Promoting cool e-bikes in Edmonton 2019-2023

Hello! Do you like the idea of riding versatile and good-looking e-bikes, in the city and on trails, transporting them in your car, and not paying ridiculous prices?

Meet the 20-inch-foldable-fat-tire-large-capacity-battery-e-bikes from Changzhou RISTAR Cycle Co. which our business is now selling in Edmonton at a competitive price point. As of July 2022, this is at least $500 lower than local competitors' foldable e-bikes equally equipped with a large capacity battery (48V21Ah) and hydraulic disc brakes. More details below ...

Update (May-17-2023): Due to slow sales we won't import ebikes this season. Please check in March next year to see if new ebikes have arrived.

The reduced 2022/23 price of our well-equipped RSD-507 (high-step frame) and RSD-509 (low-step frame) e-bikes was $1,762+GST = $1,850 total.
See below for detailed specifications.

Type RSD-507 (high-step, with front suspension):

Type RSD-509 (low-step, with front suspension):

Specifications, Warranty
Bike Configuration Choices
Reviews
Winter Driving: Chain or Screws?
Bike Trip Log
Additional Gear
Change Log

Specifications

Frame	6061 alloy, foldable
Speed	motor assistance up to 32km/h
Front fork	lockable suspension
Motor	48V 500W Bafang geared rear hub motor
Controller	48V 11A/22A, 1:1 pedal assist (PAS) and thumb throttle
LCD Display	C300S
Battery	48V 21Ah (~1kWh) battery with Samsung lithium ion cells (large capacity!)
Range	~40km with throttle alone, ~110km with PAS level 1 and ~20km/h average (in the city)
Charger	48V 3A, AC 100V-240V
Brakes	front/rear: Tektro hydraulic disc brake (MD-M280), brake pads replacements
Brake lever	aluminum alloy with motor cut-off
Tires	20×4.0 fat tires
Chain	KMC, rust resistant
Derailleur	Shimano Tourney 7-speed
LED Lights	front+rear, display controlled, including brake lights
Other	long painted fenders (matching frame colour), rear rack, bell
Weight	~24kg with battery
Dimensions	unfolded: L176cm W28cm, folded: L110cm W56cm H76cm
Instructions	manual, derailleur adjustment, changing brake pads

Warranty

3 years on frame
2 years on battery and motor
1.5 years on display, controller and lights
1 year on other components (except those that wear out: tires, inner tubes, chains, sprockets, chainrings, and brake pads)

Bike Configuration Choices

Why use hydraulic disc brakes?
Hydraulic, as opposed to mechanical, disc brakes are more effective and (virtually) maintenance-free. They cost a bit more, but improve e-bike riding safety and handling quite a lot. For more details please visit this webpage
Why use large capacity batteries?
The range of e-bikes obviously depends on many variables such as battery capacity, terrain, total weight, average speed, motor assist level, and pedaling effort. After a few trips in the mountains and in the city we - weighing ~75kg - can provide some data points: in regular driving in Edmonton (including the river valley) at level 1 (which is sufficient to deal with mild head winds and small elevations) and ~20km/h average a single charge of our large capacity (48V21Ah ~ 1kWh) batteries lasts 110+ km. In the mountains, ~1/3 battery charge was used, each, when biking up two fire roads: one was 8km long with 950m elevation gain (going up slowly), and the other was 7.5km long with 500m elevation gain (going faster).
Another advantage of large capacity batteries is that they can operate between 20% and 80% charge level, and still give you sufficient range in daily operation. Not fully charging and discharging batteries greatly extends their lifetime (e.g., from estimated 400 full charge cycles before reaching 80% capacity to over 600). Thus, in all likelihood, bigger capacity batteries will not have to be replaced during the lifetime of your e-bike.
Many other e-bike vendors routinely only offer smaller capacity batteries (such as 48V10Ah or 48V14Ah) which restrict the driving range and battery lifetime considerably. And if they offer larger capacity batteries (such as 48V17Ah or 48V21Ah), they are often quite expensive. Ours are not.
Why use long fenders?
Ever drove a bike when it rained or on muddy trails? It can be even less pleasant if your bike doesn't have fenders. So, we opted for equipping our e-bikes with long fenders so that you are not sprinkled with dirt or mud in incliment weather or when driving on trails. As a bonus, our fenders look NICE as their colour matches their frame's.
Many vendors offer no fenders or short ones only, which don't seem to be that effective.
Why foldable e-bikes with fat tires and front suspension?
One word: versatility. Fat tires add a whole new riding dimension. With them you can easily go off-road without endangering high-pressure road tires. And you can operate them at pressures as low as 8 psi to maximize grip and smoothen the ride. And - as you have a motor on board - the increased rolling resistance doesn't matter much. Moreover, front suspension increases riding comfort on rough terrain even further by absorbing bigger bumps. Lastly, foldable bikes can be transported easily.

