride (especially not for being a $10k bike marked down to 6.5k) but I'm wondering if the torque sensor may have been off. When I put down some force and shifted into the tougher gears, the motor would kick in so I'm thinking I can go into the settings and adjust the torque sensor to be more reactive to get the bike to act like reviews seem to suggest it should. Will keep you all updated on how things go!

Get ready to wait. It took mine two months to the day to arrive. Use your time to research upgrades. For a long commute I would highly recommend a comfortable seat. Upgraded seatpost. Some type of large rear storage container. Definitely get a mirror.

 

[ebubar]

Get ready to wait. It took mine two months to the day to arrive. Use your time to research upgrades. For a long commute I would highly recommend a comfortable seat. Upgraded seatpost. Some type of large rear storage container. Definitely get a mirror. View attachment 23360View attachment 23361

I've got a nicely broken in Brooks saddle ready to move over from another bike. I'm thinking that a pair of Ortlieb classic panniers will be a nice addition as well. Thanks for the advice! What kind of mirror and bag do you have?

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Get ready to wait. It took mine two months to the day to arrive.

Let us know how long it takes to arrive. There are indications that distribution is improving. Another data point would be helpful.

 

[Citycrosser]

Looks like you flagged Chris Hammond's ride, or someone did. I've always wondered, how do you flag a ride on Strava?

I did flag it but then realized that it was an issue with more than just his one ride. You can flag rides or runs from the website. I don't believe it can be done from the iphone App.

Also, in the Iphone App, you can edit your ride and change the Sport to "E-Bike Ride" which will remove any segment rankings. One could also mark it as Private or Hide it from segment and challenge leaderboards.

I'm frankly not competitive on my road bike but I do take the running segments pretty seriously and I have several friends who do take the cycling segments very seriously.

 

[Chris Hammond]

I did flag it but then realized that it was an issue with more than just his one ride. You can flag rides or runs from the website. I don't believe it can be done from the iphone App.

Also, in the Iphone App, you can edit your ride and change the Sport to "E-Bike Ride" which will remove any segment rankings. One could also mark it as Private or Hide it from segment and challenge leaderboards.

I'm frankly not competitive on my road bike but I do take the running segments pretty seriously and I have several friends who do take the cycling segments very seriously.

I went in a changed several of my rides to ebike now that I know. I do have to laugh a little at taking this kind of thing seriously, its a safe bet that most of the cycling records are made with a large tailwind. Thus, unless you were riding that same segment with a similarly large tailwind it is a fairly pointless competition. Not to mention the multitude of riders using all forms of modifications (including electric motors). I sometimes forget how competitive some people can be. To each his own I guess.

 

[Citycrosser]

I went in a changed several of my rides to ebike now that I know. I do have to laugh a little at taking this kind of thing seriously, its a safe bet that most of the cycling records are made with a large tailwind. Thus, unless you were riding that same segment with a similarly large tailwind it is a fairly pointless competition. Not to mention the multitude of riders using all forms of modifications (including electric motors). I sometimes forget how competitive some people can be. To each his own I guess.

Seriously? You’ve done the right thing by marking them as ebike rides. Don’t do the wrong thing by putting down cyclists who take them seriously. It’s disrespectful to a portion of the cycling community and does nothing to help the image of ebikers.

 

[Trail Cruiser]

Seriously? You’ve done the right thing by marking them as ebike rides. Don’t do the wrong thing by putting down cyclists who take them seriously. It’s disrespectful to a portion of the cycling community and does nothing to help the image of ebikers.

I hear you. I noticed that some road purists get mad when I pass them. They call me a cheater. I learned to ignore them and not be affected by their comments.

 

[Citycrosser]

I hear you. I noticed that some road purists get mad when I pass them. They call me a cheater. I learned to ignore them and not be affected by their comments.

I pass several each day and when they do grumble, I yell back "I'm commuting - not training". I've also invited them to draft me for as long as they can, usually they get dropped on the first long hill (of which we have plenty).

 

[highpockets]

I've got a nicely broken in Brooks saddle ready to move over from another bike. I'm thinking that a pair of Ortlieb classic panniers will be a nice addition as well. Thanks for the advice! What kind of mirror and bag do you have?

The trunk is a generic 30L universal motorcycle/scooter trunk. The mirror is a Venzo Stainless Steel mirror. I purposely did not recommend specific items as I feel they are personal choices. I just try to find a balance between function and cost. I will say the idea of turning the mirror down came from another post on one of these forums.

 

[ebubar]

I hear you. I noticed that some road purists get mad when I pass them. They call me a cheater. I learned to ignore them and not be affected by their comments.

I call "cheater" on them when they go by me on their $10K aero bikes like i'm supposed to be impressed while i'm on my 25 lbs of commuting adventure bike. Then I REALLY call cheater when they run red lights and stop signs to keep their average speed up.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

I do have to laugh a little at taking this kind of thing seriously

No kidding. I have no problem with people wanting to track their own accomplishments and attempt to improve. When I was running, I had a steno pad where I wrote about each day's run (pre-internet Strava haha). I had no desire to be able to use it to compare or compete with others -- that's what races were for.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Don’t do the wrong thing by putting down cyclists who take them seriously. It’s disrespectful to a portion of the cycling community and does nothing to help the image of ebikers.

Laughing at self-important idiots is a great tradition.