I just got a Giant Momentum Ebike. I was trying to go up the hill to my driveway and realized I was going to fall. I made it over to the grass and then fell hard. I'm trying ti figure out what I did wrong. Maybe I didn't have enough assist. The bike has 7 speeds but I had it on 4 instead of 7. Any thoughts? I'll try riding it and doing a small incline tomorrow.
I had a bad fall!
- Thread starter Fiets
- Start date
Luto
Active Member
You need to keep your cadence higher. This is the number of pedal turns per minute. Usually 60-70 is the minimum. 70-80 is much better. When you have a higher cadence the bike will balance better due to the gyro effect. Below 50 you are asking for trouble. Regardless of e-bike or not, it is still a bike and bike physics apply.
Also search Youtube for bike handling there are many good videos and drills you can do. Best of luck.
Also search Youtube for bike handling there are many good videos and drills you can do. Best of luck.
By this logic, people on motorcycles must fall over all the time. The gyro effect on a bike comes from spinning of the wheels, not the chainring. Even if there was a measurable stabilizing effect from the spinning of the chainring, it would be negated and overpowered by the force of pushing down on the pedals on every stroke. OP definitely needs basic lessons on bike handling and operation, but spinning at a higher cadence is not the solution.
Saratoga Dave
Well-Known Member
You’ve got your gears backwards. Lower number means easier pedaling and slower speeds. So starting from stop, or going up a steeper hill would be first gear and shifting up as you get going… cruising along at 12 mph would probably be fifth or sixth. You get the idea!
The assist levels amplify the power of your pedaling, so to speak, but you still want to be in an appropriate gear. It will all come pretty quickly once you get used to it a little. I’d suggest finding a friendly cyclist to ride around with for an afternoon just to get you pointed in the right direction.
This is vastly oversimplified, but to answer your specific question, put it in a low gear and start up the hill. If you are spinning the pedals too fast, shift up a gear at a time until you find the range that is comfortable. Since you know you’re going up a hill, make sure the assist is at least in Normal or whatever the midrange Giant setting is called on that bike.
Oh, and have a blast with it! That’s a nice bike. Giants are quality machines and the Yamaha motors they generally use are top notch.
The assist levels amplify the power of your pedaling, so to speak, but you still want to be in an appropriate gear. It will all come pretty quickly once you get used to it a little. I’d suggest finding a friendly cyclist to ride around with for an afternoon just to get you pointed in the right direction.
This is vastly oversimplified, but to answer your specific question, put it in a low gear and start up the hill. If you are spinning the pedals too fast, shift up a gear at a time until you find the range that is comfortable. Since you know you’re going up a hill, make sure the assist is at least in Normal or whatever the midrange Giant setting is called on that bike.
Oh, and have a blast with it! That’s a nice bike. Giants are quality machines and the Yamaha motors they generally use are top notch.
PatriciaK
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Pacific Northwest and Piedmont Triad
What Dave said - on a steep hill, I'm usually in 1, 2, or 3rd gear, at the most.
Also, try "auto mode" for assist, at least at first, so you aren't trying to adjust gearing AND assist at the same time. Once you're more familiar with your bike you may want to try changing assist levels manually, but I found leaving auto mode on works best for me.
mjeds
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Did you get hurt? Not a bad fall if you didn’t get banged up.
36mph down a 9% grade and hitting a car oil slick in the mists of right turn, sliding 50’ into an intersection with road rash down entire leg and on your hands, Bent the crank arm and ripped the derailleur clean off the bike. That was a bad fall.
Take this turn at this speed 4 times a week for the past year, just my luck some car puked its oil all over the road after I went through the day before.
36mph down a 9% grade and hitting a car oil slick in the mists of right turn, sliding 50’ into an intersection with road rash down entire leg and on your hands, Bent the crank arm and ripped the derailleur clean off the bike. That was a bad fall.
Take this turn at this speed 4 times a week for the past year, just my luck some car puked its oil all over the road after I went through the day before.
Taylor57
Well-Known Member
Perfect example of how a throttle could have been useful
Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
As @SaratogaDave said, and go to full power before you lose speed.
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
or us hitting a post on our tandem. me a massive hematoma on my pubis bone wife with a cracked kneecap killed the whole drivetrain
Stefan Mikes
Well-Known Member
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, Poland
Luto meant maintaining high cadence uphill makes the bike wheels spin, providing gyro effect.
Dewey
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Arlington, Virginia
Ouch, sorry you fell, I broke my leg 3 years ago falling on a slippery wooden bridge. Depending on where you live in the US there may be a League of American Cyclists Instructor near you. Here in the Washington DC area the local cycling advocacy group WABA runs classes, I've taken the City Cycling class and they were happy for me to participate with my ebike provided I turned off the motor for some of the drills.
Stefan Mikes
Well-Known Member
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, Poland
The most dangerous (or rather painful) falls happen when the bike gets stationary (sudden braking etc).
Dewey
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Arlington, Virginia
Stefan is correct, the OP describes a fall from a standing start at low speed. My accident happened at slow speed when I touched the brake on a terribly slippery bridge surface. Studies have shown many falls in the elderly happen when mounting an ebike or losing balance. Many on this forum who have come to ebikes from riding motorcycles have spoken of how valuable they find their low speed handling training. During my City Cycling class we practised slaloming between cones and an Emergency Stop maneuver involving getting your stomach on the saddle to throw yourself off the back of the bike, can't say I would think to do that in real life but it shows the importance of practicing low speed handling and braking to build confidence.
hughresearch
New Member
- Region
- Canada
If you have an ordinary pedal bike I would suggest riding it as a warm up before jumping on the POWER machine. If you are not a bike rider and just started on an electric bike you should rent or borrow a pedal bike and get familiar with cadence, geometry, braking, turning etc before you have another tumble. Take it easy and have fun.
Oh no Fiets!
Hope the grass was soft to cushion your fall.
I went down twice on my Vado. No injury but witnesses.
Then I came to respect the extra weight of an ebike. Seems if it gets 20 degrees beyond perfectly vertical, it’s going down.
For me I practiced just simply moving around the bike while stopped. Holding the brakes helps as does trying to lean the bike towards the ground.
You’ll get used to it with time and a little practice.
Hope the grass was soft to cushion your fall.
I went down twice on my Vado. No injury but witnesses.
Then I came to respect the extra weight of an ebike. Seems if it gets 20 degrees beyond perfectly vertical, it’s going down.
For me I practiced just simply moving around the bike while stopped. Holding the brakes helps as does trying to lean the bike towards the ground.
You’ll get used to it with time and a little practice.
Alaskan
Well-Known Member
It might have helped. What definitely would have avoided this on any bike, is getting in a low enough gear to climb the grade BEFORE hitting the steep part.Perfect example of how a throttle could have been useful
Any fall that leaves the rider in one piece, without any blood spilled, is not a bad fall, by the way. If the rider is okay and so is the bike, that is a good fall.
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Alaskan
Well-Known Member
A demeaning, irrelevant and useless comment. The OP fell because the bike's speed reduced to zero due to poor gear selection on a steep grade. It had nothing to do with speed....and folks want Class3 ebikes totally legal for use everywhere
Seriously, what's with all the falls and accidents? Just slow down
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