Reviews

From the manufacturer: [ebike tour]

Here are two videos I found useful which show reviews of a similar bike:

Compared to the tested bike we have

twice the usual battery capacity (48V21Ah)
hydraulic disc brakes as opposed to mechanical ones
a rear light that is also managed by the controller
long fenders
a rear rack
a slightly different controller
... and much nicer colours ;-)

Winter Driving: Chain or Screws?

Our E-Bike Trip Log

2022 highlights:
Sep-13, 2021: 4600/3400km driven in 26 months
Apr-Sep, 2021, some highlights:
- Johnston Canyon + Ink Pots, drove to the canyon from Castle Junction
- Kayaking on Milk River from Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park to Deerk Creek Bridge, parked the car at the bridge, and ebiked back to the starting point (~8km)
- Kayaking on Middle and Lower Lake in Waterton National Park, parked car at (49.111136, -113.840955), and ebiked back to (49.05701988063088, -113.90600170339509)
- ebiked up to the Cypress Hills viewpoint from Elkwater and later along Elkwater Lake. Great views!
- ebiked the Battle Creek Trail near Fort Walsh
- ebiked around Wascana Lake in Regina
- ebiked from North Battleford to the Battleford Bridge (can't wait for it to be reopened!)
- ebiked in Miquelon Lake Provincial Park
- Headwall Lakes in Kananaskis: ebiked the first 4km, then hiked to the lake(s). Great! We only met 2 hikers on the trail
- Sunshine Meadows (2x): Gondola closed for the season, ebiked up to the village on Banff Avenue, parked at Rock Isle Lake and then hiked around Grizzly and Larix Lake. Fantastic! We only saw 6 other hikers
- Mt. Norquay Scenic Dr - it's still the best in terms of biking downhill (fast, but (almost) no brakes required)
- afternoon coffee at Banff Centre, then ebiking to downton (too crowded!), and Vermillion Lakes along the river
Apr-14, 2021: 4000/2800km driven in 21 months
Apr-1, 2021: first bike trip in Edmonton this year: Mill Creek ravine to the river, Rossdale park, Walter Dale bridge, back on 106 St
Jasper in March 2021
- Parked our bikes at Maligne Canyon's 5th bridge, drove car to the top, hiked down the canyon trail, and walked on the ice at the bottom. Nice! Driving back with the bikes took 20 minutes
- Stayed at Marmot Lodge from where we biked to Jasper centre
Banff in October 2020
- Biked up the Mt. Norquay Scenic Dr, which was the best e-biking experience thus far. Not very steep. Great view of Banff. No brakes required on the way back - gliding down. Fantastic!
- Maiden voyage of our new inflatable kayak on Vermillion lakes. Great!
Jasper in September 2020
- E-biked at the Chikakoo Lake recreation area on the way to Jasper. Nice!
- Climbed Pyramid Mountain! Used e-bikes on fireroad (22km return, 1.5h up (800m elevation gain), 45min down, 1/3 battery used) + 3h hike to the top (750m elevation gain) + 2.5h back). Reached our physical limit ... saw two moose, and had a spectacular biking descent - very similar to skiing (using a motor going up, and gravity going down - fast)
- Garibaldi Lake: e-biked fireroad (16km return) and hiked 4km to the first lake and back. Great! We never saw that many different kinds of mushroom along a trail
- Climbed Signal Mountain! Used e-bikes on fireroad (17km return, 1/2 battery left) + hiked to the lookout and to the top and back. Great view of Jasper and surrounding mountains!
Without the e-bikes we couldn't have done it ...
July 16, 2020: 3200km/2000km driven in one year!
Biking highlights of our recent car trip (Edmonton-Waterton-Nelson-Penticton-Vancouver-Kamloops-Banff-Edmonton):
- KVR near Penticton (great views of Okanagan lake, 34km return, map)
- Highway 1A (closed for cars) from here to Johnston Canyon (17km each way), followed by hiking to the Ink Pots. Much fewer people on the trail than usual
Some of our favourite local trips:
- Aspen Gardens Circle
- Terwillegar Park Circle
Jasper in June 2020
- June 10 [pictures]
  - Miette Hotsprings (biking: ~29km roundtrip - road was still closed for cars - had it all to ourselves) [map]
  - Sulphur Skyline Trail (hiking: 8km roundtrip - cut short due to snow on the trail) [map]
- June 11 [pictures]
  - Edith Cavell 93A exit to Athabasca Falls (biking: ~17km roundtrip, saw a bear family crossing the road near the Whirlpool camping ground!) [map]
