Originally Posted by
rumrunn6
seeing more ppl out on electric fat bikes, even at night. they are not dressed for athletics. they look more like a cross between wanna be motorcyclists & day hikers. not against that trend, anything that gets more of us away from gas based machines seems good. & fewer cars is better for conventional cyclists anyway, right?
I was thinking about the fat ebikes on my ride last night, I saw a couple ebikes rolling on 26x4 tires. Bikes like the RadRover 6 Plus don't have a lot of the same components as an 'acoustic' fatbike like a Pug or Wednesday, but they are putting increased demand on some of the same part ... especially tires. This on top of the overall supply issues, the ebike fad helps explain why you see fewer fatbikes in the LBS*. I know my LBS wants more fatbikes in stock, but they are waiting months to get delivery, with most sold before they arrive ... and some models could be a year to get (I know this because I spent a hot minute shopping a new Mukluk for the wider tires).
* LBS are also stocking fewer fatbikes because demand is down ... and to the point of this thread, there was a fatbike fad 5-6 years ago, and demand has tapered off closer to the point it was 8-10 years ago. The fatbike is not going into the sunset, just back to the right level for the demand of folks that value riding where no other bike can take you.