Hey guys! I made it to part of the BC Bike Show in Vancouver British Columbia this weekend, and shot some video interviews there. Lots of cool new electric bicycles for 2020, and I’m looking forward to seeing them up close this year for reviews. Sorry about the warping and skipping moments on the video, the indoor lighting causes some funky behavior with my camera (using software stabilization vs. a gimbal). Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and here are the timestamps! Kona Ebikes 0:12, eProdigy Ebikes 4:16, RIZE Electric Bikes 7:05, Giant Electric Bicycles 10:30, OHM E-Bikes 19:27, Benno Electric Bikes 21:05, Biktrix Ebikes 23:27, Trek 27:06
Official BC Bike Show website: https://www.bcbikeshow.com/
BC Bike Show dates in 2020: February 29th – March 1st
Who fixes Rize bikes when it breaks? I’m concerned about support. (b.c Canada)
Being an experienced tv cameraperson, I would give this video a "D" minus. I would be fired if I shot these scenes. Next year find out how best to show what you are talking about! A hint, if the topic is Ebikes than focus on the bikes with a steady shot!
Can we get a review on ENVO 2020 D35 PEDAL ASSIST ELECTRIC BIKE, please?
Thanks for the review. One question, though: why are you wearing a helmet? Interviewing isn’t a dangerous sport…
You have a bike review channel and you’ve never heard of Kona???
Great to see your show review. I note that you are in Canada now, so I have to ask. Is this based on a Trumpian issue, or because of a ‘love’ interest? Just wondering. Keep up the great work you do, on either side of the 49th. Thanks
Love your dedication to the industry and all the work you do.
In this video episode, your camera never stopped moving and closeups were so close I had to stop looking at your video. There was way too much movement which actually was making me seasick. Will catch up with you on your next video:-)
Anyone looking to buy an ebike, take my advice: Rad Power bikes are a terrible choice. Cheap components, heavy, cumbersome, a terrible value, even at $1500. Spend a little more for quality. I’m sorry I bought one. I know why they don’t sell them thru dealers. A test ride would be a dealbreaker for many.
Just did a whole survey of the folding eBike market over the last two weeks (June 2020), and came to the conclusion for me: *RIZE* *BOLT* offers me the best value.
You may want to skip this Comment if you don’t care about *FOLDING* capability. I need FOLDING, as it needs to fit in my stealth van conversion for traveling 3 months or more at a time.
RIZE BOLT FEATURES and COMPARISON THOUGHTS (June 2020):
– Low step through frame is beneficial (I’m 62 but spry still, but the bike lasting 10 years means stepping through easily still at age 72)
– 500 watt motor, and I added on the 17ah battery upgrade which includes Hydraulic Brakes, to make it $1499 total
– Battery is "silverfish" standard form factor; many available in the market at range of ah sizes (eBay/Amazon alike). I liked bikes like the Sondors Fold X because it’s sleek, and less cries out "eBike!" with the concealed battery, but to get front suspension and hydraulic brakes, you have to go to the Sondors Fold XS, which is $1699, $200 more than the RIZE, and it has "just*" a 14ah battery whereas the RIZE has a 17ah battery (*i.e. I don’t consider 14ah "small"…). Now the Sondors Fold XS does have a larger 750 watt motor, but to me that is overkill unless you are going to do more hills, or just want more acceleration, neither of which are that important to me. And part of the reason the Sonders Fold X / XS bikes look "sleek" is that they don’t include a rear rack, OR fenders. But I get BOTH on the RIZE BOLT, and for $200 less…
– includes real fenders that extend down far enough in front to truly offer some protection – you have to watch for this, many of the bikes have what will end up being a partially useless fender in the front that only extends half way down, so you’re going to get wet and muddy to the knee and above if it rains. Great for appearances so that it screams (sure, we got fenders!), but not very functional in actual use.
I was on the fence about the Fat Tires (20"x4") which made my second choice Ride Scoozy Fat Tire (ironically their office is 5 miles from me in Florida). But I was concerned about cables INSIDE THE FRAME for a folding bike, as that’s a pretty strenuous bend, and given I’ll be keeping it in the van all the time, it will spend the majority of time folded, as opposed to someone keeping it in their garage, and then short term folding it to travel somewhere to ride. Running the cables outside the frame means mess of a tight bend when folded, so the RIZE BOLT wins for me there.
