Devon TRF Group Forum

Certainly a new 14 speed Rohloff hub is nearly that money alone now. I wonder what life the 8 year old battery has though?

A powerful mid drive motor and belt driven Internally Geared Hub is the way to go in my opinion, until they put the gearbox and motor together (maybe in years to come) 

A bit ahead of its time, but they've slimmed down now, this one is 26kgs.

And open to offers!

ttrtim wrote:

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The Bridford Inn. With their dedicated cider cellar 

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 Did not now that or I may not have drunk beer. I am dining there tomorrow so I will check it out.

Still enjoying mine

Morning Noel!

Interesting stuff. I don't think my Optibike is that noisy - more like an angry wasp when at full power 

I had an issue with my MBB (motor in the bottom bracket!)  and it was simple enough to remove it and ship it to Colorado for repair.

Also, the battery pack is just a set of cells like any other so I am guessing there is going to be someone in the UK could rebuild one if it totally failed - unlikely I would think.

This is on a ten-year old bike and I would guess many cheaper e-bikes might have been scrapped well before reaching this age....

Brian

PS Ref the eBay e-Bike - £55.99 only buys a seat - the bikes are £599

I got rear suss Noel 

But you know what owners are like - having paid stupid money for something they don't like to think of losing tooo much if and when they sell it. 

The 800Li had a short life as Optibike specced it too high and were making a loss on each one sold....

 

 

                     Specifications

 

Last ride with Mark was a couple of months and eight unreportable solo rides ago on 20/4/19. Since he led the way last time I pointed the way for him to be followed by my camera this time as we rode around the upper Teign river. 

We took in along the way one Byway open to all traffic, six Bridleways (two of which are claim lanes considered to be worth lodging Schedule 14 claims with the County Council to protect further potential use once disputed status be clarified, one Permissive bridleway, one Unclassified County road (191-058), one short dead end unsurfaced UCR not on the TRF database at all, one Footpath dedicated as a Permisive Bridleway, a diversion around forestry works, three tracks over the Downs, and a couple of ancient castle hill forts as well as a Giants grave and a cairn circle or two along with associated standing stone & legend.

Our first lane started opposite the car park and is known to DTRFG as C-034, currently a Bridleway. The E-bikes made easy work of the long straight climb and we were fresh and eager to continue down the Permisive Bridleway opposite into King Charles wood and the first of a half a dozen steep downhill sections. 

The tree which fell a couple of months ago on the river side path has been cleared and we soon climbed into Cod wood along a foxglove lined avenue. 

The mossy tarmac uphill to 191-058 is breaking up and will make  fine lane in years to come. Crossing the road we passed Headless cross, a pre-christian monolith reputed to be the petrified body of Maximager the giant who when buried threw off the cover stone from his grave and marched thus far.

We admired the cairn circle on the way up to the huge stone circle atop the Down with its 360 degree views.

The large flat standing stone opposite the large hole is said to be Maximager the giants grave cover stone. From the top we crossed one road onto an over grown bridleway where long grass hid the ground below,

and followed another through Yarningdale onto a bridleway known as C-115 which hosts the biggest badger sett taking up fully half of the lane.

The traditional green bench in the field below the church has a lovely view along the valley. 

A brief road stint through Moretonhampstead led into a leafy road uphill to Butterdon. The unsurfaced public road from the four way junction of two tarmac roads, one unsurfaced road and a footpath which passes Butterdon cottages going as far as the gate onto the down is not on the Devon TRF overlay, but could be if people wanted to ride a couple of hundred hards and back again.

After crossing our second Down we headed for our third and climbed uphill from 191-055 to Cranbrook castle to admire the 360 views from the ancient fortifications. The descent of 191-055 with its half a dozen hairpins is a delight but we took the Upper Deerstalkers path signed a few hundred yards from the top and went along the top of Hannicombe wood before zig-zagging down the to the river far below, where we saw that the path to Fingle was closed for forestry work and the path we had followed was signed as a diversion for horses and cycles, but had seen no other people.

A large deer crashed noisily away through the wood in Whiddon Park (deer park) as we neared the rusty roofed cow shed with its views of east Dartmoor. I briefed Mark to pause a moment in the open gateway through the stone wall to look at the split stone art work by Peter Randall Paige called Passage which frames the gateway before the ancient beech avenue.

