Great commuting wheel

The Gotway MTen3 is my first wheel. After 30km I already know it won’t be the last!<br /> <br /> I’m a 44yr old dad. I’m reasonably fit, not overweight, but also not some sort of thrill seeking, street racing stunt man. I was apprehensive about getting a wheel, but after watching a few videos of people much older and much bigger than me making it look easy - and after reading reviews of other, erm, “older” people on roll.nz - I was convinced to give it a shot. In fact, the fantastic reviews (and positive purchase and support experiences) on this site also convinced me to buy my wheel through roll.nz and leave my own review.<br /> <br /> I know that a smaller wheel has a bigger learning curve and is harder to control than a large wheel, but the MTen3 fits my requirements perfectly. I want a wheel to commute to work (about 3km each way) and carry up an elevator to my office. I want a wheel to ride to the gym and just shove in my bag and leave in the locker. I want a wheel that’s good in a city and can come on the odd shopping trip. This wheel does all that perfectly, and is just so fun to boot. Every ride leaves me with a smile.<br /> <br /> It took about 20 minutes to learn to even mount the wheel. For that 20 minutes I was convinced that I would never be able to do it. But once I rode my first few meters, every try after that was better than the last. I took the wheel to the local school a couple of times and quickly got the hang of accelerating, stopping, tight turns, navigating bumps and small rises. After about 2hrs of wheel time I was ready to try commuting. I’ve had the MTen3 just over a week now and have commuted the last few days. I just love it so much. Each time is easier (or at least more comfortable/less stressful) than the last.<br /> <br /> And yes, I use the word stressful. Because, don’t get me wrong - there are some niggles! If your pavement is cracked and beaten (like Palmerston North) the wheel will tend to veer off and follow lines. Hitting a sudden bump will send the wheel into a squirrelly jiggle. It is stressful BUT you learn to anticipate it, ride it out and be comfortable with it. <br /> <br /> So sometimes, for these reasons I wish I had bought a 16” wheel, but then again, for my requirements the MTen3 is perfect. And it gives me an excuse to buy a second, bigger wheel in a year or so!<br /> <br /> Tip: I purchased a bodyguard for it, and I have cut additional foam padding and stuffed it inside the bodyguard over the upper padding. This allows me to grip the wheel better with my shins and dramatically reduces wobbles and gives me better control.<br /> <br /> I wear just regular clothes (jeans or shorts, t-shirt or jersey), but a decent ebike helmet (Kali City) and wrist guards (Triple Eight wrist saver II). Highly recommend both of these.<br /> <br />