I seriously doubt it's a fad. I can understand the point that distance will be reduced by the tires but I suspect that distance may not be much of a factor to a lot of people. I live on a peninsula along the coast of Maine and can travel from my home to any place on that peninsula and home again in 25 miles or less. 25 miles is plenty for my 71 year old body. They did just repave the whole peninsula this year but before that there were cracks in the pavement in places that close to 4" wide and the shoulder drops as much as 6" in places. If I was every to get forced off the road by a car I think those 4" tires might be appreciated. They're already appreciated every time I go over a bump.
Fat bikes a fad?
- Thread starter Cyklefanatic
- Start date
Why hope it's a fad? If you don't like them then don't buy one. I'm sure they won't 100% replace thinner tire bikes.
I ride my fat tire e-bike everywhere & anywhere where skinny wheeler riders are often carrying theirs. Ya I know, mine is too heavy to carry but then I have no reason to carry it either.
I have to admit I didn't buy it to ride like the wind to see how fast and how many miles I could go in the shortest time either. I don't ride like riding with my butt in the air and my head between the handlebars looking at the front wheel riding like I stole it..
I rather enjoy leisurely riding taking in the scenery and smelling the roses. My fat tire Juiced fits the bill well for me.
I have to admit I didn't buy it to ride like the wind to see how fast and how many miles I could go in the shortest time either. I don't ride like riding with my butt in the air and my head between the handlebars looking at the front wheel riding like I stole it..
I rather enjoy leisurely riding taking in the scenery and smelling the roses. My fat tire Juiced fits the bill well for me.
TMH
Well-Known Member
Exactly!
Explorer-1
Have bike, will travel
- Region
- USA
- City
- Boston North Shore
I like my RCS fat-tire bike, and in the early spring on the trails it was awesome. I still like my narrower tire bike though, but I want my next bike to be 2.8"-3" tire and I think that will be the perfect width for heavier e-bikes and my mix of trails and street riding.
If you have a solid front fork the fat tire also gives you some comfort options on top of the traction options with varying tire pressure while still keeping the rims in tack. Now as the weather is better here and I have to use the pavement more to get to where I want to ride, I'm running higher pressure, but in the winter and early spring it was nice to have the fat tires with a lower pressure especially since at that time the crappy front suspension shock Juice equipped the bike with was not doing much of anything.
If you have a solid front fork the fat tire also gives you some comfort options on top of the traction options with varying tire pressure while still keeping the rims in tack. Now as the weather is better here and I have to use the pavement more to get to where I want to ride, I'm running higher pressure, but in the winter and early spring it was nice to have the fat tires with a lower pressure especially since at that time the crappy front suspension shock Juice equipped the bike with was not doing much of anything.
CdnShaun
Active Member
Perhaps a good question for this thread (long term) is how many members here have only a fat tire (or multiple fat tire with nothing else) bike? Follow up question is how many members use fat tire bikes as their daily driver?
My friends who also have fat tire bikes like myself in my area are the same as me - it's part of their collection of bikes, not the daily driver/most commonly ridden (except for in winter of course it becomes our daily driver for outdoor riding typically) and goes back to simply the choice of having 'multiple tools' to choose from when we go riding.
My friends who also have fat tire bikes like myself in my area are the same as me - it's part of their collection of bikes, not the daily driver/most commonly ridden (except for in winter of course it becomes our daily driver for outdoor riding typically) and goes back to simply the choice of having 'multiple tools' to choose from when we go riding.
GypsyTreker
Well-Known Member
Actually I assume nothing. My comment to the OP was, so what if its for cool. No one owes someone ( well..perhaps a wife or SO) reasons for choices or rational as to why they purchased an item. If you read an earlier post I did in this thread, Florida scrub was a reason I selected my 26" fattie. I thank you though, for permission to "do as I wish" LoL
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
the does little to get you exercise though.
The ides that one gets less exercise on an Electric bike is simply not true. To be sure, I personally get as much exercise on my e-bike as my body can stand. It is all in how I manage the assist system that determines the level of exercise one gets and wants.. If I didn't have that I would smell a lot less roses and view a lot less scenery because of much shorter rides..
CdnShaun
Active Member
I believe fooferdoggie was referring more to riding 'leisurely' as getting less excise.
To fooferdoggie's point, a leisurely ride likely burns around 250-400 extra calories per hour versus the 600-900 extra calories per hour a much more intense ride will generate.
For fooferdoggie: 250-400 calories of exercise per hour versus not riding, sitting at home, etc - is still a win in my books so I agree with teskow.
