Cowboy is launching an all-terrain electric bike to attract riders beyond European city centres

Cowboys It is famous for its stylish electric bikes that you can see in many major cities across Europe. And if you look at the people riding those cowboy bikes, more often than not, you’ll see a young adult walking into an office with a laptop in a backpack.

That’s why the company is launching a new bike called the Cowboy Cross. It is an all-terrain model aimed at providing comfort and long-distance journeys.

I had the opportunity to see the new Cowboy Cross last week and take it for a test ride for a few minutes. When it comes to design, it definitely looks like a cowboy bike with its bead-shaped headlight, angular design, and soft matte colors.

Likewise, Cowboy is betting on a fully integrated design with as little maintenance as possible. There are no (physical) gears, the brake cables are as hidden as possible, and the company uses carbon fiber belts.

New to the Cowboy Cross are the tires. The wheels are slightly smaller (26.5 inches), but the specially designed tires are much larger.

At the front of the bike, you’ll see the front fork suspension. But unlike most road bikes, the front fork is upside down with the suspension closer to the wheel. In addition to better design, this is how Cowboy was able to hide the front brake cable in the frame.

There is also a seat post suspension system for navigating rough terrain. For both the front fork and seat post, the suspension can be adjusted using a screwdriver.

And if you’re a small person and can’t ride a cowboy bike because of your height, the saddle may drop a little lower on the new bike. The handlebars are a bit larger too. Again, everything is designed to make the Cowboy Cross more comfortable than existing Cowboy bikes.

There are two aluminum frame designs with the Cowboy Cross available in step and step variants. The bike is available in three different colors – light grey, dark grey, and green. You’ll also find a back shelf that can support a child seat or various bags.

The battery is slightly larger with a 50% increase in capacity. The company claims you should be able to ride 60 to 120 kilometers (37 to 75 miles) on a single charge.

This is about specifications. However, potential customers expect to keep their new bike for years to come. It will therefore be important to ensure that the Cowboy Cross can be easily maintained in the long term. But it’s hard to know how it will perform on launch day. In addition to this hardware release, Cowboy is also announcing a new diagnostic tool titled “Check My Bike.”

Pre-orders start today at an early bird price of €3,499 ($3,800 at today’s exchange rate). Ultimately, Cowboy expects the Cowboy Cross to sell for €3,999 ($4,350).

As a reminder, the “classic” cowboy bike models cost €2,699 ($2,940), but there Two software upgrades Which cost 199 euros and 299 euros each. A €199 Cowboy Connect package is included with Cowboy Cross models.

“According to our studies, this will double our total addressable market,” Adrian Rose, co-founder and CEO of Cowboy, told me. “I think it’s a different client overall. It’s a client that’s looking for a little more convenience. So they’re usually a little bit older and have a little bit more of a budget.”

Image credits: Roman Delete/TechCrunch

On my test ride, I also played with the Cowboy mobile app. This app hosts all the smart features of the electric bike. You can turn on the lights, switch between Eco and AdaptivePower mode, get turn-by-turn directions and see historical data. AdaptivePower is a feature that automatically adjusts motor power depending on the current incline and weather conditions — and that was in the spotlight after a patent lawsuit with eBikeLabs.

The company has also added some mini-games that will encourage you to try harder without distracting you too much. For example, the app will tell you to squeeze as much as you can within 30 seconds. Or the app might tell you that you’ve entered a popular segment and tell you if you’re faster than your friends.

These Strava-like features won’t replace Strava just yet — they can even be disabled if you find them too distracting. But it’s interesting to see the company going this route and making the software a first-class citizen.

Different models for different needs

Cowboy mostly sells its bikes to customers living in Belgium (its home country), Germany, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Instead of launching into new markets, the company decided to expand its product range with more formal factors.

“We mostly spent the company’s first two years creating prototypes. Over the next five years, we refined our platform. Now we want to offer our product in different forms to meet different needs,” Rose said, so you can expect other prototypes in the coming months and years.

In July 2023, Cowboy’s main competitor, VanMoof, filed for bankruptcy. This led to a difficult summer for Cowboy as well, as many potential customers rejected Cowboy’s products. “There was a lot of overlap between customers considering VanMoof and Cowboy bikes,” Rose said.

But he now believes Cowboy can move forward, as the company is in a different position than VanMoof. “There are about 100 employees at Cowboy. The number I saw when they closed the store was 700 people were working at VanMoof,” Rose said.

With a 40% gross margin on each bike sold direct to consumer, Cowboy expects to break even on an EBITDA basis this year and turn a net profit next year.

Image credits: Roman Delete/TechCrunch