E-Mountain Bike camping (GASP!)

I’ve never seen one, but my friend from way back makes these. Probably less distance per charge than a bike though.

I think it’s awesome, Eric. Sounds like a very nice rig. If it gets you out into nature more, then that’s the main thing.

Well Bill, I still backpack, just a bit slower now when over 6,000 feet.

My gear is fairly UL-> TT Notch Li solo tent, WM Megalite down bag, Sea to Summit 3 season insulated mattress, Osprey EXOS pack, Brunton CRUX folding canister top stove or Trail Designs ti Caldera Cone for ESBIT (summer) or wood (winter).

And for winter an REI Flash All Season insulated mattress and LL Bean -20 down bag and Deuter  Air Contact Lite 65 + 10 pack. But I ski in only 1/4 mile at 9,500 feet and call it “camp”.  Winter tent is a TT Moment DW solo tent. Camp parka is a -20 down unit from Eddie Bauer, back when they made a few decent backpacking items. I love the smell of sage sausage and pancakes on a crisp winter morning!

Looks like a sweet ride.  Looking at the online photos, does the front wheel have a larger diameter than the rear wheel?

Sorry for the eons late reply Bruce.

No my E-CELLS bike has same size (26″) wheels front and rear.

BTW, sadly E-CELLS is now shuttered and in bankruptcy. Dave designed excellent bikes of high quality components and had a big customer base. But, thankfully since his bikes used good quality, brand name  components anything that breaks is easy to replace – well, except the frame.

Unfortunately two and a half years ago after competing in a masters bike race my world came tumbling down, I had a Cardiac Arrest, the paramedics estimated that my heart was stopped for nearly 10 minutes before being revived, how lucky was I, as my doctor said, it wasn’t my time to die, even better I don’t seem to have suffered any brain or heart damage, but I have been told by my Cardiologist, not to push my luck, definitely no more bike racing. In Australia post CA there is a mandatory 6 months driver’s licence suspension, after being given the all clear to start riding again, to get around without putting to much stress on my heart, I purchased my first E-Road/gravel bike, freedom again (my wonderful wife (and savoir) was getting sick of driving me around).

My first e-bike, a Specialized Creo, 240 Watts max power and 320 Wh battery plus a 160 Wh extender battery, one of my friends had just got a basic Merida hardtail e-MTB and we headed to the Australian Alps for a bikepacking/fishing trip, while the trail was wasn’t that hard it had some steep and rough sections and my Creo really struggled where my friends bike cruised up easily, realising that my Creo while nice to ride on the road wasn’t suitable for bikepacking in the mountains, after my near death experience my philosophy is ‘you can’t take money with you’, I then brought a Gen 4 Trek Rail, 9.8, 600W max power, 750Wh battery, 170 mm F&R suspension travel, on rough trails compared to my Creo the Rail is another level.

After doing several trips I have since purchased two 250Wh extender batteries which will give me a total of 1250 Wh and around 100 kms distance depending on load and country, I have purchased some front and rear Aeroe Pannier racks, Aeroe handlebar cradle, 2 x 20 L Ortlieb rear Pannier bags, 2 x 10L Thule Front Pannier bags, I already had some good lightweight camping gear, Zpacks Hexamid Tent, WM Summerlite sleeping bag, 1st gen Thermarest Neoair mattress, etc, unfortunately my much used and loved Hexamid tent started falling apart, they are hard to get and very expensive here so about a year ago I replaced the Hexamid with a Nemo Equipment Hornet Elite 1P Ultralight Tent and a higher R rated Nemo sleeping Mattress. After a few trips trying different bag combinations out, I have settled on just using the two 20L rear pannier bags, I will do a more detailed gear list later.

The basic Rail bike weighs in at 24 kgs, extender batteries at 1.5 kgs each, with the Aeroe rear pannier rack  and the Ortlieb rear panniers, fully loaded with gear, food and water, the whole setup weighs nearly 40 kgs, in true BPL style I am always looking at reducing my weight and I have been looking into lighter racks and bags but the trails that I bikepack on are remote and can get very rough and reliability is very important and my current setup seems to handle the conditions very well.

I have recently purchased another e-gravel bike, with more power and battery than the Creo and I can use my extender batteries with it, more tyre clearance and better gearing, I am currently working on setting it up for bikepacking, at 10 kgs lighter than the Rail I am hoping that it will have some advantages, more on that later.

