mschwett 

hi all! i've been enjoying reading up in the forums, figured i'd say hi.

my situation is a little unusual, i've always been fairly athletic (swam/water polo competitively, later distance running) but due to a heart rhythm condition and many subsequent catastrophes and open heart surgeries, i'm limited in the intensity of my cardio. HR needs to stay well below 130, and well below the point where it would be difficult to have a conversation. i live in san francisco, in pacific heights, surrounded by 15-20% slope hills.
right after christmas, i got a vanmoof S3 e-bike. brilliant city transport, powerful (69nm, 500w peak), and as much as i loved cruising from playground to playground with my kids (one with me, one on her own bike!) i really really loved riding it fast. put 1,000 miles on it in 2-3 months. this led me to think i should get a lighter bike more suited for going fast. on paper the specialized turbo creo seemed to fit the bill, much lighter, higher max boost (class 3 / 28mph), more gears. i test rode an L of the EVO version (i'm 6'2, 195), and it felt very cramped, very unstable, like i was going to tip forward and off.

tried an XL of the comp carbon, still didn't love it and didn't feel comfortable getting out of the saddle. shop suggested a higher angle shorter stem. also wanted to try heavier, more puncture resistant tires since i ride everywhere from my door, meaning through the city. after those changes, it was starting to feel really good. i went with the raw carbon black version, and other than the tires, removing some fiddly bits, and adding a quad lock out front (flipped around) rode it away from the shop stock. i didn't really understand the benefits of the various trim levels, but as a new rider, the cheapest one with the carbon frame was probably the right decision. and, to be honest... i really like matte black.

it was pretty much love at first ride, and i had a ****-eating grin very often in those early days. rode it almost every day, rides ranging from 20 to 60 miles, vertical from 750 to 5,500 feet. my goal has been to rely on the motor as little as possible, and except for one or two rides where i totally bonked or overshot the mark, i typically am at less than 15% overall "support," only using it at all (on the lowest setting) on big climbs and massive headwinds.
i've made some minor tweaks since i got the bike, speedplay pedals, carbon cranks, switched back to a 6 degree 110mm stem, mirror saddle. i was originally happy to have some rotating weight with the gator hardshell tires for stability, but now i feel very comfortable on the bike and will probably go with some lighter tubeless tires, maybe on a set of carbon rims and put gravel tires on the stock rims. haven't decided yet.
i've also been loving all the data you can gather from the bike's app, which exports directly to strava for analysis. my weighted average power on a good 2hr ride is in the 220w range, peaking around 1200 but because of my cardiac issues i can't hold a really high output (say >300w) for more than 30 seconds or a minute. n+1 has me vaguely wondering if on a really light 2x drivetrain bike i could actually do many of the same rides i do now, no motor, just a bit slower. stats since i got the creo on march 27 are 805 miles, 54,000 vertical feet, 14.5 average mph.

i'm guessing e-bikes are not looked upon too fondly here, but everyone has their own circumstances and i'm looking forward to learning more from all the great discourse here. cheers!

cb400bill

Welcome to Bike Forums mschwett!