Can ANYONE Ride An E-Cargo Bike？ We Find Out

Just how hard is it to ride an e-cargo bike? In this video, we're going to see what happens when people who've never ridden one before try it. We are going to watch their first reactions as well as see them tackle our cargo bike challenge. Just a couple of tight corners over there. Oh, come on. Nearly knocked you off there, Steve. Don't fall off this time. Cargo bikes are big bikes and some are frankly massive. Starting out on one can seem like a daunting task, which is why we've rounded up a motley crew of GCN staff to experiment on. Sorry, sorry, to see how they get on. We've actually got two different types of cargo bikes here to see whether that makes a difference as well. If you are looking at buying an electric cargo bike, perhaps the biggest question that you need to answer is which type you choose. Yes, the bikes we have with us today, we have a long tail, which puts the cargo capacity on the rear of the bike, on the tail. We also have this, a front loader, which basically has a big bucket in front of the rider, which is where you put the cargo. The two bikes we've got here today are both great examples of their type. This, the Turn GSD, kind of like the OG of long tail cargo bikes. Yes, and you'd have probably heard Si banging on and on and on about them. I think they're really good, mate. I love a long tail. We know you do, Si. We know you do. Look, this is the Riese & Muller Load 5. It's a front loader, which is actually very similar to the sort of bike that I ride a lot on the school run, also getting into GCN Megabase every now and again. When I am on the school run and people ask me which sort of cargo bike they should go for, more often than not, I tend towards saying this one. Which is terrible advice. It's clearly not, Si. It's clearly not. This is, I think, perfectly suited to the job of carrying children. Okay. All right. Now, jokes aside, Conor and I do disagree on this, but we don't actually know, do we, what people's first experience of cargo bikes are like, but it does seem that you are either in one camp or the other. Well, let's see what happens, shall we? Let's find out. Okay, guys, thanks for taking the time to come today and mess around on bikes. As you know, we want to get people's first impressions of riding a cargo bike. Today, we've got two different types. I'm going to let you get used to them. I would say in private, but we've actually got an Insta360 mounted to the handlebars to capture your every move. We're then going to send you off on GCN's cargo bike obstacle course with a load in front. Yes. Now, both of these bikes are top-of-the-range electric cargo bikes. We've got to say a big thanks to Bosch for actually arranging them for us. Now, they are with similar levels of specification. Basically, both have the latest Bosch cargo line motor. Yes, ABS. Yes, sat-nav. In fact, pretty much the only real difference between them is where that load carrying capacity is, either at the front or at the back. Are you ready? It's now time for the cargo bike challenge. We've devised a circuit which includes similar obstacles that you might encounter on a regular cargo bike ride around a town or a city. Tight corners, slow sections, and chicanes. The load on the bike will be 30 kilos. Not the maximum these bikes can take, not anywhere close, in fact, but a good substitute for a weekly shop or a couple of young kids. Bloody hell, it's heavy. Oh, this is fun. Okay, here we go. Right, ready? And go. I'm just trying to work out the gears at the minute. Oh, come on. Nearly knocked you off there, Steve. Oh, it's amazing turning. Oh, amazing. Fun? Yes, it was so much fun. Maybe that's just it, is it? Or do you have to put it back? That's it, like a motorbike? Yes, yes. Oh, God, no. I'm not keen on this. All right, it's looking clear, Julian. I think initially I preferred the first bike I went on, which was the back loader, simply because I just found the balance a bit easier. Whereas when I had the front loader, I felt when I set off, it seemed heavier, and I just felt a little bit off balance, but I'm sure I would have got used to it. Now, I'm definitely not a front loader person. It's an odd thing, isn't it? You all right? Do you want a hand getting it? You good? I think I'm just not keen on the turning bit. It's such a sharp turn. I liked the front loader because it was a bit different, but I think practicality, the rear was just much easier to ride. The rear felt normal because I think it was just a better riding position. You could see the wheel, you could see the handlebars, so it just felt more natural. I am team back loader. I can see why people, front loader, if you've got children, I can see that you can see them in front of you, which might feel safer, but in terms of agility and balance, I'm a back