For teskow:
You're right in this post I just quoted about as much exercise if not more. I'm a living example. Even now after a year of getting serious in riding, I have found that when I do go out on my non-e bike I can ride at most for 2 hours, struggle on the steeper hills and only enjoy the ride mostly as it's great to compare to my previous year rides (non-e) and how I ride my ebikes. Yes I do burn right around 1000 calories/hour based on my bike computer/heart rate strap, therefore I get around 2000 calories burned in that exercise.
Note - my one non-e bike is a Specialized Fat Boy related to this thread.
When I go out for the day on my ebike Fat Tire bike I am still burning 650-750 calories per hour. I am able to ride for 4-6 hours, fear no hills, see so much more of the trails and areas I get to explore. I also achieve a 3000-4,500 calorie burn over these ride outs and it shows in my efforts towards weight loss.
Of course the bike computer/heart rate monitor equipment is estimate at best - I acknowledge this. The reality is regular leisure riding is better than no riding at all, ebikes allow those who would normally not ride due to concerns of tackling demanding hills in their area and such - to ride, and as I have found at least for me (and I suspect many others) riding an ebike will allow you to exercise more per day out riding than a non-e bike, at least until you are super fit and then the opposite might become true.
Cheers
I have to agree with the 5-15% you speak of here. I have been on my 20x4" folder with the tires aired up to about 25 lbs. Going down a steep hill with 2 road bike riders in spandex and calves as big as my thighs... We were all coasting... They did not pull away from me.
Rob2000
Member
What bike do you have now and what bike are you thinking of springing for?
AHicks
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Snow Bird - Summer S.E. Michigan, Winter Gulf Coast North Central Fl.
I'm currently riding a very modified RAD City that uses a MAC 12t geared rear hub motor and aftermarket controller/display. After increasing the OEM power by a factor of about 5, and installing a controller that allows personal control over several functions, I absolutely love this bike.
New bike will very likely be a Rad Rover. Rover chosen for it's rugged design and inexpensive price (just as the City was chosen). It will undergo very similar modifications, but also include a pretty sophisticated GMAC geared hub. This drive is similar in power to the City's MAC 12t (well known as a torque monster), but also offers cutting edge variable regen. braking. There's nothing else available that's even similar - yet. I won't wander off in to the specifics. If you're interested : https://www.ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-kits/gmac.html
Total price of project VERY reasonable, especially considering it's performance capabilities - and I'm not talking just speed (it will have the ability to cross a busy road VERY quickly for instance). There's also nothing like it available, even at twice what I would have invested in this one. I take great pride in the fact it will take a very knowledgeable eye to catch the fact that this performance bike didn't roll off an assembly line. A rottweiler dressed to look like a poodle..... just like the City! It'll bring new meaning to the word "hybrid"!
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I used to live in the woods where one either rode on busy paved roads or off on some very rough and steep logging roads.
I rented a fold up fat tired e bike at the beach one time. It was fun. It made me happy. After a bit of research, I got a Radmini. It was a blast to ride on the bad roads.
I moved to town and a different climate, and got a more practical ebike. The Radmini still gets loaded into the pickup and taken up into the woods to ride on old roads where it can be very dusty and then you go around the corner and encounter a muddy section. I also mounted the Dog Attachment to it. That gizmo won't work on the Gazelle.
I rented a fold up fat tired e bike at the beach one time. It was fun. It made me happy. After a bit of research, I got a Radmini. It was a blast to ride on the bad roads.
I moved to town and a different climate, and got a more practical ebike. The Radmini still gets loaded into the pickup and taken up into the woods to ride on old roads where it can be very dusty and then you go around the corner and encounter a muddy section. I also mounted the Dog Attachment to it. That gizmo won't work on the Gazelle.
Cyklefanatic
Well-Known Member
I have to agree with teskow. After surviving two rounds of chemo I could barely walk up a flight of stairs. The ebike got me outside and riding. I started with lots of assist but over time I have gotten stronger and now I hypermile using very little assist. I can get back on my non ebike and do 25k unassisted. My doctors are impressed at my progress. I’ve always liked riding so it was no big effort for me I just needed help at the beginning.
Dallant
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
I’m curious what you are basing this on? What penalty and what motor stress? Not sure what constitutes a fat tire but I’m riding the biggest tire I’ve ever ridden, the Schwalbe G-One, 650Bx57c. I ride mine w/o the motor on most of the time and for a 47.5 lb bike, it rides great and I don’t detect any big penalty. I find these tires a great combo for street and light trail riding.
Once you-go fat,You never go back
Cyklefanatic
Well-Known Member
57c is not even close to a fat tire. Try 100c!
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