HiYoSilver

Possibly looking ahead several years, I expect I'll "have to" get a different bike.

Right now top candidates are:

1. CarbonFiber DF
2. SWB bent

I enjoy commuting on a bike, but unsure if bents are safe for commuting. See advocacy forum and SWB bent in St Louis that was run over this week.

If commuting on a bent, how do you:

1. improve your visibility to drivers when heading into glare, i.e. the sun in the morning

2. improve your visibility during the day when lights are of limited value.

Thanks for you suggestions.

Paul L.

I just switched from upright to High Racer recumbent and have about 2000 commuting miles completed. One thing I have done is hang a reflective slow vehicle triangle off my seatbag. the beautiful thing is since it is behind the seat is has no drag. I have not had any problems being seen but I do have the luck of commuting away from the sunrise in the morning so oncoming traffic is blinded instead of the traffic behind me. My commute is 24 miles one way so speed is key for me. The high racer gets me visible over most hoods (all except the huge SUVs but they block everything anyway). I like it a lot more than my roadbike for commuting actually as I can hang my bag behind me and unlike a pannier it has no Aero drag as it is in my wind shadow. I also find headwinds have much less effect on my arrival time. Anyway, only goofy thing about commuting on it is locking it up.

erik forsgren

I can tell you that I have travelled on a lowracer-recumbent on the most dangerous and most trafficated roads in Europe for a month almost every day without having any problem with visibility. It's not the bike that is the problem it is the rider. If you can't ride a recumbent on trafficated roads, you most probably can't ride a DF on such roads either.

funbun

People tour the all the time on bents. Touring involves riding in the streets and highways with traffic. They seem to turn out okay.

The high racer design may be good for you. It's higher off the ground and it put you at eye level with cars if not higher.

sbhikes

I commute and I'm loving every minute of it. No problems with traffic beyond the usual. You simply develop different strategies for dealing with certain situations.

No need to wait until you "have to" (does that mean as soon as a couple grand are burning a hole in your pocket? ) Get a recumbent now if you want to. That's what I did. I still have my regular bike and ride sometimes it too.

bnet1

'Bents are great for commuting. I feel far safer and get along wth traffic much better than when I'm on my DF. Visibility is good and I'm more apt to see situations comming up in front that I otherwise may not see on my road bike. I can also look through most cars and some of the smaller SUV's. All around I think 'bent is the only way to ride.

bentcruiser

This is not a problem for me. I ride west in the morning.

I have not had a problem with this. I take my lane on the highly traveled four lane roads. You have to do that. Riding right next to the curb can end you up in the curb. But people tend to pass me wide. I do have a Air Zound Horn that puts out a whopping 115db (on the highest setting). It has come in useful more than once.

HiYoSilver

Doesn't work that way. Not yet a year and just passed 600 miles. Just the bike alone makes it $2.00/mile.
I'll need at least 2,500 miles to get to expensive car at $0.48/mile. Resonable is at 4,000 miles, $.030/mile
and great is at 6,000 with $0.20/mile. Problem is that is 4 to 8 years out.

Too many local projects to swing this year or next. Earliest I would see it happening is in 3 years. I'm sure I've spent more than the cost of the bike or biking junk.

So plan til then, is keep on riding the DF and getting in better shape. After I rack up 3,000 miles, then I'll consider another/replacement bike. To do that in reasonable time, I'd have to ride more than just a 10 mile commute.

All aside, thanks for the encouragement. I found a LBS with a great web site for bents.

jeff-o

Yea, don't let cars push you around. Ride in the right tire track and ignore anyone who honks (though this has never happened to me).

kwhord

what about the tall flags that people put on mopeds ?
seems like that would work well for visibility around suv's and trucks.