I think I have related at least one story about how I was accused of “cheating” when I was testing e-assist bikes a while back. Since I was not involved in any kind of competition I said so and asked “Cheating how, and who?” Actually there was a competition, to get the most miles out of a pound of batteries back when most batteries were literally bricks of lead.
Well now e-assist has been popping up in the pro peloton where it is literally “cheating” to use a motor. At this point names are not being named, but the rumor persists that Alberto Contador was using assist in the Giro a while back. My contention is that it makes more sense to put assist on the bike of a sprinter during a mountain stage to get him over the mountain well inside the cutoff so he can compete for more stage wins on flat sections in the bunch sprint. I guess I shouldn’t make you wait on the links any more. Hidden motors used at Strade Bianche, claims French TV (+ video) also Tiny Motor Powers a New Threat to Cycling Races
I should point out now that the motors being used were at most 1/3 the power of the motors I was testing with back in the day. And at no time was I doing anything other than testing the range and power consumption of the system.
Billed @€0.02, Opus
Witch on a Bicycle 