I did make the ride around Lone Mountain this morning, but honestly there was a lot of walking with the bike too as the inclines were more than I expected. My heart just wasn’t in it! Most of the inclines are on the West side of the mountain, hence once at the south end I was able to coast all the way back to my ride home.
The horse photos were taken with the Nikon and a 70-300mm lens, the other two were taken with the Sony RX100. Not the best photos but not because of the camera, rather what was in the distance. Not much of anything! My goal was to push myself, my heart a bit more today and I succeed! Loving my new Kona bike.
I’m going to have to restart my running… I’m becoming a bit of a couch potato tbh.
Its good to see you getting out and about John. An electric bike could be an idea for me for commuting to work. Hmm 🤔
I am intrigued by the electric bikes but they are damned expensive! One model I like is $4300 bucks! I’ll likely focus on my new Kona bike, Baldy. It’s paid for!
It might be cheaper to pay a kid to ride the bike uphill, and then I’ll ride it back down 😂
LOL your right!! 😎
The electric wheel is under two grand, or a few hundred for a kit conversion. I’d have the bike shop install the kit. That might be an affordable option.
I’d rather have the other bike, honestly. I still don’t see how the electric wheel is powered, when there are no wires attached of course.
The wheel is self-contained. The motor, battery and controller are in the housing. The Copenhagen is priced under $1800, but for $1999 you can buy a complete bike. The wheel is operated with your cell phone. The GeoOrbital costs less, and I like that the tire is made of a durable polyfoam so no more worries about air or flats. You activate it wirelessly and go. If your bike is stolen the thief can’t ride it because their phone can’t turn it on. The wheels are very popular.
I still don’t understand how this works. Smack me! Haha!
I’m an 18th century man living in a 21st century world so technology is way over my head. I went to Copenhagen’s FAQ page for this answer:
“The Copenhagen Wheel is a self-contained all-in-one solution that transforms a traditional bicycle into a hybrid e-bike. It simply replaces the rear wheel of a standard bicycle and does not require any external wires, throttles or other peripherals to function. The motor, battery, sensors and control circuitry – over 550 components in total – are all packed into the central hub.
Once installed and paired with a smartphone, the Wheel can immediately be used. It automatically senses the effort from your pedaling and provides the appropriate level of assistance. Through the Wheel app on your smartphone, you can select different ride modes that alter the amount of assistance received from the motor.
Your phone acts as your key to the Wheel. When you park your bicycle, you can lock it as normal and walk away without turning off your Wheel. Once you and your phone are out of range, your Wheel will disable itself and will not provide assistance until you return. When you come back, your Wheel will reconnect to your phone and re-enable itself so you can ride off.”
So, your smartphone is the key to making the wheel operate. It was not an option for me because I don’t have a smartphone. It’s one area I took a stand and defied the techno gods by refusing to be enslaved by a cell phone — like the zombies who walk around all day staring at their phones. I have to swerve around them while biking because they are so oblivious.
That looks like a very nice area to ride!
It was, MJ. A bit tough on me because of my ticker, so I had to dismount and walk the bike a bit. That has me looking into an Electric Bike today. Wish I could climb Lone Mountain!
Nothing wrong with getting off the bike once in a while. I’ll look into visiting Lone Mountain.
I agree, hopping off and walking allows time to actually see more details. On the bike, I liken it to being in my truck moving at 45mph. Blur! I did see a lot of dog poop. Easily more dog poop than the only two horse piles I saw. And there are the little plastic bag stations that you can grab poop bags too as well as occasional 55 gallon drums or similar for rubbish. No excuses… Otherwise it is for me a long and enjoyable ride/ walk. I’m sure all three of you would enjoy the circular trail! If you can do it, climb the mountain. I tried in 2013, got maybe 1/3 the way up and headed down! 😎❤️🌴
It is annoying when dog owners don’t pick up after their dogs. I sometimes say something, and people get really mad. I read reviews about the trail. It said that the views are spectacular, but that one should expect lots pf trash…it’s Vegas after all..
People here just not friendly. Some are but…. The only trash I remember seeing was the dog shit, and two horse piles. Lots of dog shit in spite of the poop-bag stations. Jerks.
John, I sent a rather long comment. If you don’t see it, Akismet may have stored it in spam.
Riding my bike, writing and photography have been lifelong passions. Some whippersnapper at the grocery store said to me, “Man, I hope I can ride a bike when I’m your age!”
I replied, “Yeah, maybe you’ll be out of diapers by then.”
Anyway, I bought an electric bike because my knees are shot from playing basketball. It’s been awesome. I’ve logged 2100 miles in just one year.
