new to the ebike crowd

[Cerps]

A search for an ebike for my wife has brought me into the ebike world. I haven't had the need to justify the spend on one for myself just yet as thankfully I'm still pretty able bodied and crank out 3k-4k on my accoustic bikes each year (would love one for commuting (Cairn e-adventure 650b with a Lauf would be sweet). I have built my gravel, fat, and full suspension from frame up so I have vast knowledge on all things bike except the E part so hoping to learn and maybe help spread some other knowledge here.

Wife is trying to work back into shape from auto-immune disease and fibromyalgia. I'm looking mid-drive, entry level hardtail. Mostly paved bike path usage, but we do have some pretty easy flow singletrack sections a mile away that she may ride occasionally with me or the kids. No idea how much she'll use it so trying to keep the cost down. But for an engineer and bike enthusiast like me, it's really hard not to over buy.

We're in Minnesota, USA so her biking window is about 6-9 months of the year.

 

[Paulquattro]

Hi welcome

 

[Akiwi]

Make sure the bike is from a local dealer, as if anything goes wrong with the motor, you need to be able to go to your dealer.
Bosch, Shimano, Brose are all good. Try to avoid cheap no name stuff.
For my wife a dropper post gave her heaps more confidence as going downhill, she can drop the seat and touch the ground.
We started with a hardtail, and eventually upgraded to a full suspension bike for her as we were doing so much more biking together.
Have fun.
Most importantly is of course the colour and looks!

 

[Armor11]

Hey Cerps,
Welcome to the forum. I entered the E-bike world for the same reasons you have. My wife has dealt with pain, auto-immune, and fibro her whole life and in the last 4 years it has really come on in a bad way. So we got her an E-bike, game changer for outdoor activity and she could come with me on rides. We started with a hard tail but with the fibro and trigger points it was a hard to take anything other than paved rides. So we sold that and bought a Giant Stance E+, best thing we ever did! 29'r, full suspension, and some riser bars so she sat up straighter and she is good to go anywhere she feels comfortable riding. I would really recommend a FS bike if its in the budget. The Stance was very budget minded for what it offers. Cheers

 

[Cerps]

Hey Cerps,
Welcome to the forum. I entered the E-bike world for the same reasons you have. My wife has dealt with pain, auto-immune, and fibro her whole life and in the last 4 years it has really come on in a bad way. So we got her an E-bike, game changer for outdoor activity and she could come with me on rides. We started with a hard tail but with the fibro and trigger points it was a hard to take anything other than paved rides. So we sold that and bought a Giant Stance E+, best thing we ever did! 29'r, full suspension, and some riser bars so she sat up straighter and she is good to go anywhere she feels comfortable riding. I would really recommend a FS bike if its in the budget. The Stance was very budget minded for what it offers. Cheers

Armor11, I'm hoping we get similar results to you. Your wife's story gives me some hope that an ebike is not just a pipedream fix I made up in my head because I like bikes. Even if she only gets to a point of consistent paved path rides I'd consider it a whopping success.

I wish full suspension was in the budget but right now we're limited to hardtails. We seem to have it narrowed down to the Liv Tempt/Giant Talon E+ or the Trek Powerfly 4. Significant cost difference but I like the thru axle hubs and Bosch motor on the Trek.

 

[Armor11]

I

Armor11, I'm hoping we get similar results to you. Your wife's story gives me some hope that an ebike is not just a pipedream fix I made up in my head because I like bikes. Even if she only gets to a point of consistent paved path rides I'd consider it a whopping success.

I wish full suspension was in the budget but right now we're limited to hardtails. We seem to have it narrowed down to the Liv Tempt/Giant Talon E+ or the Trek Powerfly 4. Significant cost difference but I like the thru axle hubs and Bosch motor on the Trek.

I hope you get similar results as well. My wife is actually getting to the point some days it is getting hard to stand up from a seated position, but once up can move "ok". But somehow she is still pretty good to go for a bike ride. The thought of getting active and going for a ride with me brings her a lot of joy and I wish the same for you two. As for bikes, take a look at the 2022 Liv Embolden E+2, all sizes seem to be in stock online and they are on sale. It would be $100 more than the Trek but is FS if you are interested in that. Not sure where your wife is pain wise but for my wife, the FS is really nice even the amount it absorbs the road cracks, and curb transitions. She is now doing FSR's with me climbing up to view points! At 55yrs old, to see the joy back in my wifes face is worth the price of the bike. I wish the best for you and your wife. Cheers

 

[Cerps]

She ended up with a small Trek Powerfly 4 in lithium grey. We had one 3 mile ride so far due to weather. Old man winter keeps trying to hang on. Temperatures didn't get above freezing yesterday and today we have rain coming in followed by 3-5" of snow Friday into Saturday. Temps are looking a little better next week when it's a little warmer for her