Old man, new bike, massive hills, lesson learned

[Neverlost]

I got my new Yamaha crosscourt RC a couple of weeks ago but immediately went to see the new grandchild in Europe and then came back and had a massive cold that I caught on a French train. It put me down for nine days and I’m still not 100% but I had to go out and try the new E bike.

I was doing great in my very hilly neighborhood here in North Carolina and decided to see how it really declined the biggest hill in the neighborhood. I can’t say what the grade was, but it’s very steep here in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I did really well for a little while and went down to the first gear and had the bike in automatic, so it was pulling like a horse, but it just couldn’t make it either with the power or me still being a little bit Sick.
I looked up after getting off the bike awkwardly and realized this was extremely steep hill, but I remembered I had walk mode mode and literally pulled me up the hill like a rope tow at a ski resort.
I never thought much about walk mode, but I can see this as a hill climb mode and very helpful.

 

[Gionnirocket]

. . . and he was never lost again

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I never thought much about walk mode, but I can see this as a hill climb mode and very helpful.

It sometimes happens to me to be confronted with very steep and high stairs (for instance, leading onto a bridge-head; on at train stations) on my rides. Walk Mode is my friend there.

 

[Chargeride]

'walk mode' on my bikes gets me up a hill when the battery has 1% left

 

[6zfshdb]

No bike will climb every hill. I agree, walk mode is quite useful. I even use mine to climb stairs.

 

[bobcat20]

I got my new Yamaha crosscourt RC a couple of weeks ago but immediately went to see the new grandchild in Europe and then came back and had a massive cold that I caught on a French train. It put me down for nine days and I’m still not 100% but I had to go out and try the new E bike.

I was doing great in my very hilly neighborhood here in North Carolina and decided to see how it really declined the biggest hill in the neighborhood. I can’t say what the grade was, but it’s very steep here in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I did really well for a little while and went down to the first gear and had the bike in automatic, so it was pulling like a horse, but it just couldn’t make it either with the power or me still being a little bit Sick.
I looked up after getting off the bike awkwardly and realized this was extremely steep hill, but I remembered I had walk mode mode and literally pulled me up the hill like a rope tow at a ski resort.
I never thought much about walk mode, but I can see this as a hill climb mode and very helpful.

Hi Neverlost, My wife and I just got yamaha rc models, very nice bikes- could you tell me how long it took to get 2nd battery from yamaha? Thanks, Bob.

 

[Robspace1]

'walk mode' on my bikes gets me up a hill when the battery has 1% left

Why not buy a bike with more power to climb any hill?

 

[Neverlost]

Why not buy a bike with more power to climb any hill?

Why not drive a Hummer.

 

[Captain Slow]

I got my new Yamaha crosscourt RC a couple of weeks ago but immediately went to see the new grandchild in Europe and then came back and had a massive cold that I caught on a French train. It put me down for nine days and I’m still not 100% but I had to go out and try the new E bike.

I was doing great in my very hilly neighborhood here in North Carolina and decided to see how it really declined the biggest hill in the neighborhood. I can’t say what the grade was, but it’s very steep here in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I did really well for a little while and went down to the first gear and had the bike in automatic, so it was pulling like a horse, but it just couldn’t make it either with the power or me still being a little bit Sick.
I looked up after getting off the bike awkwardly and realized this was extremely steep hill, but I remembered I had walk mode mode and literally pulled me up the hill like a rope tow at a ski resort.
I never thought much about walk mode, but I can see this as a hill climb mode and very helpful.

It has never occurred to me that there are paved roads that an ebike can't get up. What % grades are these hills exactly? There are hills not too far away from me that road signs indicate are 17% and I can climb those on my road bikes (no motor) so I would guess with how powerful some ebikes are that I should be able to climb 30% grades with a motor, but that is of course just a guess.

 

[Robspace1]

If you live in a hilly area you need more power or younger legs. I'm in my 70s and have many big hills to go over. That's why I opted for extra power. I have 1000 watts helping on the hills and together with me peddling we climb everything. For those in places like San Francisco, more power is a must. It also depends on the number gears you have. I only have 6 with 6 modes to work with. Body and bike weight are also important factors on climbing those hills.

 

[Soundwatts]

No bike will climb every hill. I agree, walk mode is quite useful. I even use mine to climb stairs.

are you mounted on the bike using walk mode or off the bike

 

[dodgeman]

I’ve been on hills that I lost my momentum on a couldn’t make it up. You have to stay ahead of it so to speak and shift down early and learn when to pedal like a madman.