I’m ending up with smaller 20"x2.25" tires on the RIZE BOLT (versus the whole "fat tire" market), which will take me out of all but the best of off road trails. But I actually expect to do more suburban riding while traveling, than trails or beach (which the 4" tires can give you also). I also think that despite any rated weight limits, it wouldn’t be a great idea to plan for a lot of rough trail riding in a folding bike, as opposed to a standard bike frame.
But I will agree the Ride Scoozy "Semi Fat" and "Semi Fat SR" both offer good value at their price points as they both include a rear rack AND fenders. The "Semi Fat" compares well with the Sondors Fold X, trading off a slightly smaller battery and getting the rack and fenders in exchange. But the "Semi Fat SR" is the lowest price folding bike I could find that has FRONT SUSPENSION, PLUS a 17ah battery along with the aforementioned rear rack and fenders, all for $1299, which was the best price I could find anywhere for that mix, and from a seemingly good company.
But to me, the Ride Scoozy "Fat Tire" at $1499 with 750 watt motor, front suspension, rear rack, fenders and 13ah battery slightly edges out the Sondors Fold X at $1699. AND you can bump the Ride Scoozy up to the same $1699 as the Sondors Fold X, but you’ll get a larger 17.5ah battery (versus 14ah for the Sondors) as well as the rear rack and fenders. You also get a step through frame. So to me, the Ride Scoozy bikes offer some of the best value, and I came really close to buying the Fat Tire and have to confess that them being out of stock on it did sway me a bit! In fact, when I ordered my 17ah Rize Bolt, it appears I got the last, or one of the last White ones on Friday 5/29/2020, as over the weekend I noticed the web site said "sold out" on that model, as it still does today
RANDOM OTHER THOUGHTS:
1. SEAT SUSPENSION: Wasn’t so concerned about rear suspension like the Fat Bear and a few others have. Have read good reviews for spring loaded seat posts, like this one I bought for $30 on Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XC7BB64/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 – If you get one for your bike, make sure you check the diameter you need, as this one matches the 27.2mm of the RIZE BOLT. Also, learn how to "pre-load" it properly, so you’re not bouncing on it. I considered the suspension seatpost that RIZE offers with the more substantial mechanism, however, with the good reviews, I’ll see if I can save $70 by going the $30 Amazon route. Also, things like that worry me more about theft, which leads me to:
2. THEFT. You want to research this and watch some videos with tips: eBikes are a fertile attraction for thieves and I want to lose neither bike, nor battery, nor seat/seatpost, nor wheel! From what I’ve seen, a quality, but not crazy prized "D Lock" ($40-ish) and a separate Chain Lock to wrap in your front tire. I went with the $25 "Fabric Lock" from RIZE, and will order a D Lock from Amazon when I have the bike in hand and do some measurements. From what I understand the proper way to lock your bike is around the rear wheel INSIDE the rear frame geometry, so that it captures the wheel and frame simultaneously. Then just add the chain as a secondary, and loop in the front tire. If I’m at all concerned, a may carry a backpack and pull the battery to carry in it, as that is a point of attack also. Always lock in a trafficked area so that thieves can’t work unseen. Lastly, I’ll consider security screws, and may ditch the quick release for the seat. Security screws are not expensive at all for a seat clamp and pretty much guarantee they won’t have the right tool to remove it, unless they brought a hacksaw or angle grinder.
3. ASSEMBLY. If you put it together yourself, I highly recommend "blue loctite" added to the pedals. I’ve seen MANY complain about pedals coming loose on "internet bikes assembled at home", so you can avoid that with some inexpensive thread lock and tightening it solidly.
4. PUNCTURES. I feel sorry for those in the southwest with their Goat Sand Spurs (seems most every ride means 1 or more in the tires). With my smaller 2.25" tires, I’ll have the possibility to add Tannus Armour tire liners which make it longer to reach the tube, so that’s a benefit for me over the 4" fat tires (hello Tannus, with 4" fat tire bikes taking off, perhaps a super liner for them is marketable?). Many folks seemed satisfied with some form of normal tire liner, and then Green Slime.