A bit off topic yet ultralight is still important and it’s environmentally friendly in responsible hands. A viable option as we age.

My first electric was a Currie. Called the Police Special or something similar. Twenty speed with power assist. I was sold. Later a Currie EZip for the wife that was underpowered for an e bike and heavy and bulky for peddling. Unfortunately the original Currie was stolen.

My next electric was a Workman trike that I equipped with a 1,000 watt front hub motor. That was fun until a friend wrecked it going through barbed wire.

My intent in posting the last video was mostly to highlight the new solidstate battery technology another cross over product. Searching online, they are available. Still at a higher price and twice the weight of a comparable Nitecore.

Terran Terran, thanks for the very interesting video about the new generation of e-batteries, I have also been seeing news about the Chinese  building factories for the next generation batteries to put in their EV’s. I can’t wait until these batteries are available in e-bikes, for me doubling the range they would open up a whole new world of e-MTB touring.

There’s a lot of speculation on the Donut solid state battery. Sometimes that stuff is vaporware. They raise funds and it disappears. I did find ss batteries through Google. Twice the price and weight of the equivalent 5,000 mAh  Nitecores. Still it signals advancements in battery tech. As a country, we seem to be falling behind.

Yes, over the years I have also read about many new battery developments only to as you mentioned evaporate, but sometimes in research these are important steps to better technology. I would be prepared to spend the extra money to get twice the distance for the same weight. I recently read that China educate 2 million engineers a year which is mind boggling.

ZDNet battery  review

5,000 mAh SS Battery 137g $80

It says that they have an airplane mode, so there may be some advantage.

4.8 oz compared to 3.1 for 5,000mAh Nitecore. Aluminum body vs carbon fiber.

I dream about a  5000 Wh e-bike battery that weighs sub 5 kgs, charges in 10 minutes and cost less than $500. I think this will happen one day but not in my lifetime.

Tony I commend you on STAYING ACTIVE. Good for your body and just as good for your mental health. Like you, my wife’s care made a lot of difference in my recovery. They are angels. (Well, usually. ;o)

I’m really admiring your much lighter E-bike that’s still good for UL camping.  TREK bikes in the US use German BOSCH batteries and mid mount motors and yours are likely also BOSCH. VERY advanced motors and ultra safe and reliable batteries with a good BMS.  We have a big TEK store 1/2 mile away.

I too have “dodged a bullet” last year. In April I was diagnosed with a tumor in my left kidney. After 8 rounds of chemo over 2 months and kidney surgery at Cedars Sinai hospital in LA in Nov. I am now 100% CANCER FREE!  So I’m back on my bike and just enjoying every day of life, even the $hitty ones.

My words of wisdom: “The first hundred years are the hardest.”

Teran, You got me all hot and bothered about that solid state battery. BUT… after researching it I find the company is “All hat and no horse” in that it won’t DEMONSTRATE the battery. Seems it is fishing for investors but looks sketchy. CRAP! I’d love lighter, faster charging, longer mileage batteries on my beast of an EMBT.

Vaporware. I did find ss batteries for sale. A bit more money,  heavier with a charging base. Safer with the main advantage being legally able to fly with them. I imagine China will come out with something. It certainly isn’t happening here. We’re in the dark ages. Are coal powered bikes a thing?

I’m sure I’ll have an e bike within the next few years. Trying to navigate the market with so many unknown brands. I sort of prefer the old style of just slapping a motor on a steel framed bicycle. The new ones look hard to pedal.

Eric Blumensaadt, I am glad you beat your Kidney cancer, modern medicine if great, I have beaten 3 cancers over the last 15 years and I would not have been alive to have my CA if I it had not been for some great surgeons, I am looking forward to making 100 to start enjoying life.

Trek are quite big here in Australia, their head quarters are in my home town and we have 4 great Trek shops, one of them is my go to LBS. I have owned 3 Trek bikes and they are very well made and the support is second to none. From talking to a few bike mechanics, Bosch motors and batteries are one of the more reliable systems and they have very good backup here also.

You got me going down a deep and dark rabbit hole. Something for the jeep trails that my truck is too big for and where my driving skills may not be up to par. Nor my nerves. Lots of discounts and free accessories point to failing companies on a field that’s overcrowded. Lack of stealthness and proprietary parts leads me to  thinking DIY using off the shelf parts may be best though possibly not the cheapest.