Ribble Endurance SL e e-bike review

When I rode over to the flatter side of Yorkshire, for example, I spent the entire ride above the threshold for assistance. Luckily, the drag from the motor when it's not in use isn't that noticeable, but compared to a non-electric road bike it just feels ever so slightly more sluggish. This isn't a critique of Ribble or Mahle, but more the fact that with current legislation electric road bike popularity is likely to be less so than if e-bike motors were allowed to assist just a little bit faster. 

I digress. The frame is a racing frame, and comes with the Configure Level 5 Carbon Integrated Road Bar and Stem – aka, it’s fancy and it’s aerodynamic. The bars on my bike were a little wider than I’m used to, but I appreciated the ergonomics of the drop with it being quite shallow so I could sit comfortably on the drops.

I've not ridden a non-electric Ribble, let alone this frame, but even with a motor weighing down the back end, it was a pretty confidence-inspiring ride. It's not the most agile bike you'll ever ride, but with a shorter stem/smaller bars combo (which you can choose if you purchase on the website) I think it would feel more than race-ready (if you could race an e-bike). 

That being said, it's just a fantastic training ride partner. It's quite nice to climb on, your hands sit nicely on the bars whether you're out of the saddle or in it, and it seriously took out a lot of the lack of motivation I usually find when the weather gets really windy or wet. I'm currently riding it in an attempt to increase my fitness, and you'll be able to read about that soon and determine whether an electric road bike can help you get fit. (Spoiler alert: it can, and in fact, it might be a better option than an unassisted one if you live near a lot of hills).

I rode it through downpours and on warmer sunny days, and it was reliable and comfortable throughout. It's a bike you can put the miles in on, particularly with the new Shimano 105 Di2 groupset. I won't go into too much detail on this here, but essentially it's an electronic groupset rather than mechanical. If you remember to charge it and keep it clean it works like a charm, otherwise, you might find yourself at the bottom of Haworth wondering why the front derailleur won't shift…

The only design consideration I wasn't entirely convinced with was the position of the charge port. Naturally, this is down to Mahle, but given that the UK is pretty wet for a fair few months of the year, having an upward-facing charge port isn't ideal. After particularly wet rides I was a bit paranoid about charging it until I'd allowed it to dry out completely with a towel and an air compressor to help speed the process along.