  - Maligne Canyon (hiked 4km from 1st to 6th bridge where we had parked our ebikes and drove back to the car) [map]
  - Maligne Lake (drove 75km roundtrip with car and walked a bit along the lake) [map]
- June 12 [pictures]
  - Signal Mountain Skyline Trail (starts with a fireroad followed by a hike to the foot of Signal Mountain with spectacular view of Jasper. Again, snow on the trail cut the hiking part short) [map]
  - Valley of the 5 Lakes trail loop (the first third was a black mountain bike trail - the rocks were brutal) google map
- June 13 [pictures]
  - Valley of the 5 Lakes Trail (5km hike in the morning, fantastic scenery) [map]
  - Siffleur Falls (nice 8km roundtrip hike) [map]
May 31, 2020: 2800km / 1650km driven since July 2019
May 28, 2020: Brazeau Dam (~70km roundtrip, 232m up and down, we had to give up and return 3/4 into the planned circle tour due to overly optimistic satellite images ... at one point both of my tires were clogged with mud, google maps) [pictures]
May 5, 2020: 2500km / 1400km driven since July 2019 - finally we've got some nice weather for biking!
Mar 15, 2020: 2250km / 1200km driven since July 2019 - Winter driving with studded front tires works great - I only had to take the bus one week when temperatures hit -30 degrees - salt on the roads doesn't play nicely with the drivetrain, though 😒
Jan 1, 2020: 1900km / 1200km driven since July 2019
Nov 13, 2019: 1600km / 1100km driven since July 2019
Nov 2, 2019: Canmore to Banff (Legacy Trail) and back (~64km roundtrip, 275m up and down, google maps) [pictures]
Sep 15, 2019: Dawson Bridge to NE Good Earth Coffeehouse and back (on google maps) (~39km roundtrip, ~310m up and down, including two stair segments we'll avoid next time ...)
Sep 3, 2019: 800km / 700km driven in 7 weeks
Sep 2, 2019: Elk Island from here to here to here and back (~31km roundtrip, mostly flat)
Aug 22, 2019: Legacy trail near Banff starting here and going here, here, here and back (~17km roundtrip, ~60m elevation gain, nice views of Banff and surroundings) [pictures]
Aug 21, 2019: Kettle-Valley-Railroad track going from here to here (best part of the KVR track system: trestle bridges, tunnels, spectacular views - awesome - especially in the late afternoon (only a few hikers and bikers), ~20km roundtrip) [pictures]
Aug 15, 2019: Kettle-Valley-Railroad track going north starting here (nice bike path on a converted railroad track alongside Coldwater River - crossing it a few times, flat, ~12km roundtrip) [pictures]
Aug 14, 2019: Berg Lake Trail from here to the Kinney Lake campground (~16km roundtrip, 160m elevation gain, only a few hikers in the evening, spectacular views, some challenging parts which we could easily master with our fat tires and our bikes' walk mode ...) [pictures]
Aug 14, 2019: Skyline Trail near Jasper, biking from here to here and hiking up to here to get a spectacular view of Jasper (~16km total biking, ~950m biking elevation gain, ~1/3 battery used, motors didn't warm up much, but the controllers shut down a few times due to them getting hot I suppose. Waiting a few minutes each time and switching the battery off and on solved that problem. The trail is rather steep and we wanted to know how much we could push the motors / electronics. Now we know...) [pictures]
Jul 30, 2019: Biking up Pyramid Lake Fire Rd near Jaspser quickly starting at the Pyramid Island parking lot and going to the junction and back (~15km roundtrip, ~500m elevation gain) only drained 1/3 of the battery. Passed some mountain bikers on the way up ;-) [pictures]
Jul 29, 2019: Jasper Park Lodge, Annette Lake, Edith Lake, 5th Bridge, 6th Bridge (~17km, mostly flat). Evening - no hikers! [pictures]
Jul 29, 2019: Siffleur Falls, starting here and turning right at the junction onto the fire road along the river (~18km roundtrip, mostly flat). Early afternoon, noone else on the trail. Very nice! [pictures]
Jul 28, 2019: Botanical Garden near Devon from southwest Edmonton via Saddleback Road, here, here, here, and here (~50km roundtrip, mostly flat) [pictures]
Jul 25-27, 2019: multiple trips to the river valley; one from home to here and here, and back, via here, here, and here (~29km roundtrip, a few ups and downs in the valley, fantastic!)