Electric bikes have taken Lord Howe by storm. There is hardly a young family on the Island without an e-bike and, for the guest house and restaurant staff who usually work one or more seasons on the Island, e-bike ownership has become the norm. I’ve had an ASEAKO electric bike since 2020, and it has given me good service. Lately, however, I’ve found it increasingly difficult to get their spare parts in Australia. So where do you go if you want to purchase a new e-bike? A friend of ours has a subscription to Choice Magazine and offered to show me their analysis of a wide range of e-bikes, all of which were tested in their laboratory and on the road.
In 2024, Choice had a panel of experts rate the best performers in terms of pedal assistance, braking, turning, low speed performance, ride comfort, ease of using and accessing the controls, battery use (on-bike and off-bike) and general handling (including ease of mounting, dismounting, walking the bike, safety and comfort). From a wide selection of bikes, the Choice experts short-listed 21 brands – and the recommended retail prices were also given. I thought it might be handy to share some of their findings with other e-bike riders on Lord Howe.
Price, of course, can be a bit of a crunch for all of us. The two top recommended brands were the Focus Ventura and the Orbea Vibe H 30, both of which were rated at 79% with respect to their performance. However, the Focus Ventura was just over $5000, and the Orbea Vibe just under that. That was somewhat beyond my budget!
However, on the next price step down were three bikes, two of which were just over $3000, but still rated at 78%, only one percentage point under the top models, but cheaper by around $2000. These were the Vamos El Rapido and the Kalkhoff Endeavour (A third bike also achieved a 78% rating – the Reid Ladies’ Classic and it was half price again, but didn’t look rugged enough to last on Lord Howe’s pot-holed roads!)
Deciding to follow the Choice assessment and the price I could afford, I emailed Vamos bikes, based at Mascot, and was delighted to receive a reply within minutes from the business owner, Conrad Pattinson who replied: “I was actually in Lord Howe Island this time last year and had a blast. One of my favourite places in the world. I was sad to see no Vamos bikes around… Right now shipping isn’t looking too expensive for us so we are happy to cover shipping to Lord Howe Island.” (I must add that I forwarded enquiries via the websites of some other e bike outlets too, but no-one except Conrad bothered to reply!)
Like many Island residents who zip about on their e-bikes, I’m now enjoying daily rides on my El Rapido. Although we have a wonderful electric car a Mitsubishi Mini Van lots of chores on Lord Howe, like a trip to the shops or post office, are just as easily done on an e-bike.
There is the benefit of exercise if one wants to pedal, but most models have an accelerator which propels the bike without any help from your legs.
Everything on the El Rapido functions in line with the Choice Magazine assessments: it is compact, comfortable, easy to mount and ride, has a sturdy frame and the battery is amazing. I rode a round trip from the top of Anderson Road down to Old Settlement Beach then along Lagoon Road to the Little Island gate and back again a distance of about 13km and the battery hadn’t lost a single bar. If you would like to take my bike for a test drive, don’t hesitate to contact me….I’m rapt!
Vamos, however, has over seven e-bike models apart from the El Rapido, many of which have the fatter tyres which many prefer because of Lord Howe’s bumpy roads. Their most popular model, according to Conrad, is the Amigo, which can be ordered with a pillion seat and pegs. He says, “Vamos was started by two mates from Bondi, and one of them fell in love with Lord Howe Island and its people. He wanted to offer free shipping to help spread the Vamos love to his favourite island! Please let people know they can use the code LORDHOWE at checkout for free shipping. We can also include a free pannier bag, which works really well with the Amigo model for carrying extra gear”.
On with the e-bike revolution!
(Contact Chris on email chrisandmargart@gmail.com if you would like to test ride or flag me down if you happen to see the El Rapido passing.)
