This year we had the pleasure of building a custom titanium ebike for a really nice woman in Georgia. She contacted us because she is retired from working at UGA, and does a lot of long supported group rides with friends. She decided she needed and ebike since many of her friends had them and she wanted to be able to keep up with them. Below is her review of the new bike after some big rides.
I am a 69-year-old, 5-foot tall woman who enjoys long, supported group bike tours, averaging 60 miles per day. After 17 years of bike touring, I no longer have the strength or stamina to keep up with a group of women who are increasingly much younger than me. I recently purchased a custom titanium gravel e-bike from Zinn Cycles. I just completed a 24-day tour from Wichita, KS, to Lexington, KY, on the TransAmerica bike route. The Zinn e-bike far exceeded my expectations. The stress I experienced during my past two tours disappeared. Riding my bike is fun again. The fit is perfect because of the 650b wheels. The 48T crank with a 11-42 cassette increased my speed and made climbing comfortable. I used the lowest level of assist (ECO) for most riding conditions, occasionally using TOUR or SPORT modes for strong head winds and long climbs. I got a good workout each day but was never totally exhausted. I never depleted the battery, not even on a 78-mile day with over 4,000 feet of climbing and a 14-mph headwind. Next year, I will complete this cross country tour by biking from Lexington, KY, to Yorktown, VA. I am exremely pleased with my new e-bike and know it will enable me to continue bike touring.”
We built this bike for her with 650b wheels in order to make a nice fitting bike for her 5 foot height and geometry. The smaller wheels look much more proportional with such a small frame. We also used 165mm Praxis ebike cranks that we carry for these particular types of builds. The components are Shimano 11 speed with Di2 electronic shifting.
