I thought this was an interesting question, and Jon's real-world answer was interesting too, and fitted in with what I'd always thought, which is that e-bkes are not good at steep climbing - although mid-drive motors are certainly better than hubs.
I had a quick look at the physics to see how possible it looked. The inputs are from above + my guesses, especially the efficiency % at the end - I don't know what the losses would be from motor heat, tyres, from changes in speed / accelerations, air resistance, etc, etc - but they would add up.
This is what I got.
The peak power of the Bosch CX is 850W. @skinny can put in a few hundred watts so the motor doesn't have to do it all. Maybe not impossible, but feels like it is on the edge. If it goes to 20% on a section the power increases proportionately so, on my assumed numbers, the total power goes to 1.33kW, so the rider's share goes up to nearly 500W. Pushing out 500W while trying to handle the bike, steer and have something in reserve just in case...
I thought this was an interesting question, and Jon's real-world answer was interesting too, and fitted in with what I'd always thought, which is that e-bkes are not good at steep climbing - although mid-drive motors are certainly better than hubs.
I had a quick look at the physics to see how possible it looked. The inputs are from above + my guesses, especially the efficiency % at the end - I don't know what the losses would be from motor heat, tyres, from changes in speed / accelerations, air resistance, etc, etc - but they would add up.
This is what I got.
The peak power of the Bosch CX is 850W. @skinny can put in a few hundred watts so the motor doesn't have to do it all. Maybe not impossible, but feels like it is on the edge. If it goes to 20% on a section the power increases proportionately so, on my assumed numbers, the total power goes to 1.33kW, so the rider's share goes up to nearly 500W. Pushing out 500W while trying to handle the bike, steer and have something in reserve just in case...