Levo Gen 2 Finding traction on steep uphills with Turbo Levo

ah1

Member
Jul 11, 2020
46
9
Santa Cruz CA
Hi,
I'm having some challenge on steep uphills with my stock 2021 Turbo Levo Expert. These aren't too steep to comfortably push a regular bike up but too steep to ride a regular bike up. I'm usually spinning my rear wheel and then need to put foot down, from there it's hard to get going again and I go into walk mode. On places where it's not so steep but there's a ledge I find my front is lifting too high and again I find my myself with feet off pedals.

Other than body position, is there anything in setting that can help? I have acceleration at 0 and shuttle mode at 40%. Not sure if those are the best settings to help find that rear traction and be less concern about front tire lift.

Thanks!
 

sat

New Member
Oct 27, 2020
2
0
italy
I managed to ascend steep uphills zigzagging, but that was a wide area (ski slope) other than that, I tend to put the saddle at middle height and try to find balance between grip and wheelie, not that simple. also, i found that with clips on the pedals it's way easier because you can restart slowly and you can peddle with one foot only
 

thewildblue

Active member
Feb 14, 2019
136
110
Bucks
Drag a bit of back brake, lean forward but dig your arse into the seat, so basically you have grip but your centre of gravity isnt so high and keeps the front down. Run a lower pressure on your tyre for grip and look at the rear shock, is it too soft ? We do loads of silly hill climbs, 1st gear full turbo that you struggle to get up. Just takes lots of practice. If you are doing these be prepared for your rear hub to strip at some point, the freehub will work fine its just the rest that will spin inside.Ive done both a Powerfly and Levo with this. If you can, depending on environment get the real wheel up against a tree or rock so you can start again. Traversing can help, but usually its so steep it mean that you get pedal strikes when youre trying to ride.
 
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RickBullotta

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Jun 5, 2019
1,761
1,503
USA
- Probably have way too much air in your tires
- Get into the "stairmaster" riding position
- Never use Boost/Turbo
- Keep moving!
 

steve_sordy

Wedding Crasher
Nov 5, 2018
8,395
8,631
Lincolnshire, UK
If your rear wheel is spinning out, try amending your position, lower tyre pressure, a different tyre, or a different power setting. I have a Shimano motor with three power modes (Eco, Trail, Boost) and I ride mostly in the forest. Trail on high power mode works best for me. If I use Boost (even on Medium setting), it just spins the wheel. If I was on solid rock, that would be different on course.
 

MNTurboLevo

Member
Subscriber
Apr 22, 2022
21
12
Minnesota/Arizon
I have the same bike. Ride some pretty steep climbs in the mountains of AZ. Try dropping into a lower gear and higher pedal cadence. Keep butt on the seat. This bike will climb almost anything in the right gear.
 

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