PRODUCT REVIEW
QUICK SPIN - CITY SURFER
Like many of us, Ray commutes to work on his motorcycle. We swapped that out for a battery powered
bicycle to see what he thought of adding some pedal power to his Wellington-based commute..
Words & Photos: Raymond Heron
H
ere’s something a little different… The
Torrot City Surfer e-bike. I can hear you
now, “But Ray, this is meant to be a
motorcycling magazine!”
I know, I know. But hear me out.
With the lack of electric motorcycles in the
market in NZ currently, what other options are
there for commuters? The bus? Or as we
called it back in third form, the “loser cruiser”.
The “ever reliable” Wellington commuter train
services? Well, they break down at least once
a week. The car? Nope, not in this traffic
congested city.
That leaves motorcycle, or bicycle…
Enter the Torrot City Surfer, which is actually
kinda cool. Firstly, it’s an electric bike, so every
pedal revolution is assisted by the battery and
250W motor in the rear hub – meaning you can
go far further with much less input. It’s also a
foldable pushbike. Meaning you can effectively
fold it in half and jump on a train or a bus.
It’s pretty well equipped with Shimano gears,
front and rear disc brakes, an LCD display which
shows speed, odometer, and trip meter. It also
doubles as the controls for how much pedal
assist you want.
Now, I’m not the fittest guy in the world. I
haven’t ridden a push bike in a good couple
of years, but I managed to jump straight on the
wee Torrot City Surfer, and smash out 20km, no
dramas. In fact, later that day I went for another
20km loop.
KIWI RIDER 31