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A little googling tells me this dude used to be the marketing guy for Alta motorcycles.
I'm pretty sure he knows what he is doing, or at least knows what he is saying when trying to cross-brand these things.
And they didnt have much of a brand presence besides racing RBSR and Erzbeg anyways
When it's gonna blow up then, IMHO, most mass market brands like Spec etc. gonna be eaten alive by the Honda's, KTM's etc. Probably Fox and RS will take a hit as WP's and Kayaba's will ship with those. However TLD, is perfectly positioned to cope with the change
I talked to guys that co-created KTM's E-XC, mainly the battery pack, and they say that it's a success for the KTM. So I think there's know how in the moto to make the transition. Also if auto/moto guys crack light recuperation devices for e-mtb's/ultralights then it's gonna be a KO for traditional brands IMHO. Same charge twice the distance?
In Europe in the anticipation for this some trail centers are already banning anything with "e".
You guys over the pond still have some time to fight it. Like I said, e-mtb are not the biggest problem, the problem is what they are creating an acceptance for. Meaning e-ultralight motos. Which will be way easier to hack/tune than current dirtbikes.
In Australia we don't really have trail access issues, designated bike trails are bike trails, even unofficial trails are often accepted as long as people don't make a mess of the environment. We more have to worry about dirt bikes illegally ripping them up, especially in more regional trails. You see e-bikes around but to be honest I've only ever seen a handful. There are some trails near me which aren't the most exciting, but they are close and we share them with walkers and dogs and kids. Everyone is respectful of each others right to use them so its fine... I ride them because they are close and I can get a good ride in without spending a few hours in my car...
So, most mountain bikers have not really had to worry about the impact of e-bikes on our trails here. These sort of motorbikes disguised as mountain bikes will change that... because I can see the trails most people riding, especially the shared ones, suddenly becoming very dangerous. And the sort of people who will be attracted to them will be the sort of troublemakers who don't care, who can finally rip up our trails on "mountain bikes". We have them around here, kids who ride stolen scooters and monkey bikes on main bike tracks at 60km/h without a helmet and would run you down if they thought they could get away with it.
They won't be riding KTM's or Honda's... they will be riding the cheap chinese knockoffs that will follow and people will get hurt... Not to mention the impact it will have on our trails and access when people decide enough is enough...
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