EBR made me do it! (new Vado SL 5.0 EQ)

[RandallS]

Nice bike - I've been looking at those too as MTB types of rides not working very well for me these days - I'm mainly on pavement or packed gravel trails lately (hip issues - can't really get much power in one leg).
I think I'll steal the excuse of EBR being the cause, but I'll wait 'til spring to decide if I need to do it.

Looking forward to your impressions once you get it.

 

[mschwett]

Thanks again for the great storage ideas! Frame bag is Plan A for the trial period. The small Apidura may be too big, but dealer said this one won't block anything, and it's in stock.

View attachment 181339

If the SL's a keeper, maybe matching seat and feed bags, the seat dedicated for tools as you suggested. Any seat bag will have to play well with the Redshift suspension post.

the front strap on that bag might overlap the mastermind. not a huge deal but might be annoying!

 

[PDoz]

Jeremy, your knees are going to love the SL. I'd suggest running the x/y power settings with Y higher than you expect to need. For example, I run 75/100 most of the time to protect my knees - if I need to pedal harder, I want the bike to match me.

Stephan mentioned the yamahia / giant sensors earlier - they're a weird experience. But if you decide to return the SL , it might be worth trying a giant. In " auto" mode it varies assistance to match incline - VERY nice on knees, not so nice on batteries

 

[Prairie Dog]

Thanks again for the great storage ideas! Frame bag is Plan A for the trial period. The small Apidura may be too big, but dealer said this one won't block anything, and it's in stock.

View attachment 181339

If the SL's a keeper, maybe matching seat and feed bags, the seat dedicated for tools as you suggested. Any seat bag will have to play well with the Redshift suspension post.

Nicely done Jeremy. Like the bags says, ‘You’re Almsthre.’

 

[kevinmccune]

Nicely done Jeremy. Like the bags says, ‘You’re Almsthre.’

guys stop trying to "break away" and just enjoy( maybe enjoy a little vado) as well.

 

[Slaphappygamer]

View attachment 181352

Why not any other mode of travel?
Either way you'll always end up all most there.
Unless you never leave.

If you enjoy a little Vado first, you won't even know where you are, so you're never almost there,.. or you're always almost there. But you'll forget where you're going.

Not sure why, but the reminds me of a Shel Silverstein poem from A Light in the Attic. It’s about a car so long that as soon as you get in, you are already where you wanted to go.

 

[BlackHand]

Nicely done Jeremy. Like the bags says, ‘You’re Almsthre.’

@Jeremy McCreary probably needs a good jacket to go with those bags:

Ornot Bike - Cycling Apparel | 1% For the Planet Member.

Minimal-branding cycling jerseys, bib shorts & Mission Pants—built with recycled tech fabrics, many sewn in the USA since 2013. Ornot is a proud 1% for the Planet member. Gear that performs, lasts, and looks good on or off the bike. You could be a rolling billboard, Ornot.

www.ornotbike.com

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

the front strap on that bag might overlap the mastermind. not a huge deal but might be annoying!

Worried about that, too, but the Specialized dealer reassured me by phone that the front strap will clear the TCU. (Product page implied it's adjustable longitudinally somehow.)

Hope he's right, cuz nearly all of the frame bags I've seen look like they'll block at least one thing I need unblocked.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

@Jeremy McCreary probably needs a good jacket to go with those bags:

View attachment 181354

Ornot Bike - Cycling Apparel | 1% For the Planet Member.

Minimal-branding cycling jerseys, bib shorts & Mission Pants—built with recycled tech fabrics, many sewn in the USA since 2013. Ornot is a proud 1% for the Planet member. Gear that performs, lasts, and looks good on or off the bike. You could be a rolling billboard, Ornot.

www.ornotbike.com

Nice jacket — especially the yellow one. A little more tapered than I am, but will check back for my size this winter.

 

[PedalUma]

I have been out of it here working on bikes everyday but suspect I have a nasty bit of Covid today. The 5.0 SL is so very cool. I just have the 4.0 mid-step, pogo fork as my free demo bike. Specialized under rates its nominal power. Mine flies at 70+ rpm on cadence. Watts is only a measure of poor fuel economy. A higher use rate is lesser efficiency. It is a 28 mph bike. You have 90Nm! Any higher torque leads to drivetrain and other problems. Still, invest in a Park Tool chain checker gauge and replace chains early. Use dry wax lube. Great bike. Congratulations. Yes, it is true I have gone to the dark side, but I still work on all bikes, even junk like a Walmart $747 MacFox, and Ariel Riders. If I were a bartender would I only serve what I like, a neat single malt, when someone wants an umbrella rum drink with a throttle?

 

[Slaphappygamer]

I thought that was a fake ad.

It's not,..

View attachment 181356

It's a lot of money but It Is Magic !!,..


I bought a pair of Carhartt Duck pants for riding.
They were only a hundred bucks, but they Will Actually Protect me when I go sliding down a gravel road on my ass.


