Hey everyone, so yes, this is a similar bike to the one offered by a few other bike manufacturers or seemingly in the works. We don't take credit for designing the bike, but instead are working as a distributor of this model to the United States. Having said that, there are a number of things that can be customized on the bike, such as the drivetrain, bar/stem combo, front fork, etc.
For our pre-order, we opted to stick to a standard package to try and not overly complicate things. The bike has a 3x9 Shimano Alivio drivetrain that is great for climbing the steepest hills and maximizing speed on flats and downhills. We opted to offer the integrated digital display and carbon fork as we believe it is the most aesthetically pleasing option out there that we've seen. If we're successful in our campaign for pre-orders we'll definitely be rolling out various bar / stem options to help customize fit and offer different options for riders looking for specific setups.
Personally, I'm against having electric bikes on singletrack trails because I know it causes conflicts with user groups and as an avid mountain biker I want to try and do as much as I can to protect trail access. For that reason, we opted to keep the carbon fiber rigid fork and I really like it because it creates a lot of opportunity for increased power when sprinting and climbing quickly. I like this bike because it allows me to fly up hills, but it's not without hard work. The difference is whether I can climb a slight uphill grade going 6 mph on my regular bike vs 18 mph on this bike or climbing very steep grades at 9 mph on the ebike vs 3 mph on a standard bike.
The bike features the Boefelli mid-drive motor that is rated for 250 watts, although the watt meter on the bike consistently shows watt output of over 650 watts when put on the highest pedal assist speed. The digital display / speed controller has five levels of assist that more-or-less corresponds to watt output. For example, on level 3, the bike puts out between 250 - 350 watts of power to help the cyclist maintain a fast cadence. If you shift into a harder gear, the watt output increases until the cadence returns to a faster pace or speed increases.
Our goal from the beginning was to offer this bike and provide the ultimate customer service. To do that, we'll be offering a great warranty package with these bikes and will be able to provide quick support via email and phone to address any problems. We'll also be carrying replacement parts, extra batteries, etc to make sure that we have everything we need to get a broken bike repaired and back on the road as soon as possible. One of our main hopes is that we'll be able to establish a network of dealers who can specialize in both sales and repairs of these bikes, but that obviously is dependent on whether or not we can meet our initial fundraising goal and order enough bikes to match supply / demand.
Thanks for all the feedback so far. I really appreciate the comments and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to bring this bike to market at this price point (hint: we need more orders).
