recumbent touring.
08-21-11, 02:28 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
recumbent touring.
touring on a recumbent pulling a bob trailer this is how i spent the last few days .
well actually i have a guy over here in Ireland from england and thats his touring set up. and i can tell you guys first hand if you want to get in some fast touring this is certainly the way to go. this guy can cruse along at 20 plus mph all day ,from behind where i was 99.9% of the time you would swear he was on a motorbike certainly felt it for me as he just powered his way up the road.:
well actually i have a guy over here in Ireland from england and thats his touring set up. and i can tell you guys first hand if you want to get in some fast touring this is certainly the way to go. this guy can cruse along at 20 plus mph all day ,from behind where i was 99.9% of the time you would swear he was on a motorbike certainly felt it for me as he just powered his way up the road.:
08-21-11, 10:39 PM
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I had one of these for a while:
https://www.toxy.de/1_Produkte/MM_ausstattungen_en.html
Not a good overall touring bike, hard to ride, hard to pack, terrible in the rain, cars do not see one. Disaster. I would consider it in a place with a lot of flat bike paths like Holland. And some bike culture.
The folding one in this vid would be cool. This seems to be a toxy channel. I notice that not even the owner has a decent grip on the bars or brakes. I wouldn't buy another with low bars. Nothing wrong with them for riding, all that much, but they are wider for storage and shipping, and make it tough to push the loaded bike.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtSIE..._order&list=UL
https://www.toxy.de/1_Produkte/MM_ausstattungen_en.html
Not a good overall touring bike, hard to ride, hard to pack, terrible in the rain, cars do not see one. Disaster. I would consider it in a place with a lot of flat bike paths like Holland. And some bike culture.
The folding one in this vid would be cool. This seems to be a toxy channel. I notice that not even the owner has a decent grip on the bars or brakes. I wouldn't buy another with low bars. Nothing wrong with them for riding, all that much, but they are wider for storage and shipping, and make it tough to push the loaded bike.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtSIE..._order&list=UL
08-21-11, 10:41 PM
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And in this one, Mr. expert takes the mirror up his @$$ dismounting. 5:55:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6rOI...eature=related
They are doing pretty well in this clip since offroad can be tough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=M7Rz7Le27HA
Comon early pains:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZvZS...eature=related
Cool factor, they are so getting flattened in my neighbourhood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=TkUagjFLA2g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6rOI...eature=related
They are doing pretty well in this clip since offroad can be tough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=M7Rz7Le27HA
Comon early pains:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZvZS...eature=related
Cool factor, they are so getting flattened in my neighbourhood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=TkUagjFLA2g
Last edited by MassiveD; 08-21-11 at 10:47 PM.
08-22-11, 06:27 AM
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Well, one person's experience always seems to contradict others!
While some recumbents can be hard to ride initially, once you get the hang of them, they are fine -and they can make perfect touring machines. FWIW, and as a recumbent owner, I've found myself to be surprizingly visible for cars -probably due to the fact a recumbent is not a common thing to see on the roads. in fact, riding a recumbent, I've never experienced close passes when compared to my regular diamond framed bikes in thousands of miles -that says something. I know it's a common perception that recumbents are less visible, however it's been the direct opposite in my experience.
Now onto the bad: would I ride a recumbent in a city with heavy traffic? Probably not. While riding in suburbia and less trafficked roads I believe you have the novelty factor that helps your visibility, in the city, less so and sometimes you just can not be seen. Add in the fact that recumbents are harder to negotiate through pot holes (cannot use your knees as suspension) and harder to start on an uphill from a standing start, and I'd go with a diamond frame every time in the city.
At least with certain recumbents, the weight distribution is different -so in the rain, it can be surprizingly easy to lock your rear wheel as (at least on my recumbent, a short wheel base) less weight is concentrated on the back (though that is often negated when fully loaded anyway). However, and again, you get used to it riding it.
I'll definitely agree with the comments of hard to pack -recumbents can be just big ungainly things, so that can be a huge negative when taking one for a tour. Another issue is that many recumbents don't take a standard rack -you end up having to purchase a special rack or spending extra on an adapter. Also add in the fact that recumbents do not allow you stand on the pedals when you are going up that big steep hill -you have to spin yourself up it. And sometimes it's nice to stand on the pedals! From a financial standpoint, recumbents rarely make sense; as more of a niche item, they do not have the benefits of mass production and as such tend to run 40-50% more for an equivalently specced diamond framed bike.
