Turbo Vado SL 5.0 vs Cannondale Quick Carbon 2

[mogulman]

Analyzing via Strava my first ride with the Turbo Vado SL vs my old Cannondale. I was riding the Vado at 35/100 most of the time. This was an out and back. About 4 miles each direction longer, because I felt better on the vado.

Main differences: Turbo Vado is beginning of the summer where I haven't ridden since last Sept 2021. So legs/butt aren't in shape. Temp is different. It was colder on the vado.

Thing I noticed is that average/max speed are about 3 mph higher.
Power used by me on average is actually more. Weird? Max is higher on Cannondale, probably due to hills without assist.
According to Strava, my energy output from Cannondale was 480Kj. Vado was 664 Kj. So even though I had an assisted bike, I may have used more calories riding?

 

[Stefan Mikes]

It's possible. The power demand grows in third power with the increasing speed. And you actually like e-biking, so you're trying harder.

 

[mschwett]

cool. i like to do the same ride many times, and see how the stats change over time and with the weather, seasons, time of day. two notes on the above - strava's power estimates are totally useless, because there are too many underlying variables: your coefficient of drag, rolling resistance, wind, etc. the power "meter" on your vado SL is not exactly correct either, but it's consistent and can be used to very reliably compare your total work and caloric expenditure. it's also a much better gauge of fitness since speed is so influenced by all the external factors mentioned above!

 

[fatshark]

Interesting ... I've made a similar comparison using very similar bikes (Cannondale Quick Carbon vs Vado SL 5 EQ). I've never trusted many of the stats I get from Strava but at least they broadly agree on distance and height gained (~700 m) over the same ~43 km there and back route.

I'm not much faster on the Vado (21 vs 19 km/hr) but I'm mean with the assist level where I can be and spend more time looking at the scenery rather than the digital stats. Slightly faster downhill though the quality of the road surface never allows me to reach a proper 'terminal velocity'.

Whilst I'm delighted with the Vado SL, I do miss the exceptionally light and stiff Cannondale ... and being fit enough to properly enjoy it .