I don't know if there's clearance to put wider tires on the Sport. And the smallest cog on the cassette is 12T rather than an 11T. The 11T on the 700 is closer to the top gear ratio of my Trek standard bike, yet still lower because of my bike's larger chainring. There's a pretty significant change when I switch from the 11T to the 12T cog while riding, so I would hate to give up the 11T. Plus, I actually prefer the look of the 700. But it was those configurable assist levels that first got my attention because I ride for exercise, and I want to be able to really minimize the assist on flats and otherwise tweak those settings to my preferences. Small changes could make all the difference to me.
Does the $400 battery have a bms with active balancing?
No, $389 and $30 charger. 52 Samsung 18650 cells in a 4p13s arrangement.
The kickstand doesn't bother me because that's how my bikes almost always have been, including my current 14 year old Trek hybrid, so I'm used to it and haven't had any problems. One of the other bikes that I had 14 years ago had the kickstand mounted further back, and I didn't even realize at the time I owned it why that was - just thought it was odd. So, I see the advantage now, but it's not a show stopper for me.
Ride1Up has made changes also. Some previous gen bikes are even missing the configurable power settings that first got me interested in them. Sometimes they will have different tires, brakes, derailleur, adjustable stem, cruise control vs. walk assist, controller (or software), display, etc. vs. a previous shipment.
Sure. They all do. I just meant I saw a good deal of "it's hard to pull the trigger on ordering one of these knowing how cheap I could have had one not that long ago", but it's important to note that a lot of the times you're not comparing apples to apples. The Flow even looks like it's a whole different frame. So it's a different frame, motor, brakes, etc, etc from just last year (maybe even pretty late last year). So yeah, the price changed, but it's barely the same bike anymore. I don't know if these changes are worth $200-$500, that might STILL have been a great deal, but still.
Ride1Up discounted about $100 on everything, even $200 on some which the owner said he had more inventory on hand. The only significant change I know of that's coming on their existing models is that the LMTD will be changing to a cadence PAS, but even that hasn't happened, yet. Their new mid-drive models won't be available until later in the year. I just didn't want to be messing with getting a bike heading into the coldest months of the year when I wouldn't be riding for months. But I know I don't want to wait too long and miss the boat again like last year, when I didn't really start looking until late May.
I think Ride1up is the worst on versioning. I can understand when companies have to substitute some components because of a shortage, ie shimano or Kenda. However Ride1up frequently tweaks bikes with no notice, especially when it comes to the controllers. For example, they shipped bikes with limited use of throtle when simultaneously using PAS. When customers complained they changed it and offered customers some kind of software fix. We did not bother. With Espin the issue is they upgrade model but do not update description on website. If you have qustions e mail Espin and they will respond. I second the Flow. If you want a step thru folder with 20 inch fat tires, the new Espin Nesta looks nice. A hundred dollars less than the Sport or Flow, 750 w motor, suspension fork, hydraulic brakes, etc. However heavier than Sport or Flow due to fatter tires and larger motor. Personally, I would go with the lighter Flow.
arielrider.com
Not sure of the vintage of that picture? Would be nice if they had finally wised up. If that's the case though, they need to change the pics on their web site - that still show it forward.
Looks like it was a new purchase - they were mentioning just picking it up from the shop and taking their first ride.
www.facebook.com
Today, 3 pictures of 700 XR's were posted (on FB) with the kickstand mounted to the rear, representing both colors. Until today, I had only seen the ST version of the 700 with the rear mounted kickstand. Here are two of the new photos. But looking back, I found I had missed a couple photos of XR's in early February with the stand mounted toward the rear - taken from the opposite side of the bike, so it wouldn't have jumped out at me as easily if I had seen them.
They did change the Flow but it always had hydraulic brakes. 2021 versions of Sport and Flow are different than 2020. Ride1up did this too but each shipment seemed changed. Some changes due to scarcity of bike components.