 

[Robspace1]

I’ve been on hills that I lost my momentum on a couldn’t make it up. You have to stay ahead of it so to speak and shift down early and learn when to pedal like a madman.

Yea the roadies will blow by me doing 35 mph or so on the flats, on they're 2lb. racing bikes, but I catch and overtake them on the hills. Lol

 

[m@Robertson]

Why not drive a Hummer.

If you live in an area where you would need one, then owning it is not frivolous. In your case, it seems your bike can't make it around your own local area. That is cause to consider whether you bought the right bike. I see the Crosscore RC only has a 250w nominal, 500w peak motor that puts out 70 Nm of torque. Its battery system is only 36v. So ... mediocre specs all around in terms of the drivetrain as well as the core power source. In the USA, you can have more powerful bikes and still stay within the written regulations on power, if that is something you care about. In your case, your bike is spec'd to comply with the much-lower-power European market regulations.

Yamaha's entire ebike line appears to be in a state of deep discount. 60% off on bikes they formerly wanted over $5000 for. Kind of looks like they are flushing out inventory in preparation for something different (hence the free battery giveaway on top of the deep discounts) or an exit from the market.

 

[Robspace1]

Yamaha may have discovered that most people don't have 5k for a bike. You can get a fast ebike for half that.

 

[Neverlost]

Yamaha may have discovered that most people don't have 5k for a bike. You can get a fast ebike for half that.

Mine does 28 mph. Fast enough

 

[Mike TowpathTraveler]

I think your issue is too high of gearing for the terrain you have in those hills. Looking at the Yamaha website, your bike has an 11-36 tooth rear cassette, 9 speed with a 44 tooth front chain ring.

A check of the Moro mountain bike on their website shows an 11-46 tooth rear cassette with an 11 speed derailleur and a 36 tooth front chain ring.

Best to consult with a reliable local bike shop in changing out the gearing system. This would include the rear derailleur and compatible shifter, rear cassette and front chain ring. The front chain ring would have to fit the front chain ring spider bolt pattern. I have an older Haibike Full FatSix with the stock derailleur and chain ring set up and the PW motor output is similar to your CrossCore's. With the dual front chain ring that allows a big chain ring on the outside and smaller diameter chain ring on the inside for climbing steep grades, I find the 250/500watt PW motor is good enough for how I ride. See what LBS is willing to spec out just what you want.....

 

[Robspace1]

Mine does 28 mph. Fast enough

Same here, though I find 15-20 my relaxed cruising speed.

 

[Robspace1]

I think your issue is too high of gearing for the terrain you have in those hills. Looking at the Yamaha website, your bike has an 11-36 tooth rear cassette, 9 speed with a 44 tooth front chain ring.

A check of the Moro mountain bike on their website shows an 11-46 tooth rear cassette with an 11 speed derailleur and a 36 tooth front chain ring.

Best to consult with a reliable local bike shop in changing out the gearing system. This would include the rear derailleur and compatible shifter, rear cassette and front chain ring. The front chain ring would have to fit the front chain ring spider bolt pattern. I have an older Haibike Full FatSix with the stock derailleur and chain ring set up and the PW motor output is similar to your CrossCore's. With the dual front chain ring that allows a big chain ring on the outside and smaller diameter chain ring on the inside for climbing steep grades, I find the 250/500watt PW motor is good enough for how I ride. See what LBS is willing to spec out just what you want.....

Or sell it and get something with more power. Test it out on the hills before buying.

 

[Mike TowpathTraveler]

Or sell it and get something with more power. Test it out on the hills before buying.

Let's see..... sell a perfectly fine ebike at a loss and buy something with "more power".

or

Invest 150 to 200 bucks on an mtb-style geared derailleur drive train & with that Yamaha motor and battery, know that you're gonna get 10's of thousands more of trouble free miles on that bike.

I'll take choice number 2 and with those couple thousands you want him to spend on an ebike with "more power", he can splurge right now on one of those Yamaha Moro ebikes that are deeply discounted, along with a spare 500wh battery that costs a thousand bucks, for free. 2, uber high quality drive ebikes in his stable for one of those bikes with "more power". One for the road more at sea level. The other to take on those hills.

And to boot, 80nm of torque on those Moro's compared to the 70nm on his CrossCore.

Of course, choice number 2 is what I'd do. Your solution is something else altogether. No right or wrong going either direction. But I'm here to tell you that 70nm is good enough to climb most hills within reason. Better, lower gearing allows better climbing ability.