Would I recommend one for a tour? Absolutely yes for some people (though I've toured with both). What you do get with a recumbent is comfort and vision that oftentimes cannot be matched by using a diamond framed bike -it can be like touring in an armchair, easily watching the world go by. But it's like anything, it's horses for courses and you have to be careful to fit your needs. I should also add that recumbents come in more variations than traditional diamond framed bikes -e.g. long wheel base, medium wheel base, short wheel base, over the seat steering, under the seat steering, geometry that allows for same sized wheels or different sized wheels, etc. so sometimes it's hard to generalize (e.g. short wheel base recumbents are noticeably less stable than their long wheel base counterparts -though I find my short wheel base recumbent to be fine for stability).
But "not a good touring bike", "disaster" or "terrible in the rain"? It may be for the recumbent you had (not familiar with it, but it could be that is more of a road speed machine than a tourer, and if that's the case, it's a bit like arguing that based on a road race bike, diamond framed bikes aren't any good for touring), but I think there's plenty of proof that recumbents can be fine touring machines if you checkout crazyguyonabike journals.
While some recumbents can be hard to ride initially, once you get the hang of them, they are fine -and they can make perfect touring machines. FWIW, and as a recumbent owner, I've found myself to be surprizingly visible for cars -probably due to the fact a recumbent is not a common thing to see on the roads. in fact, riding a recumbent, I've never experienced close passes when compared to my regular diamond framed bikes in thousands of miles -that says something. I know it's a common perception that recumbents are less visible, however it's been the direct opposite in my experience.
Now onto the bad: would I ride a recumbent in a city with heavy traffic? Probably not. While riding in suburbia and less trafficked roads I believe you have the novelty factor that helps your visibility, in the city, less so and sometimes you just can not be seen. Add in the fact that recumbents are harder to negotiate through pot holes (cannot use your knees as suspension) and harder to start on an uphill from a standing start, and I'd go with a diamond frame every time in the city.
At least with certain recumbents, the weight distribution is different -so in the rain, it can be surprizingly easy to lock your rear wheel as (at least on my recumbent, a short wheel base) less weight is concentrated on the back (though that is often negated when fully loaded anyway). However, and again, you get used to it riding it.
I'll definitely agree with the comments of hard to pack -recumbents can be just big ungainly things, so that can be a huge negative when taking one for a tour. Another issue is that many recumbents don't take a standard rack -you end up having to purchase a special rack or spending extra on an adapter. Also add in the fact that recumbents do not allow you stand on the pedals when you are going up that big steep hill -you have to spin yourself up it. And sometimes it's nice to stand on the pedals! From a financial standpoint, recumbents rarely make sense; as more of a niche item, they do not have the benefits of mass production and as such tend to run 40-50% more for an equivalently specced diamond framed bike.
Would I recommend one for a tour? Absolutely yes for some people (though I've toured with both). What you do get with a recumbent is comfort and vision that oftentimes cannot be matched by using a diamond framed bike -it can be like touring in an armchair, easily watching the world go by. But it's like anything, it's horses for courses and you have to be careful to fit your needs. I should also add that recumbents come in more variations than traditional diamond framed bikes -e.g. long wheel base, medium wheel base, short wheel base, over the seat steering, under the seat steering, geometry that allows for same sized wheels or different sized wheels, etc. so sometimes it's hard to generalize (e.g. short wheel base recumbents are noticeably less stable than their long wheel base counterparts -though I find my short wheel base recumbent to be fine for stability).
But "not a good touring bike", "disaster" or "terrible in the rain"? It may be for the recumbent you had (not familiar with it, but it could be that is more of a road speed machine than a tourer, and if that's the case, it's a bit like arguing that based on a road race bike, diamond framed bikes aren't any good for touring), but I think there's plenty of proof that recumbents can be fine touring machines if you checkout crazyguyonabike journals.
08-22-11, 06:36 AM
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They are good for touring. Two of my friends just finished a Houston to Michigan ride 2350 miles in 40 days.
https://www.kxxv.com/story/15289459/w...type=printable
https://www.argus-press.com/news/comm...cc4c03286.html
https://www.kxxv.com/story/15289459/w...type=printable
https://www.argus-press.com/news/comm...cc4c03286.html
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Last edited by 10 Wheels; 08-22-11 at 06:41 AM.
08-22-11, 07:20 AM
#6
Senior Member
antokelly, I suspect your English friend had a pretty good 'engine'. 
Brad
Brad
08-22-11, 10:31 AM
#7
Senior Member
Thread Starter
he sure has bradtx, we pulled up to a set of traffic lights, when they turned green i could not believe the distance he put into me i taught for a minute he was on a motorbike.mind you he did struggle on hills but as i said when we were on level ground he was gone with what seemed little effort now he did have 700c wheels on with 23 slicks.and a schwalble city jet on the bob trailer ,even when he was freewheeling i had to pedal like the clappers to keep up LOL. ah well guess i had better do more solo touring at least i would not be as knackered at the end of a days cycling trying to keep pace with a recumbent.
