COMMENTS LIKE “YOU’ RE CHEATING, MATE !” ARE DIMINISHING, BECAUSE MORE PEOPLE ARE FINDING OUT HOW MUCH FUN E BIKES ARE

These four power-assisted beasts are all quality machines, but which is the best package for ive grand or less?

Electric mountain bikes have charged (sorry!) onto the UK scene in recent years. Motors, battery tech and integration are all progressing fast, so e-bikes are rapidly getting better. Acceptance from other riders is improving too, with initial grumblings and comments like “you’re cheating, mate!” diminishing, for one simple reason – as more people have a go, they find out how much fun they are. Just ask anyone who’s recently ridden a full-sus e-MTB and watch their eyes light up as they babble on about how much of a blast it is.

The best thing about e-bikes is the way they make a mockery of long, boring uphill slogs, allowing you to fit more descents into each ride and cover more miles. Pedalling assistance brings another dimension to technical ascents too. In fact, climbing with extra power can be an art form in itself. Solving the puzzle of balance, timing and traction up the steepest hills is an addictive pastime, while having a powerboosting motor opens up severe terrain to more riders, especially when almost anyone can climb further on an e-bike than the fittest riders can on ‘analogue’ bikes.

E-MTBs also tend to have amazing grip, stability and tracking when pointed back downhill, largely due to the light weight of the wheels relative to the heft of the enginepacking chassis. Plus, if time’s tight and you’ve only got a couple of free hours, you can pack much more into a ride than on a ‘normal’ bike.

Like them or not, e-bikes are here to stay. So if you’re interested in buying one, which should you get? The four tested here represent the latest-generation designs, in terms of geometry and motor/battery tech. At £4,000 to £5,000, they’re actually pretty good value, once you add the cost of the electronics to the price of an equivalent trail bike.