Despite the 750W label, the e-bike can be unlocked to make use of nearly 1,500W of peak power. I was able to reach a top speed of 37 mph (59.5 km/h) during my testing (not on public streets!). The Ride1Up CF Racer1 brings carbon fiber road e-bikes to the common man, offering both a traditional road bike and a gravel bike edition.
The $2,199 Juiced Scorpion X has all the old-school charm of a vintage moped, but it adds back in a powerful electric drivetrain. It also has awesome-looking cast wheels that remove the issue of spoke maintenance, plus add to the cool stance. Ride1Up’s first adventure-style electric bike was a smashing success, helping the San Diego-based electric bike maker enter an entirely new category with a bang. Plus that long rear bench has tons of room for boxes, bags, or kiddos. I’ve had three riders on the bike plenty of times, and it can definitely do more.
Check out my full first ride on the various Serial 1 e-bike models here. The bike is truly a high-end offering by itself, but the embedded tech makes it a rarity in any category. There’s also an app that allows you to take full advantage of the built-in eSIM card, giving you connectivity to the bike and letting you check all your vital stats, find its location, and more – right from your phone. Check out my full in-depth review of the epic Ariel Rider Grizzly e-bike here. Whether you’re ferrying around kids or buying a week’s worth of groceries, the HSD is a solid option. Check out my full review of the Electric Bike Company Model Y here.
The belt-drive setup, low-weight design, and fast speed of up to 24 mph make this an incredible deal. The bike started life with Berghaus flat pedals, because I felt like that was what I should run. However, a couple of months in I gave up on learning to hop things properly and switched to Hope XC pedals, hoping that they’d help me get some air. In fact, they didn’t as the sensation of jumping through the suspension was completely new, and my poor technique bunny hopping did not translate to a bike with suspension. Regardless, I did continue to run the Hope pedals because I felt more secure clipped in, which inspired greater confidence which in turn improved my riding, even if it was for the wrong reasons.
The sporty tires and two choices of frame style (step over or step through) give riders plenty of options to use this bike on the trails or the streets. I love that it includes full metal fenders as well so you don’t have to spend extra on those. I’d definitely recommend spending an extra $50 for the rear rack though if you plan to use the bike as a commuter, since you never know when you’ll need to toss something on the back. With the exception of the Rock Lobster (a superb bike in its own right), they all made fantastic touring bikes, and I put in many off-road miles on each over the years. But, by modern mountain biking standards, they’re all on the gravel end of the spectrum.
It took a while to get used to the idea that sometimes, where traction ends, the fun begins, rather than my old road cycling mindset, where traction ends is the beginning of the road to A&E. A gravel bike has become a go-to bike that works for everything, where everything discounts anything that the SRD was designed to do. Overall, I increasingly rode hyper mountain bike a fairly niche bike relative to my location for normal stuff and having a great time. I was overbiking for sure, but simultaneously, I was pushing myself to ride new things rather than pushing my fitness as I’d expected. All the while being simple and, in my experience, maintenance-free with four sealed bearings between the swing arm and the frame.
That means the Roadster V2 is best for someone who enjoys cycling and simply wants an assist motor to help them go faster and farther. Those who are on the hunt for a good-looking folding fat tire e-bike that doesn’t hyper bike break the bank will likely find this to be one of the more fashionable options. To be honest, the frame member is low on both of them and so they’re both easy to mount, but I actually prefer the step-through.
This e-bike is easily worth another $500 more than the price tag, if not more. In fact, you’ll find many of these same components on e-bikes with $3,000-$4,000 price tags all over the place. So if you’re looking for a higher quality e-bike that doesn’t cost as much as a fancy bike shop e-bike, this is the one to consider. The $1,999 Rad Power Bikes RadWagon 4 is one of my favorite options thanks to the awesome build and wide range of compatible Rad accessories. The RadRunner is truly one of those do-anything e-bikes because it has so many uses.
My SRD’s life began as a pile of mitered tubes destined to be an iteration of the forthcoming enduro-focused Sour Double Choc during the middle stage of Sour’s onshoring process when tubes were still mitered in Taiwan and welded in Germany. Due to some mis-mitering, the tubeset couldn’t accommodate the tire clearance required by the Double Choc as well as the Horst link, so whatever it is that I’m riding was born. Elegant, lightweight, and aerodynamic design with a top opening design for easy access without dismounting. With cutting-edge inverted forks designed and manufactured in Taiwan, riding the E-Clipse 2.0 off road or on road can easily be adapted by the fork settings.