Wow! 2100 miles is fantastic my friend! Keep it up. Funny you mention electric bikes, have thought about one very recently. This would greatly increase my distance I think. My heart is the issue here. Was diagnosed with CHF in 2002 so I’m defying the odds and keep on kickin’ ass. 😎🙏🏻💪🏻 That kid deserved your response, David. Little asswipe…
Take care and stay strong. I would definitely recommend an electric bike for you. People in my age group (54+) often ask about my bike. They say that for various health reasons they can no longer ride a bike. I tell them that it’s been great.
What I like to do is walk half the distance and ride back, or if I’m not feeling it I’ll just push the throttle and the bike takes me home. The motor provides pedal assist so that you still get a moderate workout, or (if necessary) you can relax and let the motor do all the work.
I researched different bikes and learned everything I could before deciding what to buy. Most of the bikes sold on Amazon are made in China which is not surprising since the bicycle market in Asia is huge. They make some decent bikes at a great price, but I wouldn’t recommend spending less than $1500 — like the $700 models sold at Walmart that burn out the first time you go over a hill.
Which brings me to the components:
Most bikes will have standard quality components like brakes and gears. Where you don’t want to go cheap is with the electronics … the battery and motor.
Batteries are usually 250 or 500 watts. A 250 watt battery will perform adequately on flat terrain, but you’ll need a 500 watt to get over steep hills without frying the motor.
There are three basic motor types … mid hub (mid drive), rear hub and front hub. The motor is built in the hub of either tire, or in the pedal crankcase.
Rear hub is the cheapest and most common. It provides greater stability and control when compared to a front hub. Be advised that a quick start with a front hub motor could send you flying headfirst over the handlebars. Hub motors are virtually maintenance free. (China sells a million hub motors every year.)
The mid drive adds power to your pedals and chain rather than the tires. Mid hub drives operate like a direct drive which means they can outperform a hub motor using only a 250 watt battery. However, it puts a lot of strain on those components and they are prone to fail. You don’t want to be miles from home, in the middle of summer, in Las Vegas, when you hear the chain break. Mid hub motors are expensive to maintain and replace, and even though front and rear motors may overheat, you can still pedal your bike like normal.
There are a couple of alternatives to consider — a kit conversion, or electric wheel. I don’t hear good things about the conversion kits, but it’s basically a motor and battery that you install on your regular bike. The electric wheel is sold in different sizes to fit your existing frame. The motor, battery and controller are all built into the wheel. Industry leaders are the Copenhagen and GeoOrbital.
In the end, I chose the electric bike over the electric wheel because the wheel can only be installed on bikes with caliper brakes — for obvious safety reasons. My regular bike is a standard beach cruiser so it doesn’t have stopping power at 20 mph.
After a year of research it came down to the Pedego and Elby. The Elby motor is not a hub, but looks like the Copenhagen wheel. Its design is more efficient at dispersing heat. Pedego, on the other hand, uses a rear hub motor.
The bikes are priced from $2500 to $3500. You can find a decent bike made in China for a thousand dollars less. To add some perspective, there are premium bikes made in Europe that are priced at ten grand for the base model.
Pedego is touted s the most popular and reliable American brand. I really like their bikes, but chose the Elby (made in Canada) because it was designed like a car with quality components including the BionX motor.
I got a great deal at a post-Thanksgiving sale from an online dealer in Boston. It was Elby’s most expensive model ($3700) at a closeout price of $1900. The bike has been so much fun. For health reasons, I couldn’t ride the beach cruiser so the Elby got me back in the saddle to enjoy the exercise, fresh air and sunshine. (The holiday season is the best time to buy.)
I wholeheartedly recommend going electric!
I’ve provided links, but Akismet may tag them as spam and delete the comment. We won’t know until I press submit.
Elby
https://www.elbybike.com/
Pedego
https://www.pedegoelectricbikes.com/
Copenhagen
https://www.superpedestrian.com/en/tech
GeoOrbital
https://www.geoo.com/
Court, from Electric Bike Reviews (EBR), provided invaluable assistance in helping me make this decision.
https://electricbikereview.com/
Hi, I found your very loooong comment! Thank you so much for the links my friend! There is a Pedego dealer about 2 miles from me. I’m going to take a ride over there soon. Thank you!
It was difficult to choose between Pedego and Elby because Pedego has a store right down the street which is great if you ever need service or accessories. Elby doesn’t have a storefront, but sells online, or through independent dealers. They contract with a mobile bike repair service (Velofix) so the convenience of a nearby storefront was not as important. I believe Velofix has two stores in your neck of the woods. By the way, the Pedego store should give you a free test ride. Reply to this comment when you find out more.
I stopped by the Pedego dealer, they didn’t have a specific model there that I saw on the website, but the main store in Henderson has one I can look at maybe tomorrow if I feel like driving way down there. I did learn a lot about the bike at this local store today. These bikes can go a very long way on that one battery.
Which model?