Looking for a comfortable long distance ride

[TPL]

Looking to do some long distance touring around the USA. I’ve done long distance rides before on a regular bike but I really want to try big cross country trips and I think an e bike would be the ticket for me. Needs to be comfortable and have good lights and saddle pack capabilities and a reasonably long battery life. Any thoughts?

 

[Art Deco]

Be sure to look at dual battery models, or at least a second battery ... finding places to charge can be an issue. Check the ebike touring threads on here to see what others have done, and jump in and ask questions about anything interesting.
Welcome to EBR and good luck with your search.

 

[TPL]

Do you have any preference on which style of bike?
(Step thru, fatbike, cargo bike, MTB, roadbike, etc)

Any preference on mid drive vs hub drive?

Road bike maybe cargo if not to heavy. Not sure what u mean by mid and hub. Looking for an assist with wide range of gears in cassette, I’ll probably be on the heavy side with what I’ll be packing. Not thinking a throttle style bike. But at this point I’m open to everything. Thanks!

 

[EMGX]

How many miles a day are you thinking of doing? This is the longest ride I've done, 175 miles in 3 days - longest day was 73 miles which used 67% of a 36v 11ah battery. I used assist on ~35 of those 73 miles on grades and when I was getting tired near the end of that day. The other days were 40 miles (single charge, assist used much of the way due to head winds) and 62 miles (charged twice along the way because outlets were available where I rested at a state park and in a small town).

Old West Scenic Bikeway

Oregon's Old West Scenic Bikeway starts at Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site in John Day and passes through the communities of Prairie City, Long C... - 173.8 mi, +8493 ft. Bike ride in John Day, OR

ridewithgps.com

Bike is a BH Gravel/road bike with Yamaha PW-SE mid drive, Shimano 105 2x11 gearing, weighs 40-41# without accessories.

I had planned on doing some similar tours this past summer but we had a brutally hot summer starting in June this year, I wasn't interested in riding in 100 degree heat.
But not on this bike, instead I was going to ride a 700c hybrid bike that I converted with a Tongsheng TSDZ2 mid drive because I prefer that bike platform and the DIY Tongsheng performs similarly to the Yamaha. If you have a bike that you already like you might want to looking into doing a DIY with the Tongsheng. Bafang is more popular and powerful but weighs more and to my knowledge only has cadence sensing rather than the more natural torque sensing.

 

[Art Deco]

You can also follow a few members that ride centuries in @David Berry 's rides, maps, photos thread to get a feel for their battery use ... @RabH and @Stefan Mikes and many others rack up some miles.

 

[TPL]

Okay so, I assume you're new to ebike?

I think you should watch these videos, so that you can make more informed decision.
In my opinion, these videos are must watch for beginners.

Hub Drive vs Mid Drive

If you go for hub drive, there's a geared hub and direct hub (aka gearless hub).

You would also want to know if you want a torque sensored bike or cadence sensored bike.
I personally prefer cadence sensor, but I know many people prefer torque sensor.

You are amazing! Thanks for taking the time for this help. I appreciate it so much.

 

[TPL]

How many miles a day are you thinking of doing? This is the longest ride I've done, 175 miles in 3 days - longest day was 73 miles which used 67% of a 36v 11ah battery. I used assist on ~35 of those 73 miles on grades and when I was getting tired near the end of that day. The other days were 40 miles (single charge, assist used much of the way due to head winds) and 62 miles (charged twice along the way because outlets were available where I rested at a state park and in a small town).

Old West Scenic Bikeway

Oregon's Old West Scenic Bikeway starts at Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site in John Day and passes through the communities of Prairie City, Long C... - 173.8 mi, +8493 ft. Bike ride in John Day, OR

ridewithgps.com

Bike is a BH Gravel/road bike with Yamaha PW-SE mid drive, Shimano 105 2x11 gearing, weighs 40-41# without accessories.
View attachment 106782

I had planned on doing some similar tours this past summer but we had a brutally hot summer starting in June this year, I wasn't interested in riding in 100 degree heat.
But not on this bike, instead I was going to ride a 700c hybrid bike that I converted with a Tongsheng TSDZ2 mid drive because I prefer that bike platform and the DIY Tongsheng performs similarly to the Yamaha. If you have a bike that you already like you might want to looking into doing a DIY with the Tongsheng. Bafang is more popular and powerful but weighs more and to my knowledge only has cadence sensing rather than the more natural torque sensing.

View attachment 106784

Sounds awesome! I’m not sure I’m DIY ready yet, but I love DIY projects, I will look into this.

 

[TPL]

You are amazing! Thanks for taking the time for this help. I appreciate it so much.

After viewing I am sure I’d want the mid drive and probably torque assist geared motor. I’d plan on riding 50-100 miles per day to answer EMGX above, sorry missed that part of his reply. I appreciated the charging issues too and am wonderyare some of these bikes pedalable when the battery goes dead? And my next question: any thoughts on where to start looking for that bike?

Sounds awesome! I’m not sure I’m DIY ready yet, but I love DIY projects, I will look into this.

You are amazing! Thanks for taking the time for this help. I appreciate it so much.

You are amazing! Thanks for taking the time for this help. I appreciate it so much.

You are amazing! Thanks for taking the time for this help. I appreciate it so much.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Looking to do some long distance touring around the USA. I’ve done long distance rides before on a regular bike but I really want to try big cross country trips and I think an e bike would be the ticket for me. Needs to be comfortable and have good lights and saddle pack capabilities and a reasonably long battery life. Any thoughts?

I'm a great believer in manufactured e-bikes. There are several long distance riders in EBR Forums, such as @David Berry, @RabH or @Mr. Coffee. Any of them rides manufactured mid-drive motor e-bikes with the biggest battery suitable for given e-bike make/model. It is typical to either ride a dual battery e-bike or take one or even two spare batteries on a long ride and carry the spare batteries in panniers. If we talk touring, the charger(s) can be the limiting factor, as the batteries need to be charged overnight.

I will refrain from recommending any specific e-bike as David rides R&M e-SUV, Rab's ride is a Giant road e-bike, and some other prefer Specialized Vado.