An Olympic Cycling Legend Saddles up for EBK, an all-new E-Bike Racing Series - Britain's Ed Clancy

High-speed E-Bike racing on short city street circuits. This is what EBK promises with its new FIM EBK World Cup. Exhibition races in international cities are set for this summer to kick off the all-new E-Bike racing series. The full series will run in 2024, and it is planned to become an FIM-sanctioned world championship in 2025.

And who better to represent EBK than one of Britain’s most decorated Olympians and one of the best team pursuit cyclists in history. Ed Clancy OBE retired from professional cycling after the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 but has stepped up as ambassador for the EBK racing series.

“I’m excited about the sport and I’m excited about the sort of trickle-down effect and the real-world application,” Ed Clancy tells Auto Futures.

The E-Bikes that will be used in the race have a motor that will either be in the rear or attached to the pedals, as well as a battery in the downtube, in the bike’s front triangle. This will give riders an extra 200 to 400 watts of consistent power.

“Depending on the size of the rider and the power he can make, we’re going to be looking at an average power increase, I’d say of about 75 per cent. That doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll be going 75 per cent faster, but one thing we know for sure is that the racing will be faster, and it will be exciting,” says Clancy.

Despite the bike’s technology, it “doesn’t scream E-Bike at you,” says Clancy. To the untrained eye, it simply looks like a sleek, lightweight bike.

Formula 1 Format

Like Formula 1, there will be a qualifying race before the actual race. Riders will use a single battery charge for both events, so they will have to make a choice of where they’re deploying that finite amount of battery life.

If they decide to use a lot of battery in qualification to set themselves up for a great grid position, they’ll be starting the race with less battery. If riders and teams take it easy in qualification, they’ll have a poor grid position, but more battery to start the race with.

“We’re not just going to be riding E-Bikes in full throttle turbo mode all the time. We’re purposely going to make the races long enough and limit our batter capacity, so that the rides and teams have really got to think about where they’re deploying this,” explains Clancy.

The key difference between EBK and F1, aside from the obvious, is that everyone is riding the same bike, using the same equipment, so there will be a considerable human element to the race.

“Everyone knows if you’re not in the best or one of the best cars [in an F1 race], it doesn’t matter if it’s Lewis Hamilton driving it, it’s still not going to get over the line first,” says Clancy. “I think that’s where we’re going to strike a really exciting balance between human performance and a machine.”

Part of the excitement of E-Bike racing will be the athletes learning how to balance the bike’s power and their own physical power. Not only will this be a test of physical ability, but Clancy anticipates a steep learning curve for the riders as they figure out how best to use the battery life.

“A part of me does hope that we see riders running out of battery before the line, and there’ll be some riders that hold back too much battery and end up with 10-15 per cent battery charge at the finish and they’re kicking themselves for not using more of it,” says Clancy. “It’s an interesting concept, and I don’t think for a second that every rider and every team will get it right.”

Between six and ten teams will compete, and each team will have an equal number of male and female riders. In total, there will be between 30 and 50 participants.

E-Bike Appeal

Of course, there’s potential for E-Bike racing to develop a massive fan base.

“I think to the untrained cycling eye, the town centre format is just so much more appealing. I’ve always enjoyed racing it as a cyclist, and to bring E-Bike technology to an already exciting part of the sport, you know to make it more of what it already is, it’s fast, it’s furious, it’s exciting, the racing is close, and I think the e-assist is going it make it more of that,” explains Clancy.

The appeal of E-Bikes also lies in the accessibility. Clancy believes that they’re a lot less alienating than non-electric, analog bikes. Even if a person has absolutely no interest in riding a bicycle, it’s possible that they’d enjoy using an E-Bike.

“[Analog bikes] can be hard work, especially around hilly areas, where it’s windy and the weather is rubbish, [people] don’t want to suffer away on a bike and try to get fitter. If it’s too hard to begin with, people won’t give it a chance, and I don’t blame them,” says Clancy.

However, after riding an eBike, people may discover that, “it becomes way less alienating than, you know, the middle-aged man wearing Lycra on his 20-grand analog bike.”

Sustainability Through Cycling

Ed Clancy is a big believer in the positive role E-Bikes will play in a sustainable future. That’s why the host cities will be working with EBK to promote sustainable transport projects. The fact that races are being held on city streets in itself emphasises the cleaner ways of living and moving in cities.

“We don’t just want to turn up, do an event in a sustainable manner, and promote a sustainable thing, we want to leave a legacy,”  concludes Clancy.