Scubaquarius

My wife has a catrike villager which she loves and rides as much as possible. I ride her old Liz Cruiser (standard 2 wheel bike) with 3 gears. I simply can't keep up with her.
I would love to switch to a recumbent because I have work injuries in my arms and hands and riding a recumbent reduces the ergonomic load on your arms, hands, and so on.

I tried riding her villager but it just doesn't feel comfortable. My knees feel like they are almost up in my stomach and the left side of the bike impinges on my left leg. My wife does
have slightly longer legs than me but is about the same height and weight. Perhaps I just need a recumbent adjusted to my particular body needs.

Any thoughts?

Thanks, Scubaquarius

boilermaker1

Could you extend the boom of your wife's trike? Sometimes the chain doesn't allow enough slack to extend the boom very far unless the trike has an extra long chain and a "gobbler", a device that takes up the extra slack. Then you can position the boom both way in and way out. If the chain won't allow enough boom extension take the chain off the front chain ring and stick it out. You can at least get an idea of the fit that way even if you can't ride it.

I suggest going to a specialty trike shop if possible and trying out many trikes; they vary a great deal in size, fit and feel. I have a Catrike Trail and an ICE Adventure and they are quite different to each other---the Trail sits considerably lower and has the pedals higher compared to the seat than the ICE which has a higher seat and lower pedals. A person could hate the one and love the other.

Anyway, I think there is something out there that will satisfy you.

Scubaquarius

Thank you for the suggestions,

Scubaquarius

VegasTriker

The measurement for selecting the right frame recumbent bike or trike if there is more than one frame size is called the "X seam measurement". If you want to compare two people to see if their X seam measurement is close, look at this YouTube video. That will give you an exact idea of how different you and your wife are. If you are not within a few inches, the trike will not be set up for your comfort.

How To Measure X-Seam

You Tube

BlazingPedals

You really need your own 'bent, adjusted for you. Since your wife has a trike, you may want to go that route, too. (There are also 2-wheel 'bents.)

Scubaquarius

Cool video... thanks!

Scubaquarius

Scubaquarius

I agree... just need to find one that's comfortable for me .

Scubaquarius

Notso_fastLane

Are there any bike shops near you that carry, or better yet, specialize in recumbents? If not, there may be someone around who will let you try theirs.

You might try adjusting your wife's trike to you just to see if that might work. Depending on what interferes where, you might need to try a bike or trike with tiller steering, superman bars, or some other setup. Recumbents have a lot more variety when it comes down to it. That makes it a little harder to decide what works, but easier to find something eventually.

I would like to try a bike with underseat steering (USS) and see how it feels. I'm happy enough with the tiller steering on my bike (and velo), but I think I would like USS better.

Scubaquarius

I definitely need to try out some different recumbents. There is one local specialty shop in Siloam Springs, AR.

Thanks,
Scubaquarius

tyrion

Let some air out of her tires. That will slow her down a bit.

Retro Grouch 

Think about crank arm length too. Long crank arms require more flexion at the hip and knee joints.

Scubaquarius

That is the funniest thing I've heard lately... really had me laughing outloud !
I shared it with my wife and she laughed too but not quite so enthusiastically .

Thanks so much... simple cures are the best!
Scubaquarius

BlazingPedals

Well, the other option is to check her brakes, and if they're too loose you can tighten them a bit. I've had 'friends' do that to me before.

Scubaquarius

Another simple solution... !

Your friends sound like mine...

Scubaquarius

ft3safety

I have both a Catrike 700 and a Bacchetta CA 2.0 and feel the 2 wheel Bacchetta is faster. Maybe because it's dual 700c and I have fast low rolling resistance tires on it or maybe because it's lighter or a combination of both. Maybe look into getting a Catrike 700, it's supposidly faster than the Villager. Keep in mind recumbents use slightly different muscles so it may take 6 months of riding them to get used to it.

recumbentbikes

have you heard the term "ladies first"?
Apart from that please tell brakes.