Canadian
Specialized Ariel G311 Conversion
Calgary, AB
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131
Published: 2023-08-27
We bought this Specialized Ariel from Greggs Greenlake Cycle in Seattle, for my wife, but she never really put many miles on it. Seattle is a hilly place and ascending these hills was difficult for her, even with the 3x9 drivetrain. So after we moved back to Canada, I put a Bafang 311 kit from Grin, complete with a Baserunner Z9, eRider torque sensing bottom bracket, and of course a Cycle Analyst. I built a 52V 600Wh battery for this bike, with the Baserunner installed in the battery tray.
I chose this kit due to it's low noise and weight, as well as to keep the stock look as much as possible. This has ended up being a great choice, since my wife does want to put in work, but might want a bit of help on the hills. The G311 does warm up pretty quick, but during casual rides and commuting it provides adequate help on hills. She doesn't use a lot of assist, and averages around 5-6 Wh/km giving the bike a range of over 100km, which is more than she will ever ride in a day on this bike.
This has ended up being a great bike for commuting and casual riding, without becoming too "motorcycle-ish", and she's been enjoying it a lot more now.
