3 months in - What I've learned so far while having the Riese & Müller Load 75

It's September in Tromsø, the summer is soon passing by, if it hasn't already, and I've done a few experiences with the Load 75.

The seat post is crap

The seat post has one pin that keeps the bike seat in position. After a few bumps while riding the bike, the seat will most likely tilt upwards. Chris from Propel Electric Bikes in New York proposes this solution:

"We have seen this issue and have found luck in adding some carbon assembly paste in the friction portion. I’m sure the new one is probably good, especially if it’s 34.9mm."

The last bit, is about the fact I changed the seat post to a different 34.9 mm to keep the seat straight. The new seat post uses to two pins instead one, and doesn't slide as easily.

I hit a rock

And fell with the bike on the right side, so probably the worst side to fall on due to the steering arm. The o-ring on the link had to be replaced because it was damaged during the fall, luckily it was easy to replace (hint: Biltema). Other than a few scrapes on the right side of the bike, the bike seems fine.

I should have gone Rohloff

My Cube with Nuvinci 360, only requires a wash and new brake pads. The Load 75 with the derailleur is great, but I miss not having to clean and oil a chain. I was heavily warned about going the belt route, since nobody has a clue how to maintain a belt setup with Rohloff in Tromsø.

Another thing I miss, is the smooth gearing you get with the belt. I've gotten used to shifting gears manually (instead of setting cadence).

I've passed 650 km

150 of them was to Hillesøya. The rest has been all around Tromsø, either for grocery shopping or going to the city center. It has been nice to use the bike no matter the weather conditions, instead of using the car. Especially during rush hours. 

Locks, chains and where to put them?

Securing the bike is always on the top of my mind when leaving the bike somewhere. The ways of securing a bike especially at grocery stores, are laughable. The usual situation is there's no wall mount, rarely was to fasten the bike without obstructing something and often there's just a crappy bicycle rack which I cannot use.  Am I worried about the bike getting stolen? Not yet, but as soon as Tromsø reaches the "mørketiden" or "the time of darkness" as google translate calls it, there's probably a higher chance of someone stealing it. Just have to make an effort to make it annoying to steal it I suppouse.

Bikeriet is great and Evo Elsykler too

I bought the bike from Evo Elsykler in Oslo, so far they've been great at answering all sorts of questions about the bike. Especially after the accident with the bike.

Bikeriet probably has been very patient with a guy who comes inside their shop with a huge ass bike, which they don't retail, for all sorts of reasons. They ordered the seat post for me and upgraded the software on the engine (cost 400 NOK). They even guided me when I was looking to fix the ailing o-ring on the steering arm. Glad to have them in the vicinity and hope they have a place in the marked. 

Tromsø Ski and Sykkel only services the bikes that has been bought at their store, so that's worth noting. But they have a greater variety of accessories than Bikeriet and sometimes more than XXL too.

The next experience: Winter

I have very little to go on about how the bike works during the winter time. What's it like to bike on ice with the 2.15" Schwalbe Marathon tires? 
What's it like to bike when the surface is extremely slippery?

So yeah, it'll be an experience.

Kind of weird to seem like a n00b when it comes to biking during the winter time, eventhough I've have nearly two decades of experience with studded tires. But this is a Long John and a totally different experience.

Changing life by swapping out the car with an e-cargo bike

An introspective from 2017 .. when I considered a Packster 80

I've recently started looking into habits, especially the habits surrounding my car. I have a 2010 model Ford Focus station wagon which lets me and my dog get around Tromsø. However, my car trips are rather short and most of the time the car basically is just stored in the garage. I still have a loan on the car, there's also insurance, running costs and not to mention service. In other words, I have something I seldom use, I pay a lot for having it and it just gets worth less each passing day (unless it is a priceless car .. which it isn't).

For nearly two years now, I have had an electric bike with Nuvinci 360 gear hub and automatic shifter. It's an amazing bike since it doesn't require maintenance in the same way a sprocket does and it is fairly reliable. The only problem I've had, was that the electric shifter stopped working and the bike had to be sent to Germany to get fixed. Since then I've never experienced any fuss with the shifter, I've almost passed 3000 km with the bike so far.

