Photo credit: Trek Bikes

I’m an avid mountain biker, but I also love just being on the bike, even if that means putzing around on roads. My commute to work is about 10 miles one way, so when the weather isn’t too extreme, I love riding my bike instead of driving. While this is a fun way to start and end my day — with the added benefit of being able to ride canals most of the way, it was taking me 50 minutes to an hour each way, depending on what the wind decided to do while riding my Specialized Rumor.

While I don’t mind the extra time on a bike, I have two young kids I need to pick up from daycare before the daycare closes, so it’s not ideal, especially at the end of the day. With that in mind, I decided to pull the trigger on an e-bike, which could ideally shave some time off my commute but not break the bank too badly.

Knowing I wanted an e-bike purely for my commute/road biking, I went into my bike shop with a few needs in mind:

• Will be used primarily on the road, so any kind of suspension wasn’t needed (any suspension on an e-bike drives the price up quite a bit — a hardtail adds about an extra thousand — full suspension an extra 2 thousand at the very least)
• I didn’t want a cruiser or road bike — I’m still a mountain biker, after all, and I don’t want to get nervous when I see gravel
• Pedal assist only — I didn’t want the bike to bike me

Considering these requirements, the lovely sales associate pointed me to the Trek Dual Sport+ 2 for $2,399.99. It was the perfect balance of a commuting bike that could go off-road if needed. I’ve been riding it for a little over two weeks, and here are a few of my thoughts so far:

Pros:

• Just in general, if you’ve never ridden an e-bike before, it is FUN — you feel like a superhero when you pedal with the pedal assist cranked all the way up
• The design is really sleek — it doesn’t really look like an e-bike which I love
• It did the trick! It reduced my hour commute to 35 minutes!
• Lightweight for an e-bike (I’m a 5’8″ woman, so mine is a medium which is 38.39 lbs/17.41 kg)
• Comes with a built-in bell and front and back lights. A small thing, but appreciated nonetheless

Cons:

• I wish it could go faster! It’s 9-speed, and I would love it if it was at least a 12-speed — there are times I’m opening her up on a nice long uninterrupted stretch, and I’m topped out 🙁
• Sometimes (fairly rarely), the pedal assist can be a little jittery
• The battery amount isn’t ideal — I biked to and from work after purchasing the bike (so likely the battery charge wasn’t topped off), and by the end, the last battery light was flashing on me, which was only 20 miles.

All in all, I’m really enjoying it! It allows me to commute to work on my bike more, and I still feel like I’m getting a good ride. I especially love how it’s stealthily an e-bike and has the feel of a mountain bike.

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