View attachment 181357View attachment 181358


I wear them all the time. Even when it's 34° with a humidex in the forties.

Cotton breathes and helps cool you.

Synthetic materials melt into your skin which makes road rash much worse.

I just have to keep moving and not pedal to stay cool.
The bugs will get you if you stop anyway.

There's another humidex in the 40's tomorrow.
I'm going riding.


I do feel bad about all the 's that were sacrificed to make my pants though.
I wash them in Dawn detergent to pay homage.


I don't have a problem spending the money on quality items, but I Hate paying for a name or something fashionable.
I've always been function over form.

My ebike is proof.
I don't care what it looks like.
I ride alone anyway.
I do my own thing.
I don't like crowds or what they do.


View attachment 181359

I wear the same pants!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

You have 90Nm

He has 35 Nm on the Vado SL.
90 Nm are on the "big" Vado 5.0.

It is a 28 mph bike.

The fact the e-bike assistance is limited to 28 mph does not mean the rider can achieve such speed on the flat. Because of the air drag and the low motor power (240 W mechanical), the speed of Vado SL is practically limited to 21 mph, and that can only be achieved in Turbo.

I just have the 4.0 mid-step, pogo fork as my free demo bike.

Don't you ride the full power Vado 4.0? Vado SL has no suspension fork.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I wear them all the time.

Because you never do pedal. These pants are unsuitable for pedalling.

 

[mschwett]

I thought that was a fake ad.

It's not,..


It's a lot of money but It Is Magic !!,..


I bought a pair of Carhartt Duck pants for riding.
They were only a hundred bucks, but they Will Actually Protect me when I go sliding down a gravel road on my ass.

Ornot is a great brand; climate neutral certified, almost everything made in California, no sweatshop labor, no profit to Jeff Bezos, no revenue sucked from local resources as happens with every single thing you buy from amazon instead of locally!

But more importantly, they make really great clothing for cycling. Designed and made by real people who ride the s*it out of their bikes all the time, in lots of (generally temperate) weather conditions. every time I’ve been in the shop there’s someone coming or going from some epic ride into the hills, always wearing the gear they sell. I have a couple long sleeve shirts that are sort of between a t-shirt or technical shirt and a merino, for me they work in anything from 45 to 70 degree weather as long as it’s not brutally sunny.

 

[mschwett]

I also wear a Jean jacket, gloves, hiking boots, and a DOT approved motorcycle helmet and ski goggles. All the time.

If I have to wear one, I'm going to wear something that Really works.
I sweat my ass off.
A mirror on the helmet as well.
And a flashing red rear light.

I guess my helmet weights a ton, but I know it's going to work.
I don't want a $400 helmet that needs to be replaced if it falls from my handlebars.

If you have a helmet that weighs 2 ounces and is unsafe if you drop it from two feet or paint it, then get a real helmet.
The truly effective ones are dirt cheap.

They're not fashionable though, so maybe not a good idea?

While I’m glad it works for you, what you are describing is not typically relevant to a bicycle website/forum. It’s not a construction site and it’s not a motorcycle! (Or, er, maybe it is in your case! )

it is bad advice to recommend cycling clothing which makes it extremely difficult to cycle!

 

[mschwett]

…I don't care for cycling.
I wear crash equipment.

I wanted an enduro motorcycle, but it was 3 tines the price and $1200 a year for insurance.

this thread is about a bicycle that the user has to (and wants to) pedal.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Had 2 nice dreams last night. First, Raquel Welsh fell in love with me in the 70s.

Then, my SL got delayed because they wanted me to have one with the oft-rumored 1.2 motor.

Guessing these are equally unlikely fantasies.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Then, my SL got delayed because they wanted me to have one with the oft-rumored 1.2 motor.

A stronger motor means a shorter range. I guess you dream of making your e-bike 2.4 lbs heavier and spending even more money for RE plus cables, Jeremy

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

A stronger motor means a shorter range. I guess you dream of making your e-bike 2.4 lbs heavier and spending even more money for RE plus cables, Jeremy

Thanks, Stefan. That makes me feel better.

There was a 3rd dream I wasn't going to mention — a real nightmare. I was brought before the gods of cycling and forced to choose between Raquel and a 1.2 SL. I chose the SL.

 

[mschwett]

A stronger motor means a shorter range. I guess you dream of making your e-bike 2.4 lbs heavier and spending even more money for RE plus cables, Jeremy

reports from more sophisticated creo 2 users suggest the range is identical if the power output is identical, which is what you’d expect. obviously the assist settings need to be reduced since the multiplication factor is higher.

weight of the creo 2 with the same wheels and tires and seat post as the creo 1 actually seems to be a tiny bit less, not more. it’s just the heavy wheels and tires and dropper and groupset at work.

since vado sl already had relatively heavy wheels and tires (compared to s-works or expert creo) i don’t think the SL 1.2 vado will be heavier. it may be very slightly lighter.