“Holy shit, that’s fast.”
The red light had just turned green and I press on the throttle with my thumb. Instantly I am thrust forward, and I hit 20mph in three seconds.
If ALSO could only demo a single thing about the bike, that’d be the feature to sell me on. I’m guilty of gliding past so many a yellow light when biking, because when you stop at a red light you lose all your momentum. You’re stuck shifting down, maybe adjusting the pedal assist level, and then slowly lurching forward once the light is green again.
As I passed by another test rider who had just tried the same thing with the throttle I heard him exclaim “fucking hell!”
But this bike is more than its ludicrously fast acceleration that goes from 0–20 in 3 seconds, fast enough to make you think you’re about to do a wheelie (which a representative assured me won’t happen because the front wheels detect being off the ground which will cut power to the motor).
ALSO started its life at Rivian before it got spun off into its own independent company, and you can see Rivian’s DNA all over this bike, from the shape of its headlight, to the sound design of its electronic bell, to the fact that they use Rivian EV battery cells to power the bike’s drivetrain.
And coming off the pandemic years when it seemed like the market was flooded with e-bikes and e-bike companies (of which many no longer exist, including my beloved DOST), ALSO is here trying something completely new.
The TM-B is nominally a bike-shaped bike. But if you look closer, almost everything about it is custom, and the most custom part of this bike is its drivetrain system.
With every other bike and ebike, your pedals are mechanically connected to the wheels, sometimes directly, and sometimes through a series of gears and other mechanical contrivances. The TM-B is different. When you pedal the TM-B, you feed power into a generator, and that generator (plus the battery) powers a separate motor that actually propels the bike.
This is super cool, because the amount of energy it takes to pedal is constant, whether you are on flat terrain or on a steep hill. It doesn’t feel fake like an exercise bike either; it just feels like you’re riding a bike. The resistance grows as you push harder, and the bike moves faster. It’s an incredible feeling.
I’m quite enamored with the cool things ALSO did with the custom design of this bike too (another general characteristic I love about Rivian’s EVs). Everything is super tightly integrated. You have built-in lights (and turn signals), as well as an electronic bell. There is a nice looking color center screen that displays surprisingly well even in bright daylight. The seats are interchangeable, and you have a few different options including a bench seat, a cargo setup, and a plain old bike seat.
The bike takes a little getting used to, though. I test rode one with standard handlebars (which provide a more upright experience) and I still felt like the handlebars were low for my taste as a 6’2" rider. I feel like I’m leaning way more forward than I do on my current bike. The crank length is also shorter than what I’m accustomed to, and it made the pedaling motion seem a bit shallower. The handlebars are not able to be changed in height, but allegedly the crank could be changed as it uses standard parts (according to a post I saw on a forum). It wasn’t uncomfortable, just different, like I was getting into a smaller sports car. When my ride was over and I got back on my own bike to ride home it felt like being back with an old friend. It almost gave me pause about my preorder, but then as soon as I had to stop at a red light with my existing bike and then get going again, I realized I’ve been ruined. I don’t plan to get rid of my current bike anyway, so if I ever am craving a comfy ride on a big framed bike, I can just hop on the old one. But I have a feeling I won’t do that often.
As the owner of a bike made by a company that has gone under, I realize I’m taking an even bigger risk with the TM-B. My DOST Kope is made with largely off-the-shelf components and my local bike shop has never balked at servicing it. But the TM-B is a whole other ballgame, and if they go under then I’m at the mercy of the longevity of most of the bike.
But I’m hoping it doesn’t come to this, and I am optimistic it won’t, because this bike feels like something entirely new.
As I was riding home today, I was trying to think of an apt comparison. If a standard bike is like a gas-powered car, and traditional pedal-assist e-bikes are like a plug-in hybrid car, then the TM-B feels like a proper EV. It’s a glimpse at a reimagining of what bikes can be. It’s the kind of bike that you could show an open-minded person who has never thought it possible to commute by bike and they could be convinced to take the leap. This bike’s drive system feels well-suited to last mile commercial delivery as well, and with the right attached equipment could probably be sold as-is to delivery companies.
If you’re a bike enthusiast and you love bikes for the limits they currently have, it’s a toss up whether you’re going to ride a TM-B and like it. But if you’re not a biker at all right now, this is the bike that could make a bike enthusiast out of you, and I love that about it.
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