cyclingwilly
New Member
- Region
- United Kingdom
Hi everyone, I'm Alan from County Durham in the good old UK. I'm 64 and always been a cyclist, I had to put things on the back burner in the mid 80's due to a motorbike crash, got back in the pedals in early 1990, then an expensive blonde and two kids appeared and my cycling days drew to a halt once again. An accident at work that in early 2008 caused me a lot of spinal damage and recurring issues, including a condition called DISH, Google it to find out more. Since then, I've lived on painkillers and having to put up with days where I struggle to get out of bed, never mind go cycling. In early October 2016, I discovered that my "so called loving partner", had emptied our bank accounts, the shock was so bad, I had two seizures in two days, leaving me with anterograde and retrograde amnesia, this means I've lost a large amount of my memory between 1984 and 2016, pus there are a lot of things in the future, that I will have no recall of, so it's a scary situation. After a few weeks of not knowing who I was or where I was, I got some common sense to realise I was in danger, so I decided enough was enough and I needed to live on my own for the sake of my health, sanity, financial wellbeing and to see what I could achieve. I got myself out of that situation, moved into a bungalow that suits my needs and disability perfectly and I started my life again.
After several months of spending every penny I could muster on furnishings etc, I got my bikes from the garage at my old house, did a lot of tinkering and replacement of a few parts and not just on the bike, I was classed as being in the situation where I could be given "a better prosthetic leg" and cycling would be easier for me. In 2021, I decided my body could no longer take the punishment I was putting in through on my "analogue road bike and MTB", so I went mad and ventured into the world of e-bikes.
Some might say it's cheating, but I see it as a way of loving my hobby and being able to enjoy it as before, without the 2-3 day recovery time it was taking to pull round from the toils of the previous ride. I live very near to Hamsterley Forest in northern England and those who have been there will attest to it's ability to offer fun to all ages and ability, so I bought a Cube Stereo Hybrid SLT 160 full sus rig and I love it. I'm not a full blown nutter, don't put myself in danger, but know my limits and stick to them, I want to live for many years yet.
I tried my old (but good models and condition road and MTB), but the legs don't have the strength, power and endurance anymore, plus with the back pain and my inability to get out of the saddle to pedal, I've decided, my future riding will be with battery assistance. With a hankering to get another drop bar road bike, I tried an e-road bike, but with them having low wattage batteries and only 35Nm of torque, it wasn't enough, so my idea is to get a gravel bike. For me it's ideal, the gearing is lower and with high wattage batteries being installed and extenders available, it's a no brainer.
I am a Cube snob and have been for many years, my "analogue road and MTB bikes" are Cube, along with my kids bike, I say kids, they are 25 and 22, but they will always be my kids! Having done lots of research covering all e-gravel bikes, no matter the brand, I'm still drawn to Cube, especially the Nuroad C:62 Race 400X Carbon Hybrid at £3599. I would love the SLT or the SLX, but at £6499 and £4499 my budget will not stretch that far and I could not do the bikes justice, it's a pity as non mechanical changing is an ambition, though I could "bite the bullet" and say, "hang the cost, I'm only here once"!
If E-bikes can keep this wreck of a body going, then I would recommend one to anyone.
Thank you. Alan.
After several months of spending every penny I could muster on furnishings etc, I got my bikes from the garage at my old house, did a lot of tinkering and replacement of a few parts and not just on the bike, I was classed as being in the situation where I could be given "a better prosthetic leg" and cycling would be easier for me. In 2021, I decided my body could no longer take the punishment I was putting in through on my "analogue road bike and MTB", so I went mad and ventured into the world of e-bikes.
Some might say it's cheating, but I see it as a way of loving my hobby and being able to enjoy it as before, without the 2-3 day recovery time it was taking to pull round from the toils of the previous ride. I live very near to Hamsterley Forest in northern England and those who have been there will attest to it's ability to offer fun to all ages and ability, so I bought a Cube Stereo Hybrid SLT 160 full sus rig and I love it. I'm not a full blown nutter, don't put myself in danger, but know my limits and stick to them, I want to live for many years yet.
I tried my old (but good models and condition road and MTB), but the legs don't have the strength, power and endurance anymore, plus with the back pain and my inability to get out of the saddle to pedal, I've decided, my future riding will be with battery assistance. With a hankering to get another drop bar road bike, I tried an e-road bike, but with them having low wattage batteries and only 35Nm of torque, it wasn't enough, so my idea is to get a gravel bike. For me it's ideal, the gearing is lower and with high wattage batteries being installed and extenders available, it's a no brainer.
I am a Cube snob and have been for many years, my "analogue road and MTB bikes" are Cube, along with my kids bike, I say kids, they are 25 and 22, but they will always be my kids! Having done lots of research covering all e-gravel bikes, no matter the brand, I'm still drawn to Cube, especially the Nuroad C:62 Race 400X Carbon Hybrid at £3599. I would love the SLT or the SLX, but at £6499 and £4499 my budget will not stretch that far and I could not do the bikes justice, it's a pity as non mechanical changing is an ambition, though I could "bite the bullet" and say, "hang the cost, I'm only here once"!
If E-bikes can keep this wreck of a body going, then I would recommend one to anyone.
Thank you. Alan.
