E Road Bike SLE Ribble.

[Scott addict]

is anyone lucky enough to own this bike?

 

[vickster]

Maybe have a browse in the E bike section of the forum
https://www.cyclechat.net/forums/electric-bikes.159/

 

[Dadam]

Yes I think I've read posts from at least one owner on this forum.
Yes, @youngoldbloke has one
https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/i-have-a-couple-of-questions-as-a-bit-confused.290984/post-6940873

I have the Orbea Gain, a very similar bike with the same motor system

 

[fossyant]

I haven't given up yet, so still riding analogue ! It's a joke !

Looks stealthy for an e-bike, must note when I encounter one on my old Ribble 653 !

 

[Spiderweb]

I took a trip to Ribble in Clitheroe a few weeks ago, the SLe Carbon & alloy both looked fantastic. They’re powered by eBike Motion (Spanish) and Mahle (German) system, as mentioned upthread, this is also used on the Orbea Gain and many other hi end road bikes including Bianchi, Willier etc.

I also liked the look of the electric CGRe, a more versatile bike imo which can be used off road too. It has room for 42mm tyres, and has both mudguard and rear pannier mounts.

I’m very tempted to get a CGRe as my Yorkshire Dales bike to help me up those 25% hills! I currently pick my routes to avoid the steepest climbs. My power to weight (especially my weight!) ratio is not great at the moment😂

 

[youngoldbloke]

Yep - I've got one - not that exact bike which looks like the top of the range DuraAce Di2 version, but the 105 version, but with Mavic carbon wheels and Conti GP 4 seasons. I also opted for a carbon stem and bars rather than the integrated version, which doesn't really allow much flexibility in set up. Same frame, same colour, just slightly heavier than the one pictured - and bit cheaper! Fitted my own beautiful Selle Italia SLK saddle.

 

[Scott addict]

Yep - I've got one - not that exact bike which looks like the top of the range DuraAce Di2 version, but the 105 version, but with Mavic carbon wheels and Conti GP 4 seasons. I also opted for a carbon stem and bars rather than the integrated version, which doesn't really allow much flexibility in set up. Same frame, same colour, just slightly heavier than the one pictured - and bit cheaper! Fitted my own beautiful Selle Italia SLK saddle.

Bet it’s great to ride up the hills?

 

[Dadam]

I’m very tempted to get a CGRe as my Yorkshire Dales bike to help me up those 25% hills! I currently pick my routes to avoid the steepest climbs. My power to weight (especially my weight!) ratio is not great at the moment😂

Depending on your weight and fitness the motor on that bike might not be quite enough for 25%! I'm 14.5 stone (91kg) and I've managed 18%-20% hills on my Gain with max assist but was completely cream crackered at the top and another couple of hundred yards and I would have had to stop. You have to put a fair bit of effort in too, unlike my Bosch powered eMTB which sails up those as if there's a power winch at the top!

I don't want to put you off the bike as the Mahle system is perfect for road riding IMHO and the assist would help a great deal. For Yorkshire hills though I'd prefer a bigger climbing cog than the 32 on the Gain.

 

[youngoldbloke]

Bet it’s great to ride up the hills?

Helps me a lot! More 'get up and go' than my Orbea Gain. Hills are still a big challenge as Dadam says above. I'm getting on for 76, 65kg, but nowadays my leg muscles are starved of blood, and I need all the help I can get. I use the Orbea as my 'winter' or bad weather bike and the Ribble on dryer days, The Ribble is easier to keep rolling with a club ride when the speed drifts up well above the 15.5 mph cut off, and even with my leg issues I have an advantage up hill - however I just try and ride it as I did my non-assisted bikes before I developed leg problems. You'll soon become unpopular if you shoot off up every hill - and deplete your battery, of course.

 

[Dadam]

Helps me a lot! More 'get up and go' than my Orbea Gain.

Interesting. Is that because it’s lighter do you think?

 

[youngoldbloke]

Interesting. Is that because it’s lighter do you think?

Probably. Difficult to quantify. I think the carbon wheels also help. My Gain is one of the early alloy ones with very heavy wheels - I have replaced the front with a Mavic Aksium and toy with the idea of getting the rear rebuilt with a lighter rim. Frame geometry may well have a bearing too, the Ribble has a much shorter headtube and lower position - very like an old Ribble 7005 SL I own. I find some bikes just have an eager 'get up and go' quality, others a 'get up and stop' feel . Having said that the Gain is a generally a more comfortable ride, the Ribble best on smooth road surfaces. I'm using 28mm tyres on both. Wider tyres might help the ride on the SLe, (there is room on the SLe for 32mm, and it does have fittings for mudguards too).

 

[Dadam]

Yes the carbon rims will be a lot of it, lower moment of inertia: basic physics. It's not just accelerating the mass, it's spinning it as well. I don't know about the geometry but I do know Orbea made some changes to the frame (deleted the mudguard lugs for one thing!) Mine's the 2022 model. I've not ridden other road bikes but even with motor off it's certainly got more get up and go than my manual Giant hybrid.

I nearly had a Ribble. I had my cycle to work voucher approved for Ribble and a CGR AL-e configured ready to go in October last year. At the time I put the voucher application in the c2w system, Ribble said my build was expected February. When I was ready to pull the trigger it was saying July! Then I googled Ribble lead times! And I was told by my company I would start paying the monthlies on day 1 and not when I got the bike.

So I canned it and started googling. Found the Gain was in stock at a bike shop 20 miles away. It turned out they didn't have the D40 in XL but Orbea still had two 2022 model XL frames in the factory in Spain (2023 model was due out). I visited the shop, paid a deposit and the shop ordered one of those. In the meantime the voucher came through. Frame shipped from Spain, bike built by shop, and I was riding it 10 days after the order was placed. Kudos to Orbea and Chevin Cycles (Harrogate), hard luck Ribble!

 

[richtea]

Depending on your weight and fitness the motor on that bike might not be quite enough for 25%! I'm 14.5 stone (91kg) and I've managed 18%-20% hills on my Gain with max assist but was completely cream crackered at the top and another couple of hundred yards and I would have had to stop. You have to put a fair bit of effort in too, unlike my Bosch powered eMTB which sails up those as if there's a power winch at the top!

I don't want to put you off the bike as the Mahle system is perfect for road riding IMHO and the assist would help a great deal. For Yorkshire hills though I'd prefer a bigger climbing cog than the 32 on the Gain.

That matches my experience of the Gain. Anything steeper than about 1-in-7 (14%-ish) is hard on the older 2020 Gain (I can't speak for newer ones).
However, it stills beats trying to climb the same hill on an equivalent non-ebike!
The beauty of the Gain is that it feels and handles pretty close to a 'normal' bike - there's extra weight, but it's not completely weird.

 

[youngoldbloke]

I believe the philosophy behind the EBM/Mahle system is 'just enough' assistance, not a free ride. For me it roughly puts me back to the level I had before my leg issues. That's what I wanted - to be able to carry on riding as I had done for many years, on a bike that was as much like the ones I rode before - so for me proper hills still hurt, and some are just as almost impossible as they were unassisted.
BTW - I bought my SLe just over a year ago from Ribble and no hitches. I knew there were delays on some parts due to availability and was given a delivery date which was pretty much spot on. I'd bought from them before without problems so no complaints. The big difference in price between the SLe and a roughly equivalent Orbea made the choice easier for me, together with the ability to customise the bike to some extent.