A longtail is a bike with its back end stretched. The wheelbase is longer than a normal bike’s, so the rack behind the seat becomes long enough to sit kids on, or to carry the kind of load you’d otherwise need a car for. Add a motor and you’ve got an electric longtail, which is what most people buy because the extra length and weight make a motor more than welcome on the first hill.
From the front it looks a lot like an ordinary bike. That’s most of its appeal.
How a longtail rides
You sit where you’d sit on any bike and the load goes behind you, low and between the wheels. Two wheels means you lean into corners and balance at the lights the way you always have, so there’s very little to learn. Our Tribe Evamos Longtail is about 30kg on its own and 65cm wide at the handlebars, which is roughly the footprint of a men’s large mountain bike. It goes through a normal gate, parks in a normal bike space and fits on a hitch rack on the back of the car. We use a Buzzrack Escorpion for ours.
The rear wheel is smaller than the front. It’s a 20 inch at the back and a 24 inch up front, which keeps the kids’ weight low and the steering feeling like a normal bike. We call it the mullet: business at the front, party at the back.
Who sits on the back
One or two kids, comfortably. Little ones go in child seats that clamp to the side rails, and once they’re old enough to hold on they can sit on the padded bench with the Crew Cab bars around them. A third will fit if they squish up, and we wrote up what that looks like with three kids because so many people ask.
The rear rack on the Evamos takes up to 80kg and the whole bike is rated to 200kg including you. An adult under 80kg can ride on the back too, which makes for a pretty good date night.
Rebecca bought hers for the school and preschool runs and the beach, and found it easier to ride than she’d expected:
We fit all three kids on including a baby seat and they love it. I find it a lot easier to ride than I thought I would and get up a hill with all 3 kids.
Rebecca, Tribe Evamos owner
Longtail or front box?
The other common shape is the front-box bike, where the kids sit in a box in front of the handlebars. Ours is the Tribe Original, a cargo trike with three wheels and room for two to four kids. The two suit different families, and the differences are easy to list.
In a box bike the kids are in front where you can see and talk to them, it stands up by itself at a stop, and the box swallows bags, scooters and the dog as well. It’s also wider and heavier, and it needs somewhere to live. A longtail puts the kids behind you, rides and parks like a bike, and is far easier to store and to lift onto a car. If you’ve got one or two kids and a narrow side path, the longtail usually wins. If you’ve got three or more, or you want the kids where you can see them, look at a box bike. Our guide to choosing an electric cargo bike goes through all of the shapes side by side.
What to look for in an electric longtail
The motor matters more than the battery size on the box. Most of the cheaper longtails sold in Australia use a hub motor in the rear wheel. Every e-bike here is limited to 250W, and a mid-drive motor gets far more out of that limit because it drives through the bike’s gears, so you can change down for a hill the way you would on a normal bike. That’s why the Evamos uses a Bafang M510 mid drive with 110Nm of torque and nine gears. We’ve written more about what 250 watts actually means if you’re comparing bikes with bigger numbers on them.
After that, look at how the kids are held on. Thick side rails matter, because a child seat has to clamp onto them, and plenty of racks are too thin for the seats people already own. The rails on the Evamos are 25mm across and take the Thule Yepp 2 Maxi and the Yepp Nexxt 2. Look for a wheel skirt that keeps feet and fingers out of the spokes, and running boards so the kids have somewhere to put their feet.
Gerard rides his in Sydney with three kids on the back and the shopping up front:
It’s like having a second car (3 kids in the back and groceries in the front basket) and manages the steep hills of Sydney with ease.
Gerard, Tribe Evamos owner
Common questions
How far will an electric longtail go on a charge?
The Evamos gets up to about 50km from its 468Wh battery, depending on the load, the hills and how much assist you use. A second battery sits in a cradle on the bike if you need a big day, and swapping takes about 30 seconds.
Is a longtail stable with kids on the back?
Yes, once you’re rolling. The small rear wheel keeps the weight low, and most people stop noticing the kids are there after the first few rides. It’s still a two-wheeler, so you’ll put a foot down at the lights the way you do now.
Do I have to assemble it?
The Evamos ships in a carton about 90% assembled, with the tools and a video guide. Most people put it together in the lounge room. If you’d rather not, a mobile bike mechanic will do it for around $150 depending on where you are.
What age can a child ride on the back?
Once they can wear a helmet comfortably, which is usually around nine months. Start them in a child seat and move them to the bench when they’re big enough to hold on.
