Hello from DC

[Commuter101]

Hi all,
new to the e-bike world, looking for a long distance daily commuter. Still deciding on which brand and type of bike to commit to. I currently ride my road bike to work and back, 40 mile round trip. I figure in purchasing an e-bike I would get a couple days off with a little e-assistance. I am curious though, how are most owners using their e-bikes for long commutes faring with battery life.

 

[J.R.]

Hi all,
new to the e-bike world, looking for a long distance daily commuter. Still deciding on which brand and type of bike to commit to. I currently ride my road bike to work and back, 40 mile round trip. I figure in purchasing an e-bike I would get a couple days off with a little e-assistance. I am curious though, how are most owners using their e-bikes for long commutes faring with battery life.

Welcome! You're shopping at a good time for the DC area, as the ebike expo is finally making it's way east.

http://www.electricbike-expo.com/locations/washington-dc/

As for owners experiences and reviews, you might poke around by brand:

https://electricbikereview.com/forums/categories/discussion-by-brand.168/

 

[Commuter101]

J.R., thanks for the heads up on the expo, looks promising. The brand forum is a treasure trove. I have quite a bit of reading to do.

 

[Brambor]

I used to do ebike full time but this year and most of last year I do 70% regular bike and 30% ebike for reasons similar to what you wrote - when the knee seems to act out, when the wind forecast is nutty, when I feel unmotivated ... hopping on an ebike is a joy.

Hi all,
new to the e-bike world, looking for a long distance daily commuter. Still deciding on which brand and type of bike to commit to. I currently ride my road bike to work and back, 40 mile round trip. I figure in purchasing an e-bike I would get a couple days off with a little e-assistance. I am curious though, how are most owners using their e-bikes for long commutes faring with battery life.

 

[Chris Nolte]

Welcome to the forum! For a fit rider like yourself riding 40 miles a day you should have much trouble achieving similar range on an Ebike. A Bosch powered bike running between the 2nd and 3rd levels whould give most riders 40 miles. Once the 500Wh batteries start shipping you could probably do the whole ride in Turbo if you wanted to. I know you might not necessarily need to do that, but it's good to know what's possible. Many charge their battery at work as well which certainly increases the possibilities.

 

[Commuter101]

Chris Nolte,
The mid-drive preference seems to be the go to, for e-bikes since you mentioned Bosch. I am still old school on that, I like the rear hub setup. Now if I was MTBn then I would definitely go for the mid-drive. In fact I recently test drove the 'Outfitter' by Felt, it was a blast, climbed like a beast even in PAS 2, but based on my needs I can't justify the cost, already have a mountain bike and a road bike in the garage.