"So, Dad," says my son Matti, "I don't think I need a motor." We have just descended from the Wank near Garmisch-Partenkirchen and are rolling the last few metres back to the car over bumpy cart tracks. The descent has left my children, who are spoilt for suspension, with mixed feelings and the effortless ascent already seems to have been forgotten. "Okay!" I shout, "then we'll head off next weekend without the motor!" "And which bike park?" my daughter Milla wants to know.
This is exactly where our problem lies. While Milla (13) can still be persuaded to go on excursions with smaller climbs, Matti (10) shies away from any uphill cranks. So for some time now, we've been organising our weekends in the bike parks of the Upper Bavarian province. Many parents with younger children feel the same way - the radius of action when biking is limited to the height of the lifts and cable cars. And yet many parents are reluctant to put their children on an e-MTB. The reasons for this: On the one hand, they don't want to make it too easy for the little ones. On the other hand, very few models have been convincing in the past. The challenge facing developers: Motors and batteries have to fit into small frames, the units have to respond sensitively and the power has to be controllable - this cannot be achieved with off-the-shelf products. Child-friendly add-on parts, low overall weight and a manageable price are also part of the specifications.
Requirements that most manufacturers failed to fulfil in our last comparison test in 2017 and - as our market research showed - would still fail today. Most of the models available on the market look like adult bikes that have been washed too hot: 20 kilos in weight, with oversized motors and unsuitable components - a good substitute for a lift on the climbs, but real fun brakes on the descents.
A manufacturer that already stood out positively in our last test: Ben-E-Bike. Back then, the Swabians sent their twelve-kilo Twentyfour E-Power Air hardtail to the starting line and made the competition look ancient. However, the Rottweiler are up against a serious competitor in our duel: children's bike specialist Woom has made a name for itself over the last few years with well thought-out products and has launched its first E-MTB for young bikers this season. The trump card of the Lower Austrians: they develop the majority of the components for the special requirements themselves.
Read the test report to find out how the duel between Woom and Ben-E-Bike ended. You can download the complete comparison test of the two e-kids' bikes from EMTB 4/2020 as a PDF below the article. The test costs 1.49 euros.
Why not free of charge? Because quality journalism has a price. In return, we guarantee independence and objectivity. This applies in particular to the tests in EMTB. We don't pay for them, but the opposite is the case: we charge for them, namely tens of thousands of euros every year.
Downloads:
Josh Welz
Editor-in-Chief