loader person. Oh, it's heavy. Okay. Oh, they're so heavy. I'll let you go first. Are you sure? Yes. Okay. This way? First crash. This is not going too well, is it? Oh, my God. Oh, my God. I had to duck for the bridge. Really? I thought I was going to lock my head off. Oh, my God. Oh, skiing. That's scary. First crash. I think I might have had it in the hardest gear. Thank you. Okay, let's try better, for the better this. It's definitely on turbo. Yes? Okay. Whoa. I don't think I can do this. This one is way heavier. This is way better than the other one. No bridge, but this one, I much prefer this one. It's so much more fun. Is it fair? Yes, it's really fun. I think I prefer the front loader because it was way more flowing once it got moving. It was really hard to get started, but once you got moving, it was really good. I preferred the rear loader. It's just because it feels more familiar. I hated the fact I couldn't see the front wheel on the front loader. I didn't know where it was staying. The moment I came around there, I had a little tumble there because I didn't know that the bush was literally maybe like a foot in front of me. I felt like the rear loader was really hard to maneuver. It didn't feel as flowy as the front loader. Even when I was moving it, it felt long and harder to move and steer around. I'm team rear loader. Team front loader. Let's quickly run through a few more of the specifics of these two types of bikes. I think that ultimately, all of our GCN crew will get comfortable on either bike, so what are the relative pros and cons? The front loader can carry more. Yes, each make and model will differ slightly, but in general, these bikes can fit a large volume of stuff in them. It's one of the reasons, actually, that I like them because it is so easy just to throw things in with minimal faff. It's feasible to think that you can get up to 200 liters in one of these, which is about the same as a boot or a trunk in a small hatchback car. Actually, in this particular model, you can fit three kids in, which is not something that you can do in a rear-loading longtail. However, these are big bikes. Storage is a bit more of an issue, as is navigating poorly thought-out city infrastructure at times. The longtail, meanwhile, can get two pretty large kids on, but not three. It is, however, better suited for carrying adult passengers, potentially worth noting. In terms of luggage capacity, the Turn can carry up to 160 liters in what's called their Stormbox, but it's split between two panniers and then a little bit on top. It's not ideal for large or bulky loads, but longtail bikes like this are typically lighter and smaller and a bit more agile. For example, if you get stuck somewhere and you need to carry up a small flight of steps, this won't leave you begging for passersby to lend you a hand. What's important on any cargo bike, though, is that you've got enough power to safely get away from traffic lights or propel you up hills and have enough stopping power to get down the other side of those hills safely. Now, in both of the cargo bikes we're using today, we are using Bosch's Cargo Line motor, which has 100 newton-meters of torque and 750 watts of power. If you are riding with passengers or lots of luggage, especially in hillier areas, that is going to be super helpful. On the channel, we did discover that more power was something that people wanted, and with these latest motors, that's what we've got. However, as the GCN crew have found, that power is not scary. You've got three levels of assist before you get to the fourth and most powerful one, cargo mode. Plus, both of these bikes have the ABS system from Bosch to ensure that you can brake as safely as possible, just like in a car, even on slippery surfaces. There are lots of other features, too, that we could mention that would help any rider, new or veteran, be that the Bosch Flow app, which allows you to do loads of things from tailoring the output of the motor to giving you range information relating to a journey that you're taking, and particularly cool, cycling-specific sat-nav. You'll also find that on certain bikes that are fitted with the Bosch Connect module, additional security features like a tracker and an alarm on the bike. Now, both of those functions are part of a paid-for subscription in the Bosch Flow app. We've actually made a video about that. If you're interested, we'll pop a link to it in the description beneath this one. Right, back to the cargo bike challenge. Well, this will be different. Almost rode straight into that. It's got a bit of go to it. Crank her into turbo. Not sure about the handling on this. This feels a lot more normal than I thought it would do. It's not weighted up yet, but hopefully, it should be all good. Is that all right? Yes, yes. I'm going to load you up. See