Here's a review of the bike (https://electricbikereview.com/cube/suv-hybrid-sl-27-5/)

The bike is my way of getting to work, in any sort of condition. Biking in Tromsø, besides walking, is the most reliable way of getting where you want to go, since there's lots of congestions (busses and cars occupies the same roads) when I'm going home. Pluss often there are road accidents, which can halt the traffic on the entire Tromsø island.

The thing is with my bike, is that is just meant for commute. I got a carrier for the bike so I could carry stuff with me. However the bags doesn't have a lot of capacity for groceries or other stuff. I could of course buy a bike trolley or something, but knowing myself I know that I wouldn't be happy with that solution. So therefore I'm looking at electric cargo bikes.

There are a lot of different cargo bikes out on the marked and they've existed for might seems like ages. The reason why we don't see more transportation bikes, is because the car solves most of our transportation needs. However, in this green wave age, alternatives becomes more and more important. The transport bikes are, in my opinion, getting a renaissance due to both big and small bikes are being outfitted with electric engines and batteries that can haul you for a long distance.

The electric cargo bike I've looked at the most, is from Riese & Müller
It's called the Packster 80 (https://www.r-m.de/en-en/e-cargo/packster/packster-nuvinci-80-2017/#17P13_01031705).

The Packster 80, is a fairly long e-cargo bike which has a lot of capacity. The bike takes up to 200 kilos (max allowed) and is stable at the same time. I got to test the Packster 80 as well as the Load 60 at a local dealership (http://www.bjornskajakk.no/) and I have to say it was interesting to ride the bikes. Since I used my 'old' bike to get to the dealership, it was easier to compare how the different bikes performed.

Of all the bikes, including mine, I have to say the Load is the most comfortable and fun to ride. The Load is sleek and you really feel you have control despite it is a big bike. The steering feels also very natural. The only problem from my point of view, is the space. Despite its size, the Load is a very small cargo bike, though a very cool one.

People and their E-Cargo bike adventures

Picturing yourself replacing a car with a bike for everyday commute and trips, is hard for most of us. It's alien to imagine it's really possible and not out of reach. But some guys have done it and they've made videoes which might give you a glimpse of what it is like.

A guy from South Korea and his Larry vs Harry E-Bullit

A little story about a German family living in Norway with their E-Cargo bike. Lars Schneider shows what they use their Riese Müller Load 60 for and the video is very well made.

I got my cargo bike and wow it's fun

The feeling today

Two weeks ago, I got my white Riese Müller Load 75 to Tromsø. Today I've passed nearly 260 km on the Odometer with no idea how I managed that distance in just two weeks. 

And also today, I went by the bikeshop (Bikeriet) at the mall to upgrade the Cargo Line engine with an firmware update. The update I'm referring to is the 75 nm to 85 nm update which is available for the 4th gen Bosch engine; as explained by Christopher from Propel Bikes in New York in this youtube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICgoV9HsVuE).

Of the two closest bike shops, only the Bikeriet will accept doing service on bikes other than their own, and also since I didn't buy the bike from them, I have to pay for the firmware update (400 NOK) (Evo Elsykler is the only dealership that has the rights for the Riese Müller brand in Norway, which is a shame). 

Was the firmware update worth it? I don't know yet, I haven't experienced enough of a difference. The bike is fairly heavy, so having a boost up to 85 nm isn't bad. Plus eco mode now is 60% of 85 nm which is 40 nm, which is also the same as the Turbo mode on the Bosch Active Line engine (ref https://www.bosch-ebike.com/en/products/cargo-line/). Crazy!

So what have I learned in the last couple of weeks?

The Load 75 with the high wall has a huge capacity. 

I didn't see it when I tested the bike at Evo Elsykler in Oslo, Nydalen. They didn't have the bike with a high wall configuration and a lid, just the huge family tent thing instead with low walls. If I knew what I know now, I'd most likely configured a Load 60, just because of increased maneuverability. The cargo space with the high wall is just wow.

Obviously not having a Load 60 and Load 75 nearby to compare with, made things difficult. At least it's not too small, that would probably been a bigger issue.

The Load 75 brings a smile to anyone who tries it

I don't know what it is, but I think it may have to do with the quality of the bike. Despite its size, despite its heaviness, you forget all of that once you get started and you can't really believe you are riding something that huge. The ride is smooth, it takes corners pretty well, though you might have to use the breaks before hitting really uneven surfaces. I've almost sprung out of the seat a couple of times due to the spring under the seat and underestimating the speed.