The descent to the iron bridge is the steepest part of the day and the sound of my brakes squealing carried all the way up to the Hunters path above on the other side of the valley. A couple of firsts for me as the E-bike easily conquered the small rocky section at the start of the footpath up from the iron bridge to the bridleway below castle Drogo as well as the rocky outcrops on the first bend where we narrowly pipped some ramblers to the bench with its stunning view along the steeply wooded valley.

The views are breath taking and the drops quite giddying with the sound of the river echoing up from the valley bottom a couple of hundred meters below. There is a choice of Hunters paths and we took the original steeper drop down the tree and root strewn slope to Fingle bridge.

Following the footpath dedicated a permissive bridleway downstream along the river we diverted uphill to the another ancient castle where another permissve footpath led us steeply down again to the river, passing a lepidopterist on the way.

The bridleway along the river offers choices of wide track or technical river side. Once we had returned to the car park we decided against a further three mile loop up to Lowton down via Burnicombe, Lowton Claim lane-039, 191-059 as we had already ridden 22 miles and enjoyed six significantly steep long and technical descents. An average speed of 8.2 mph, a max speed of 28.2 and 2 hours 26 mins riding. No badgers mechanicals or other problems. Top day out.

 

Next ride Sat 3rd August all welcome

Excellent Pete, you've fired me up and I've gone and spent the kid's inheritance....... 

My inaugural ride was 16 miles without touching tarmac, luckily I live on the edge of S Dartmoor. Basically up Puffing Billy to Red Lake and back to compare the ride with my old MTB. I'm simply blown away by what an ebike can achieve and the comfort of full suspension on rocky trails is something to be experienced after years of riding a hard tail. 8 miles uphill with a headwind and stoney track, something I used to hate, but now .......

Only saw one other bike and lots of hikers with smiley faces and greetings, makes a change .........

NO, it's not a bleedin' KTM, it's a TREK Freefly 5 FS ..........

Lunar landscape looking towards Red Lake spoil heap

 

Red Lake spoil heap and lake ( sorry about the focus)

Trig point at Three Barrows looking towards Brent Hill

Beautiful weather and the boggy bits were dry as a chip ; no tyre marks 

No lepidopterists spotted but I did see a couple of skinny dippers wild swimming in one of the lakes half way along does that count ??

 

 Two things I've learned : Starting on a steep slope is a technique to be mastered

Ruts are a pain as they catch the pedals and when the pedals stop, then so does the drive when you least want it to happen. A new technique needed I reckon 

-- Edited by deci on Tuesday 16th of July 2019 04:45:03 PM

I was going to ask about the boggy bits because last time I went that way (pre e-bike time) my feet were dipping under water with every pedal stroke.

My neice and nephew took their swimming things intending to take a dip but a herd of belted galloway cattle had bagged the pool and there was no room!

With ruts I weave with every pedal stroke hoping to avoid the inevitable clash, full boost can give the extra push needed to keep momentum but downhill routes on rutted lanes works for me.

You going to join us on 3/8/19?

 

 Be warned, the 800Li has a tendency to wheelie when accelerating.

- Outrageous torque- wheelies in 4th gear !!

Blimey Brian, wheelies in every gear up to 4th, its got more beans than the TTR!!!! 

So, my wife asked if I would pop down to the shops in S Brent for some odds and ends and being a dutiful husband readily agreed   However I must have taken a wrong turning as i couldn't find them at first ......

Can't see any shops here......

No shops here neither.......

Looks like claim lane C-139, a lovely lane and good to be able to use it 

 

Rest assured , I did reach the shops eventually but returned home by road as I was carrying eggs in my back pack .......

Pete wrote:

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The middle picture looks like the bridleway from Corringdon ball gate toward Didworthy, did you go down Diamond lane?

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 Right as usual Pete !  Yes, I did go down Diamond Lane and almost scuffed the new paint in the process ....... Old photos show that it used to be a trials section back in the '70s I think. The SDMCC would love to use it again in the WooHoo LDT but there a lot of hurdles to overcome to achieve that goal.

Motorcycles or bicycles, this forum has changed. Please be aware, bicycles, electric or not, are a cool enterty and I love it, but just saying like ! Bring on the dirt bikes.....maybe !