5. MOTOR SIZES. Know that a 350 watt motor is the mechanical force equivalent of a competitive long distance bike rider’s output. So, if you want a bit more (some more, or more significant hills, or heavier body weight…) then go 500 watt or larger. If you have even more hills or lots of hills with distance, then 750 watt or perhaps even 1,000 watt motor for extreme situations, or just being power hungry. For me, I wanted the smallest motor that would get the job done, which would help prioritize distance over power. If I ride somewhere like San Francisco, it’ll probably be in the mainly flat, or waterfront areas, not Knob Hill. If I’m looking at the occasional hill, stepping up the pedaling should keep me happy with my 500 watt, which will pretty effortlessly cruise over flat or rolling terrain.
That’s all that comes to mind, hope something here helps someone else…
Have you tested the Sur ron from Luna cycles? If so, what is your opinion?
Pink it and shrink it. Lol.
Can we get a review on Rize RX?
10:35 is giant bikes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubMnZeplMAo&fbclid=IwAR2ZaIHbFustqP6Q0hLK67Z0cWh7VjrVdMO6aaAAcddUJbOj-yfrFB7Kef8
It’s funny how you went to all the big brand booths. Do you not support local?
This was a treat!
Not sure how integrated batteries deteriorate in areas where temperatures are below freezing. Seems to me it”s better to keep the battery from freezing during use.
Kona 0:12, eProdigy 4:16, RIZE 7:05, Giant 10:30, OHM 19:27, Benno 21:05, Biktrix 23:27, Trek 27:06
Way bigger than last year.
Kona is new to you…?
It’s embarrassing he doesn’t know about Kona bikes….
I still have my 2000 Kona G-Spot. Great downhill bike.
Way bigger than last year.
This is misogynistic
Lol poor Rize dude kept backing up and he kept getting up in his grill!
Love the bike chain Necklace
0:10 Looks like you WERE just about to beat the rain …the RAIN OF CORONAVIRUS!!! 🤒
What’s the deal keeping your helmet on, indoors?
Paul needs to step his game up if he wants to sell some bikes.
All these bikes look like electric bikes, that’s the problem.
Camera is uncomfortably close to the interviewee. Seldom can see the bikes.
dreadful we want to see bikes not faces
Dammit you shoulda started with TREK.
The Giant bike are awesome but their prices are way too high.
it’s a candy shop!
not gonna mess around, e bikes are awesome, i have 2
K
wondering why the helmet aha quality videos!
Why no prices?
All those mid drive will be a problem down the line a real beat
Court Rye, thanks for your work, inspired me to buy an Electra Townie Go. I’m a big Bosch motor fan. All the other makes are fabulous. Engoying the Electra still, Would like to add a Specialized unit and a Riesse and Muller. The budget rules…….damn.
What’s the fast ebike there at the show?
The Trek Allant +7 looks like a pretty interesting bike, but I’m not able to find anything on it on Trek’s website. Is it that new or is it for the Canadian market only? Can someone help?
Great show review. Thanks for this content.
Not sure if you’ve done one already, but I’d love to see your review of the commuter style Rize. Seems like it’s one of the only class 3 ebikes that has a torque sensor in this price range.
My ebr is a springfield
Your camera panning was so fast when showcasing their billboards/list of bikes that it made it difficult for me to track or even note whether each company had folding bikes. I realize you were trying to cram 40 lbs of taters in a 5 lb bag, so I appreciate ALL of your efforts, experience and uber-expertise.
YEA! Wonderful coverage, Court! Really enjoy your walk-thrus of the trade shows
What a rip off! 600$$$ for a 250 watt hour battery? FUCK YOU. FYI, anyone can buy a custom frame for the mid drive and full suspension for about 600$ or the Enduro frame kit for 300$. Greedy idiots like those companies make riding an ebike too expensive to get in to when you can easily buy the parts and build one for a THIRD of the price. Smart phone apps that need firmware updates? NO THANK YOU. I will stick with the SW 900 or similar displays. I can not believe that people actually buy this crap. 650$ and I have 70 MILES of NO PEDALING range at 1200 watts. Seriously.
It would be more interesting if you didn’t talk over the representatives when they’re answering your questions. Annoying.