Five Time TDF Winner on E-Road Bike

[Nomadmax]

Five time TDF winner Bernard Hinault helped design Look's new E-Road Bike. One more reason roadies are going to accept E-bikes for the asset they are.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/bernard-hinault-endorses-new-look-e-765-optimum-e-road-bike/

 

[JRA]

There is little doubt that eRoad bikes are becoming a thing and will continue to do so. My first experiences with motor assist years ago proved to me that there are benefits in using an eBike in conjunction with a conventional bike and one of my riding buddies labeled it "speed training".

The fact that eBikes are heavier doesn't mean that they handle badly and that much differently than your regular bike. What they do is allow you to maintain a consistent pace at a higher rate of speed using the same amount of human wattage so that when you get on your lighter bike you have a better understanding of where you heart rate is in relation to speed over ground as you work to maintain a higher speed. Not sure if that really makes sense but it is about the best I can describe it.

My problem though is that a PAS system doesn't allow for what Bernard professes:

"I would never have believed they could retain all of the sensations of a 100 per cent muscle-driven bike."

My issue is that PAS interferes with my connection to the drivetrain through the pedals as it occurs on my conventional bikes. That is why I don't use PAS on my road eBikes. Instead I use a throttle that I can set to any speed/watt output I want and be able to freely go up and down my gear range and pedal at my desired cadence without any motor output effect on the drivetrain. Once again perhaps hard to explain but it does work better for me using the higher cadence I do on the road. Riding my eMTB is a different story though and I do prefer a torque assist PAS for that.

 

[Nomadmax]

For me, the one area where the pedal assist system holds an edge over a throttle bike is target HR training. The pedal assist system can be programed to assist/lightly assist/ or not assist based on the entered/desired HR zone for that training session. Today would be a good example of that. On Saturday I went on a 60 mile group ride that was essentially race pace simulation, many times during the ride I was at or near 100% of my output and HR %. Tomorrow night I'll do the same but half the distance with the max efforts closer together. I need a ride today but I'll have to do it on the rollers inside because I have to control my HR to be fully recovered for tomorrow. It's hilly here and I can't go anywhere without taking my HR above recovery rate.

Again, I may not be the average e-bike customer but active recovery days are just as important as full gas days. Without proper recovery there can be no more full gas days, only medium gas days and that doesn't get it done when a small breakaway group is going up the road. I may be wrong, but the e-road bike thing seems like an incredible training tool for anyone in competitive road cycling.

All that said, I voted for Ross Perot so what do I know

 

[Ebiker01]

P

For me, the one area where the pedal assist system holds an edge over a throttle bike is target HR training. The pedal assist system can be programed to assist/lightly assist/ or not assist based on the entered/desired HR zone for that training session. Today would be a good example of that. On Saturday I went on a 60 mile group ride that was essentially race pace simulation, many times during the ride I was at or near 100% of my output and HR %. Tomorrow night I'll do the same but half the distance with the max efforts closer together. I need a ride today but I'll have to do it on the rollers inside because I have to control my HR to be fully recovered for tomorrow. It's hilly here and I can't go anywhere without taking my HR above recovery rate.

Again, I may not be the average e-bike customer but active recovery days are just as important as full gas days. Without proper recovery there can be no more full gas days, only medium gas days and that doesn't get it done when a small breakaway group is going up the road. I may be wrong, but the e-road bike thing seems like an incredible training tool for anyone in competitive road cycling.

All that said, I voted for Ross Perot so what do I know

many top Pro riders have been racing on e bikes for many years, people just don’t know. But is good for the companies ( and also enployment wise )to have roadies buy into the lycra/10k supersix crabon mindset....
Ex racer.

 

[JRA]

I can't say I agree from my experience that a PAS is better than the throttle setup I have but I use a combination that isn't mainstream that I came up with based on years of experience with motor assist before torque assist systems became viable. I can set my watt level to 250, 350, 500, 750 or 1000 so that the motor output won't exceed those amounts. This part is similar to the assist levels of PAS. However because i can control the level of output within each range by setting the throttle input that has a cruise control function at whatever I feel the need for based on my ride objectives/terrain etc. I can pedal at whatever cadence and input I want in whatever gear is suitable and shift up and down between gears without affecting my desired SOG. I don't have HR monitor or any other devices to track with but I just get to the edge of a sweat and stay there. It also helps that I have gear ratios that allow for active pedaling at the entire range of speed ability.

What I don't like about PAS for road use is that it makes my connection to the bike via the pedals that I have grown used to over the years feel un-natural and by doing the above I can still achieve my usual feel so at least it works for my needs. I have seen a few comments now as eRoad bikes are making headway about pedal feel but I am not trying to sell anyone on the concept but just letting folks know there is another way to go.