what sort of turning circle we've got here. Oh, there we go. Let's whack it in full power. Cruising. Nightmare. Change my gears a bit. Easy as that. Drop and everything. I feel like I'm going to crash into everything around me. It's so weird because I can't see the front wheel. I don't know what it is about it, but it makes the steering feel so much different. It feels like I'm steering the wrong way for absolutely everything. Let's hope this one's a bit better. Oh, yes. It just feels like a million times more natural to ride, I'd say. Getting used to the front loader took a while. Yes, it definitely took a lot longer than the rear loader. After a couple of minutes, it felt a bit more normal. It was more or less fine after that, really. I prefer the rear loader, definitely. I just felt that the front loader, I couldn't get used to the steering. I didn't really feel like I had full control of the bike. Although I preferred riding the rear loader, I think the front loader would probably be a bit better with more weight in it just because it's nice and low in the front, and it feels like it's a bit more secure that way, whereas with the extra weight on the rear loader being quite high up, I think it might be a little bit more different to ride, I suppose. Yes, I think I'd probably go front loader, I reckon, for that. All right, just go when I'm ready? Yes, definitely. Yes? Okay. Whoa. That is so weird. The whole bike is wobbling with no one in it. Do you want a Kirin in there? Are you good, Kirin? Yes, I can't really see. Don't worry, I can see everything. Okay. It's just you're moving a lot more than I thought it was. Oh, my God. This is terrifying. This is a tight corner. We're good. Oh, no. Hit the downslope. Slow down, slow down, slow down. Don't fall off this time. Man, that was very tight. Oh, no. I think I preferred the rear loader. When I first got on the front loader, I was enjoying it in the smooth corners. The second I needed to take anything tight, that's when I stumbled quite a bit and the bike ended up very much on its side at one point. Yes, it didn't go as great, but the rear loader very much just stayed where I wanted it to go. Back loader feels like a normal bike, which I think could be maybe a little bit dangerous. If you've got stuff on the back, you forget that there's extra weight behind you because it just literally feels like you're riding a normal bike. I thought the front loader was a little bit twitchy. It felt better with Kirin in the front. With all that weight at the front, I think it just stabilized the bike. Entering corners felt a little bit more sketchy because there's so much more weight going with the bike, but yes, it felt more stable. I think if I had to live with one, I'd probably actually go front loader because I think with the time, it was actually a lot smoother of a ride for most of the time apart from when I had to do really awkward turns. I preferred the rear loader just because it felt more like a normal bike, easier to get used to. Probably, yes, it was a lot easier on tighter corners and stuff. It's been a fun day seeing everyone get used to a cargo bike for the first time. As you can tell, I love these bikes and it's been brilliant to see everyone have such a laugh riding them. Yes. Do you know what is absolutely key from all of this, Conor, is that despite some initial wobbles, everybody got used to riding these cargo bikes and in a really short space of time. We gave people 10 minutes, including the cargo bike challenge, and they nailed it. Yes, that's it. I must concede though, the front loader did have a slightly longer learning curve to get used to, didn't it? I'll give you that one. At the same time, I don't think you should think that that's a reason to avoid any of the bikes. It's like if the characteristics suit you and that's what you need from the bike, then go for it. Absolutely, yes. It might be that when you get on it in the bike shop car park, it feels a bit weird, but as we've just said, after 10 minutes, it's going to feel less weird. A little bit like if you're buying a car and you needed a really big one to carry loads of stuff around, like a van or a pickup truck, you know that it's not going to be quite as nippy or agile to drive around tight spaces, but that's the trade-off for having a bigger one. Yes, for sure. Exactly. I think regardless of your cycling experience, it's safe to say both bikes can work for anyone. Yes, 100%. Right, hit the big thumbs up button if you've enjoyed this one. We really want to hear your thoughts on it as well. If you already have a cargo bike, what are your experiences? What were your first experiences particularly? Also, if you haven't got a cargo bike yet but you're interested, we really hope that this video will have been of some use for you. Nice one. Thanks, everyone.