Russell
1 MW
All a cyclist could ask for in the middle of winter right? Just one catch though…winds steady out of WSW at over 20 mph with gusts to 30 mph. I wouldn’t normally ride a bike in that kind of wind in the summer but when a day like this comes around a biker just has to take advantage; it’s also exactly why I motorized one of my bikes in the first place. Being that it is February however I don’t have my cycling legs or lungs and I have put on a few extra pounds since the fall so facing that wind on a regular bike would have been tough. We would see how I would do with my little Bafang helper motor.
Starting out was a real blast with about 2 miles of a slight down slope and the wind blown’ at my back. I topped out at 32 mph on this stretch even though I only have my bike geared for about a top speed of 25 mph with a 42T front chainring and a 12T rear cog as my highest combo. Heading south wasn’t as bad as I expected with the wind blowing from my right but boy could I feel it the times I turned due west. On a level surface with pedaling the little motor was pulling nearly 10 amps while I tried to move along at 14-15 mph.
Yesterday with colder temperatures but less wind I just made the same trip with nothing to spare in my 9AH SLA pack so I was nursing the throttle as I headed south trying to maintain about 16 mph when I noticed in my rear view mirror a lone figure gaining on me. I “floored†it but the little motor and me couldn’t muster much more speed with the crosswind as we went up a gentle incline. Slowly he reeled me in and as he passed me he gave me a friendly greeting then powered forward. It got me to thinking about my choice of motor and once again it actually reaffirmed that it was a good one for me. I didn’t motorize my bike so I could be stronger than Lance Armstrong, I added the motor to help this 50 year old guy out in situations just like today where the wind otherwise would have kept me from riding or killing myself if I did. Anyways I don’t feel bad when a twenty-something roadie passes me and I doubt they get much satisfaction having chased down and caught an overweight middle-aged guy riding a hybrid with big tires, full fenders, a rack, bags and a big blinkie light.
As I made the turn back toward home I thought I had plenty of juice left in the battery so I figured the ride back would be a breeze. Some of it was though those same 2 miles where I was going “weeeeeeeeee†at the onset of the ride I’d now be facing in the opposite direction. As I turned due west into the wind it was brutal and combined with a steady up grade it was even more so. I pedaled and watched the amps climb and the voltage sag close to the LVC. I made it now just a little ways left then a couple medium hills and I was home with absolutely nothing left in the tank. Thanks to the motor however I never had to push myself anywhere near my “red zone†but I still got a good workout.
The stat’s:
Distance: 23.5 miles (37.6 km)
Max speed: 32 mph (51 kmh)
Avg. speed: 15.9 mph (25.4 kmh)
Amp-Hours used: 5.42
Watt-Hours used: 189.9
Max. Watts: 524.8
Max. Amps: 14.90
Min. Volts: 31.54
WH/mile: 8.1
WH/km: 5.1
-R
Starting out was a real blast with about 2 miles of a slight down slope and the wind blown’ at my back. I topped out at 32 mph on this stretch even though I only have my bike geared for about a top speed of 25 mph with a 42T front chainring and a 12T rear cog as my highest combo. Heading south wasn’t as bad as I expected with the wind blowing from my right but boy could I feel it the times I turned due west. On a level surface with pedaling the little motor was pulling nearly 10 amps while I tried to move along at 14-15 mph.
Yesterday with colder temperatures but less wind I just made the same trip with nothing to spare in my 9AH SLA pack so I was nursing the throttle as I headed south trying to maintain about 16 mph when I noticed in my rear view mirror a lone figure gaining on me. I “floored†it but the little motor and me couldn’t muster much more speed with the crosswind as we went up a gentle incline. Slowly he reeled me in and as he passed me he gave me a friendly greeting then powered forward. It got me to thinking about my choice of motor and once again it actually reaffirmed that it was a good one for me. I didn’t motorize my bike so I could be stronger than Lance Armstrong, I added the motor to help this 50 year old guy out in situations just like today where the wind otherwise would have kept me from riding or killing myself if I did. Anyways I don’t feel bad when a twenty-something roadie passes me and I doubt they get much satisfaction having chased down and caught an overweight middle-aged guy riding a hybrid with big tires, full fenders, a rack, bags and a big blinkie light.
As I made the turn back toward home I thought I had plenty of juice left in the battery so I figured the ride back would be a breeze. Some of it was though those same 2 miles where I was going “weeeeeeeeee†at the onset of the ride I’d now be facing in the opposite direction. As I turned due west into the wind it was brutal and combined with a steady up grade it was even more so. I pedaled and watched the amps climb and the voltage sag close to the LVC. I made it now just a little ways left then a couple medium hills and I was home with absolutely nothing left in the tank. Thanks to the motor however I never had to push myself anywhere near my “red zone†but I still got a good workout.
The stat’s:
Distance: 23.5 miles (37.6 km)
Max speed: 32 mph (51 kmh)
Avg. speed: 15.9 mph (25.4 kmh)
Amp-Hours used: 5.42
Watt-Hours used: 189.9
Max. Watts: 524.8
Max. Amps: 14.90
Min. Volts: 31.54
WH/mile: 8.1
WH/km: 5.1
-R
Felt kinda the same today ... It was 17celsius today in Greece and I had to go for a ride , it was beautiful ! I hadn't ridden my ebike for weeks ! Felt awesome , almost forgot how good my 48V bafang full suspension bike feels ! Btw do u limit the amp to 15 amps ? I have no idea how many amps I use but my 48V 10AH gives me enough juice for what I want . Btw how many amps do you use for a steep hill ( like 8-10% ) if you don't pedal ?
