The new Orbea Rise reflects how the market for more agile e-bikes is growing, thanks in part to Shimano’s new EP8 drive system and a desire amongst fitter riders for lighter battery-assisted mountain bikes.

Spanish outfit, Orbea, is the latest to launch a slimmer e-bike, with its new Rise. At a distance, you’ll struggle to immediately distinguish this as an e-bike, due to the conventionally shaped down tube and a bottom bracket that is not outrageously enlarged.

Shimano’s EP8 mid-drive unit has allowed e-bike designers a lot more freedom in terms of packing, and the result is more elegant bikes, such as this new Rise. They also happen to be more responsive to steering and body English inputs, giving rider’s a more ‘natural’ feel when cornering.

You can add battery capacity for those really big days

The integration electronics and software coding are own Orbea’s own doing and energy for the mid-drive system is released from a 360Wh main battery. There is the option to increase that to 612Wh of endurance, with the help of a 252Wh plug-in range extender.

With the additional battery capacity onboard, a Rise should theoretically be worth 8 hours or 4000m of vertical ascent riding – if used in Eco mode.

Orbea’s industrial designers wished to avoid the additional clutter that accompanies conventional e-bike design. The Rise is a study in ergonomic simplicity, with a discreet rocker switch near the brake lever, modulating battery assistance levels.

There is also a compact junction box, illuminating two LEDs, that relay info about the Rise’s power status and pulses wireless data to your any onboard riding devices, whether on the bike or rider.

Orbea is targeting this bike at the fit and technically skilled lite-enduro crowd. Although all the bikes have 140mm of rear suspension, there is a selection of Fox fork options, either 140- or 150mm in stroke.

Geometry is on trend for a bike of the Rise’s wheel size and travel, with a 66° head angle and 474mm of reach, on a size L, in the 140mm fork specification. If you select a Rise with 150mm of front suspension, the head angles tips to 65.5°

Four build options

The Orbea Rise is being marketed in four configurations, with all of them sharing commonality in terms of tyre choice: Maxxis Rekon 29er rubber in the 2.40” casing volume.

Starting at £5399 there is the M20 version, rolling Race Face AR 30c wheels, Shimano M6100 brakes and suspension which combines a Fox 34 Float Performance fork and Float DPS Performance shock.

Increase your e-bike budget to £6799 and specification upgrades tally Race Face TURBINE-R30 wheels, Shimano XT M8120 brakes and a Fox 36 Float Factory 150mm Grip2 fork, with a DPX2 Factory managing the rear travel.

The £7999 M-Team derivative adds a Fox Transfer dropper seatpost and Shimano’s latest XTR brakes and drivetrain bits. Want even more from your 140mm Orbea e-bike? That will be the £8899 M-LTD…

Orbea’s range-topping Rise rolls NEXT-SL TLR wheels from Raceface and interestingly, reduces its fork travel from 150- to 140mm, compared to the M10 and M-Team versions. Fox’s 34 Float Factory 140mm fork guides the front wheel, with terrain absorption courtesy of the brand’s FIT4 damper, whilst at the rear there is a Float DPS Factory shock.

Weight? That is the issue with all bikes, isn’t it? Orbea claims the Rise gets remarkably close to 16kg, built in their M-LTD specification finishing kit.