Electric mountain bikes (emtbs) are only a very small part of this forum which is all about " trail riding". Perhaps there is an argument for a separate section entitled "electric mountain bikes" for those who have an interest; those who don't can look away...  I don't see any reason they can't co-exist on this forum.

I and all the other members who have contributed to this thread all have and ride motor trail bikes as well.  

I see an emtb as an extension of my interest and enjoyment of trail riding along routes I cannot legally ride my motor bike.

just saying.........

Pete wrote:

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I still have my CRM 250 and will continue to trail ride, but having ridden most of the lanes in this part of the country and seen the available network shrink dramatically over the years despite the best efforts of the TRF I have been exploring the rest using my mountain bike. It took the best part of a decade to explore the lanes on a motorbike and five years to ride most of the tracks on Southern Dartmoor on a mountain bike. 

I love the way my e-bike looks like a mountain bike because of the way people react to meeting me. On a trail bike I feel tolerated whereas on a machine with pedals people are all smiles. The e-bike gives me longer legs meaning more miles for the same effort and it allows me to continue my hobby of exploring the countryside. 

I regret the changes that have happened to the law and the loss of so much of our lane network, and the way this has changed the forum which ticks over but no longer thrives with multiple rides weekly. 

This forum is about trail riding and E-biking is trail riding too, so there is room on the forum for this one thread, just saying...

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 I agree, love mine and see it as an extension to my petrol trail riding

Had a quick bimble up on East Budleigh Common this morning on the Optibike - occasionally accompanied by Mackenzie, Trish and Jak.

Spoilt for choice with lanes and tracks everywhere 

Great fun but either I got to lose weight or jack up the suspension coz I kept catching the pedals in the dirt 

Other than that, and the fact that I need to get used to the razor saddle again, it was a proper job 

I had to return my daughter's dog yesterday after dog minding for a couple of weeks. She lives at Draycott, on the edge of the Mendips and I thought , why not take my ebike  and ride a few bridleways shown criss-crossing the hills ?

Result !!

Wonderful scenery, weather and trails courtesy of MMap. Smiles and banter from all the hikers and equestrians I encountered, wouldn't have got that on my Beta !! I'm really loving how my off road horizons are widening with the acquisition of my ebike and to be able to use trails otherwise denied to me.

It may be a contentious suggestion but should we have an ebike category on this forum?  After all, it does cover trail riding and there seems to be a slowly increasing number of members getting ebikes.

Edge of Rowberrow Down

Roberrow Down

View towards Blagdon Lake

Trail on northern edge of Rowberrow Down

View from Wavering Down towards Cheddar Reservoir. Glastonbury Tor right of centre

View across Bridgwater Bay. Brent Knoll L of centre and Crook Peak R of centre. Quantocks and Exmoor in background

Made it ! View from Crook Peak towards Brent Knoll and M5. 

TRO'd green lane on Shute Shelf Hill.  Very deep water filled ruts around the corner........

 

18 miles, 3 hours riding and 3 bars remaining on battery.....

 

 

 

youaintseenme wrote:

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ooeerr do people actually enjoy this much discomfort ?
Only if they mostly ride KTM's I reckon )-:

My market research has me using an old monty python line " please may I fondle your buttox ?" as I attempt to ascertain the secret of rear end comfort whilst actually pedalling.
What is the most comfy seat ?
what are the thickest/ optimum padded cycle pants ?

Riding all day on my WRF is so much more comfortable ........

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 I feel your pain Noel - don't mean that to sound as weird as it reads 

After a couple of hours up at Woodbury on my Optibike following Mackenzie around recently I also suffered severe discomfort but assumed it was because I was a fat barsteward whereas you are built like a racing snake!

My buttox don't touch the razor-like seat and it impacts on a bony/cartilage area in between said buttox 

Trish has a really wide seat on her Giant e-bike with an Aldi special - a thick gel-filled seat cover - which I may borrow to test

Nooooooo !

just NO

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3D-Padded-Cycling-Shorts-Bike-Underwear-Bicycle-MTB-Pants-Soft-Men/113681075894

not even for laughs or fancy dress ............

youaintseenme wrote:

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On a more positive note, I just did an inaugural run on the Opti

Steps Bridge to Fingle and back.

