Sand to Snow
BIKES
The Tour Fleet
The Sand to Snow tour from California to Colorado saw us riding Haibike ePerformance bikes powered by Yamaha. The SDURO line includes hardtails as well as full suspension bikes. In total, we were equipped with five mountain bikes that go up to a supported velocity of 32 km/h (20 mph). While in Europe this would make them s-pedelecs by law, this speed has become a standard in the USA–– a great travel speed that allowed us to easily do .legs of 80 - 150 km (50 - 93 mi) per day.
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SDURO HardSeven and AllMtn
We were equipped with three SDURO HardSeven RC hardtail models and two SDURO AllMtn RC full-suspension bikes. As tour bikes, fully equipped with panniers and low-riders, Mikel and I both rode a HardSeven and Andy one of the all-mountain models as it had the largest frame available. One additional bike of each model served for the support and film crew, for occasional accompanying riders and for ourselves to test on trail excursions such as Slick Rock Trail in Moab.
Both models of choice feature the absolutely silent, zero-cadence 500-Watt mid-motor by Yamaha and a 400-Wh lithium-ion battery.
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Specs
Bike 1: Haibike SDURO HardSeven RC
Bike 2: Haibike SDURO Allmtn RC
Type: Pedelec (U.S. standard) ePerformance
Top speed: 32 km/h (20 mph)
Motor: Yamaha PV system, 500 W, 36 V
Battery: 400 Wh
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Bikes for Any Ground
We especially chose Haibike SDURO mountainbikes instead of their trekking bike line for this trip as they left all options open to follow the best route depending on the conditions at location. Whether this was the shortest, the most scenic, the safest or the most challenging one, whether it went on roads or cross country––we had the choice. Our Haibike ePerformance bikes made it through sand, snow, rivers and mud, and mastered steep climbs in difficult terrain thus clearly expanding the action radius of a typical trekking bike.
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Juicing Up
In order to get through the wilderness we carried a total of three 400Wh, lithium batteries each and had to carefully plan our route and night-stops ahead to make sure we could re-charge them. Most campgrounds along our route offered power outlets, at least in the bathrooms. In case we did not know prior to arrival or there was no electricity available we carefully watched our energy consumption and rather switched down to Eco-Mode than risking to run out of battery.
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Why Haibike SDURO
On this 5,000 kilometer (3,100 mile) trip we were sure to encounter extreme climate and riding conditions. Crossing the two highest mountain ranges of North America – the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains - and climbing a total of 57,000 meters (187,000 feet), we required high-performance and absolutely reliable e-bikes. We were looking for all-terrain heavy-duty bikes that would allow us to not only ride on roads but also conquer such challenges as sand, snow, mud, rocks, rivers and steep climbs. At the same time we wanted to combine the physical effort with enjoyment as ePerformance does ease the strain. Haibike’s credo to offer bikes for “any ground” and Yamaha’s goal of “being one with the machine” promised to be exactly what we were looking for.
The Haibike team, under the lead of Susanne Puello who I have known long before Haibike came out with their first e-mountainbike in 2010 has consistently pursued it’s vision and has proven the passion and the courage to go ahead, ever again.
The SDURO line is exclusively powered by Yamaha. For the Japanese company, it is the first long-distance tour ever, even though they were the first to bring a pedelec system to the market in 1993.
Furthermore, we ride the Haibike XDURO line powered by Bosch on our eBike Africa tour and were thus most curious to compare and test both systems on two different continents.
We are honored to team up with such leading players and would like to thank Haibike and Yamaha for their support of the Sand to Snow tour.