I've also seen a couple of drivers going "wtf is that?" when they've passed me. Long Johns are rare sight in Tromsø.

The box is not waterproof

The dealership in Oslo had warned me that this was an issue, though I really didn't get it before I got the bike. The plates on the sides and what makes the floor, are not waterproof, meaning water will get inside the box. The lid is sort of okay, but there's some issues there too. There's about nearly a cm of clearing. I think I've solved the water issue by adding some tape,  that is supposed to be weather resistant, on the inside of the box. Time will show if that solution will hold.

The short trips with the car

Are pretty much gone. The only time I went with the car, was this week when I went to throw some trash which was leftover from renovation in my apartment. The car was filled to the brim ... Other than that, I've used the bike to both explore, relax after work and go grocery shopping. Which is the intention with the bike.

The bike parking in Tromsø is abysmal in many cases

There are a few highlights though, such as the big mall close in Jekta which has a couple of decent parking areas. But the parking space isn't huge and is also very compact. Compact bike parking is usually the rule than the exception since .. cargo bikes aren't really a thing in Tromsø, for now at least. Especially not the large ones. A Load 75 is 2.65m in length alone.

Nerstranda in the city center of Tromsø, has also a halfway decent bike parking in their basement parking. Though I noticed while I was there, that I had secured the bike to a fairly loose bike pole (not sure what's called in english). So that could have been awkward if the bike and the pole was both gone.

The price

When people ask me what the bike costs, I usually say "In the price range of a decent used car". However, they then guess the third of the price. I think I need to revaluate what a decent used car is. 

Anyway, lets do an experiment. Lets find a car in the 85 000 to 90000 price range, which the bike actually costs.

https://www.finn.no/car/used/search.html?body_type=4&filters=&price_from=85000&price_to=90000&sort=4

  

In my case I'm looking for a station wagon / estate car. Most of the cars in the result, are at least 10 years old (which the one I got already is). Looking at the state of the cars; which one of them would last 10 years on short commutes and occasional long distance drives without much problem?

My needs, 90% of the time, is in Tromsø. So it would probably have to be an electric car, and none of the electric cars in that price range can go very far without a recharge. And also the cost of maintaining is higher than a bike. 

At work, parking is fairly expensive. There's no direct bus either from my place to work. The roads are also fairly congested when I go to work and get back from work. Even the buses are affected by the congestion.

An E-Bike is then a great alternative. Since I also got access to a bike parking inside the workplace, I don’t need to worried about the bike being stolen. 

Winter is coming  

In October? November? September?

Last year, the snow started in October and held on to late May. Which is a record for Tromsø at least. I have yet to try the bike in proper icey conditions. I've got the Schwalbe marathon spiked tires, but I have no idea how they'll perform compared to more knobby spiked tires. It'll be interesting to see how such a large bike as a Load 75 will cope with snow and ice. 

Not getting good answers from Hurtigbåten

I thought of going on a 72 km ride from Harstad to my home village. But I quickly put that idea on hold when I found out that the boat ride I needed to take, would on depend on whether or not there is capacity to bring along the bike. Troms Fylkeskommune could not give me a decent answer, just that it is up to the crew of the boat to figure out if the size is too large. So yeah .. I might get the bike with me from Tromsø to Harstad, but I might not be able to get it back with me from Harstad to Tromsø. Neat ..

The other alternative is Hurtigruten, which is to say the least an expensive 6 hour trip. 3000 NOK for one way. That's yeah .. no.

There's another RM Load somewhere in Tromsø

I've got a mission to figure out who the owner is. While researching the bike, I noticed that there aren't a lot of people in the northern part of the polar circle that shares what life is like with a Long John during winter. Most / All of the reviews about cargo bikes, comes from middle of Europe or generally flat countries. A Long John in Denmark, Netherlands, Germany or New York, makes perfect sense. In hilly, snowy, icey Tromsø however .. depends .. I'd really like to find some sort of community, if it exists in Tromsø, for cargo bikes, not just Long Johns.

Plans for the blog?

My plans are quite simple. Just write about how it's like to own a cargo bike in Tromsø, because no one else does it and I think people in the artic needs to know there's an alternative to having a second car to solve everyday needs.