Stepping Up To e-Bikes, Our Take.

The popularity of e-bikes has been surging worldwide and it’s easy to see why! E-bikes offer accessibility, fun, and an environmentally-friendly transportation option. The electric assist makes biking easier for everyone while still providing exercise. (Some models do have throttles that eliminate the need to pedal as well!) Different e-bike styles such as trikes, recumbents, and wheelchair bikes can open up cycling to people of all ages and abilities.

We fell in love with e-biking on a recent trip to Germany. After renting e-bikes for the first time and covering a bunch of hilly miles through beautiful Bavaria, we knew we had to get our own when we returned to the Baraboo Hills of Wisconsin.

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With so many e-bike options out there, it was challenging to figure out what would work best for us. Below I outline some key considerations in our search, and what we ultimately selected.

What We Looked For and Chose:

When it comes to bikes, the best bike is the one you have or the one you can afford. Biking isn’t about the gear, it’s about the experience. An e-bike can bring a few new twists to your experience, but it’s still just a bike. So with that in mind, let’s move ahead!

A good budget e-bike might come in around $1000 but the prices can quickly skyrocket from there. Like all things, there are good cheap bikes and not-so-good expensive bikes. I recommend spending a lot of time reading and talking to folks with experience when you shop. In our case, we were looking for general cruisers for roads and paths that would last until, well… a long time. :)

Quality and Brand Reputation – There are so many brands of e-bikes out there right now, many of them are fantastic, but it can be hard to sort the good from the bad in a pretty saturated market. For us, because we have always owned Treks (see pic above), we just stayed on course. Trek is a reputable brand that builds quality bikes here in Wisconsin. Their reputation and our past experiences gave us peace of mind. Trek prices range from midrange to expensive. Trek’s lowest cost e-bike sits at 1,599.99. The bikes we selected list for $3499.99 each. (An Aventon Level.2 lists at $1799)*

Local Dealer Support – There’s actually a lot to learn to get the most out of your new e-bike. There’s also a lot more to maintain down the road. So having a Trek dealer in town was a big deal for us. Wildside Action Sports here in Baraboo is a Trek dealer and we’ve worked with them for years. For us, this was an obvious benefit. We ordered our bikes through Wildside.

Power and Range – We needed e-bikes that could handle the steep bluff roads here, just like our rentals had handled the mountain paths in Bavaria. The Trek Verve+ 4S was a good fit since it has the same Bosch Performance Line Sport motor and 500Wh battery that powered our German rentals. We knew it would provide the power we required. The pedal assist goes up to 28mph, which is faster than we need for local trails (most have a 15mph speed limit). With a range of up to 70 miles depending on usage, it also has the battery capacity for lengthy local rides. When it comes to power, you want high torque, the force that gets you moving. More torque makes towing trailers (Kids, Camping Gear, Border collies, etc.,) or starting on hills easier. E-bikes average 50-80 Nm (Newton meters) of torque. With 65Nm, the Verve+ 4S offers sufficient low-end power for our needs. “Torque” isn’t something you read about in my opinion, it’s something you have to experience and compare. Always test-ride a bike before your buy if possible.

About the Battery Cover – We wanted fully-integrated batteries that we could remove to charge inside as needed. (Think hotel rooms & campgrounds) But here’s the bummer with the Trek – the battery cover detaches with the battery. So when you take the battery out, the compartment is left wide open to the elements. You can buy a neoprene cover on Amazon, but honestly, that feels a little janky. Not to mention that the neoprene won’t work with a bottle carrier in place without some home modifications. What’s more, Trek recommends that you take the battery out when you put the bike(s) on a car rack to reduce the weight, but that leaves the compartment open to dirt, rain, etc when transporting! So it’s back to the neoprene cover. For some folks, this could be a deal breaker, It gave me quite a pause as well. I decided to live with it. (For both brands of e-bikes we rented in Europe, the covers stayed with the bikes, not the battery.)

Bike Frame Style – I hope the days of “girl’s bikes & boy’s bikes” has passed. A step-through is just easier – easier to get on, off, or stand at a stop. (And to be honest, we’re not getting any younger.) A day will come when I don’t want to sling a leg over the saddle & crossbar. That said, there are downsides. Step-throughs tend to be heavier to add more support and they offer fewer options for accessories such as water bottles & bags. There are also situations where you might like that top tube for control as well. (The Verve+ 4s comes in standard or step-through) Oh yes, and here’s an important note, car racks become a bit more complex to choose from for step-throughs because the rack has to attach at lower points on your bike. Many racks just won’t work with step-through e-bikes.

Riding Position – After years of being hunched over handlebars, we are both ready to sit up and get the weight of our hands and wrists! Upright “Dutch” style bikes allow relaxed riding, which suited our needs.

In The End

That about covers it for our priorities, but your list might be quite different. The bottom line as always, is that you want to find the bike that’s right for you and while the Verve+ 4 Lowstep works for us, it may not fit your needs. Hopefully though, if you’ve been considering an e-bike this overview gives you a starting point.

** Please note that we have no affiliation with Trek and are free to offer an honest opinion.
* Prices are current as of this writing.

Do you have any advice for folks looking for their first e-bike? Please share your thoughts in the comments!

EXPLORE CENTRAL WISCONSIN BIKE TRAILS, CLICK HERE.