Riding an Ebike offroad makes you a better bike handler. Fact.
I’ve been riding and racing bikes for over 35 years. It is my opinion that if you are riding an ebike offroad you will be a better bike handler. Fact. Why? You will have more fun, ride further and faster because the inevitable uphill you get offroad will be so much easier and less tiring so you just ride more. Owning an eMTB or electric gravel bike is like buying sweets and keeping them all to yourself everytime.
More riding = more practice = better bike rider.
How do I know this? Let me start with a story. Some time around 2008 I discovered Cyclocross and fell in love with it. Two bikes, Four sets of wheels, constant cleaning and the most intense racing I’ve ever done. I won a few local races and placed in a few more but the most useful thing I gained was bike handling skills. Cyclocross courses often feature dead turns on soft, slippy ground. To go around a corner fast isn’t always on the inside, it’s where the grip is and you learn this and how to balance and position yourself then apply power very quickly. Quite a skill to learn. Fast forward to spring and I began my road season brimming with fitness and skills gained during the Winter. In a road race, the peloton would hammer into a bend wide and ready to cut in. I’d sprint down the inside and easily make up places often shouted at for being reckless and I’d corner like I was on rails. Nobody got hurt. Regularly riding offroad on irregular surfaces gives you instincts and reactions that make riding on a road so much easier.
Further Reading
- Why buy an Electric Bike?
- Top 10 Health Benefits of Riding an Ebike
- 10 Things you should never do with your Ebike
- Ebike Tyres and Tubes – Explained
Riding an Ebike offroad is a bonus. Because you can ride further and be out on the trails longer you have an opportunity to hone those bike handling skills. You don’t have to race, you don’t have to ride Cyclocross. Any offroad riding be it straightforward forest roads or knarly singletrack, it’s always going to help you handle your bike when you do eventually ride on a road.
