If you’ve had a chance to check out the RadMission Electric Metro bike, one of the first things you’ll likely notice (besides the low $999 USD price!) is that it’s a single-speed ride.
Naturally, you may wonder how it handles hills. And hey, that's a fair question! We know that single-speed bikes don’t usually have a reputation for slaying those daunting inclines without a significant amount of human-pedal power, so why would the RadMission be any different?
Questions like this are why we launched Test Ride Tuesday, a new series that gives riders a taste of what our electric bikes can do in real-world situations.
We can’t think of a better way to kick off the series than by taking a closer look at the RadMission’s climbing capabilities.
We took our latest model to the Issaquah Highlands in Washington, a neighborhood that, as the name suggests, is packed with steep hills. On a regular bike, navigating those streets would be a grueling, sweaty slog. On a Mission? Not so much.
The bike gracefully handled whatever we threw at it. Seasoned mountain biker? Check. RadCity Step-Thru? Fancy seeing you here, friend!
We’re not the only ones who noticed how well the Mission crushes hills. The experts at Electric Bike Review took an up-hill test ride of their own and tried relying solely on the throttle.
“Let’s see what happens if I completely stop … and just try to use the throttle from a standstill," ebike guru Court Rye proposed.
A few seconds later he had his verdict: "I’m impressed! It’s a zippy motor. That for me is one of the biggest highlights of this bike.”
It's no wonder EBR named the RadMission best affordable electric bike of 2020.
When we got back to our Seattle HQ, we stopped by the Rad Lab to ask Cory Tsai, the product manager behind the RadMission, how his team pulled it off.
“We worked hard to make it feel powerful,” he said. “It climbs hills really well because it combines a geared hub motor with narrower tires to cut down on the rolling resistance. It also weighs less than our other bikes, which helps.”
According to Tsai, that’s just the beginning. The bike was also designed to get more out of the rider.
“When you’re on it, you’re in a more aggressive riding position than our other bikes, which allows your body to apply power to the pedals more effectively,” he explained. “It’s the closest we've offered to a road or hybrid bike's riding position, which is what many new ebike riders are used to.”
The RadMisson is available at $999 ($1,499 CAD/€1.099 EUR). Want to know the story behind the RadMission? Rad Power Bikes CEO and Founder Mike Radenbaugh gave us the inside scoop.
