This Long-Range E-Bike Uses Minigames to Make Your Ride More Like a Spin Class
Are you ready to gamify your bike ride?
If you need a little more motivation during your bike rides, Cowboy has got you covered.
The Belgian e-bike company introduced its latest model, the Cross, which is designed to tackle off-road adventures just as well as city commuting. Besides looking sharp, the Cross sets itself apart from other expensive e-bikes with its “Live Challenges” features through its companion app. Throughout your ride, you’ll get notifications on your docked smartphone to pedal hard for a minute straight or that you’ve earned an achievement.
Not everyone will want to gamify their bike ride, but those who already use fitness apps like Strava or Peloton will feel right at home with the Cross. Cowboy is targeting the e-bike rider who’s looking to incorporate some social elements into their daily rides, so it feels more like they’re competing in online leaderboards or participating in a spin class.
Cowboy says the Cross e-bike is meant for more than just city commutes.
More Comfort and Range
Compared to Cowboy’s current Classic and Cruiser models, the Cross is meant to give you a much smoother ride across different terrains. Cowboy combined larger tires, an inverted front fork suspension, and telescopic seat suspension for the Cross, so you can traverse dirt trails or cobblestone streets without a rough ride.
You’ll get more range with the Cross too, since Cowboy pumped up the capacity to a 540 Wh removable battery pack. The bigger battery means you’ll get between 60 to 120 km, or around 37 to 75 miles, on a single charge while only having to wait three hours to fully charge it back up.
Cowboy is staying with its clean e-bike look since the Cross hides its wires and cables in the frame. On the software side, the latest model introduces more than just challenges, offering a “Check My Bike” diagnostic tool that will monitor the Cross and self-diagnose any service needs. That’s on top of the Find My Bike, Share My Ride, and Predictive Alerts features that are already on Cowboy’s other e-bikes.
The Cross also comes in a step-over model.
Cowboy Cross Price and Release Date
The Cross is already available to order on Cowboy’s website in two frame styles: the step-over or the step-through. Both of these models come in three colorways — dark gray, light gray, and green — and have an early bird price tag of €3,499, or around $3,800. Cowboy didn’t say when this introductory pricing ends, but eventually, the Cross will start at €3,999, or around $4,350.