First challenge was to inflate the tyres as I have no pump or connector for those HP valves. A quick and effective solution was to find a bit of hose that fitted snugly over the stem of the valve and poke the air nozzle from the compressor into the open end. Instant inflation to probably the exact right pressure (-:

I let my son Jamie set the pace on his fancy MTB ( its even got a hydraulic seat post thet you can raise or lower whilst riding )

I found myself pedalling a bit cos it just seemed like the right thing to do, especially when passing walkers but generally wafted along in eco mode with a bit of pedal assist and the occasional speed mode up any climbs as it was easier than changing gear.

Took less than an hour, even with a couple of stops to enjoy the dappled sunlight shining through the leaves and onto the sparkling dancing water of the Teign.

Battery wasnt fully charged when I set off but indicator lights showed pretty full and the green light began to flash as we got near the end of the run, which I believe indicates 1/3rd gone.

Motor noise was a bit offensive esecially on full chat but acceptable when you know its doing a lot of the pedalling for you.

Jamie fiddled with the suspension settings when we got to Fingle and softened everything. I think it was better on the way back but as the rear end was pre pounded it was hard to be fully objective.

For safety I wore a beanie hat, jeans with the knees showing through and a sleeved cotton top (-:

I was pretty fresh at the end of this run and amazed at how far we went in the time we were out.

Now that I know what it feels like and what to expect, I have to plan a fully charged to fully discharged excersion.

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   I knew you'd like it when you took the plunge......  Get those knees on display !!

FBF wrote:

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Interesting reading some of these posts. Been thinking about a couple of these E bikes as an alternative to taking a motorcycle on the back of the pickup when we take the caravan away.

Certainly lighter and giving greater access to the countryside. Hopefully they will come down in price a little although having seen the price of my mates MTB (non lekky) and the parts I am not so sure they will, £600 for wheels and something like £300 for a front suspension overhaul.
 Makes me wonder whether there be some business to be had there.

I think The KTM 250r Freeride I have will be my last trail motorbike. Times are a changing and being the wrong side of 60 now its getting tougher

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 As someone who is also the wrong side of 60(and a bit  !!) I would recommend you just do it if you can. We're at a funny age and never know what the future will bring, and when .... 

The joy of riding in places I could not on my trail bike takes a lot of beating. If you try one you will be sorely tempted 

Good luck !!

The disadvantage of having the motor in the rear hub is that it has only one gear whereas a motor in the pedal bracket gives you all the gears that the pedals can muster 

I know it has no trouble with speed, but cant comment on the weight issue, but I like those fat tyres! They are made in mere, I saw them at the ahaftesburay show and might go for a test ride! The 750 watt one looked good, even if not legal!

  

Made me laugh, lots.

The steep permissive bridleway descending into St Thomas Cleave wood is a cracker with lots of loose sharp lumpy rocks, hasn't changed much in ten years really, and yes I did have to fix a puncture first time there, but my mood was improved by my companion taking a bath in the stream crossing next to the bridge after the steps.I have never been through the holiday chalets as the route should climb up into Cod wood to join the road halfway between Clifford bridge and Headless cross.

I took my Reign along the Fisherman's path, once, but won't again as the steps are as steep as a ladder and the handrail is awkward to use when one hand is occupied holding onto the bike and it is necessary to let go completely to move from one hand hold to another. Really not worth the hassle, especially when the Hunter's path 200 m higher up is such a cracking ride with a choice of two excellent descents at the other end.

The Footpath from Fingle to Clifford is a Permissive Bridleway, and was somewhere deer were often seen until an over zealous PROW warden arranged for many tons of gravel to be dumped there. I hate the crunching noise and so do the deer who I no longer see there. I did give the warden grief but he cares more for the poor gentrified green welly brigade who can't be expected to get their wellies muddy for God's sake.

It is a shame that the several permissive bridleways nearby are not signposted at all as they add considerably to the available loops. (St Thomas Cleave wood to Cod wood, Fingle to Clifford, Bridford wood from Burnicombe to the top of the Byway). The forest tracks around Wooston and the Deerstalkers higher and lower paths in Hannicombe wood are also excellent as is the track around Whiddon deer park.

If you want to test the Optibike on some serious up and down try the route Mark & I did in July, there is a pic of it higher up the page