Originally Posted by
BlazingPedals
Saying that recumbents have a speed advantage is ignoring the sheer variety of recumbents. Some are more aero than upright, some are worse. A Bike-E or a ReBike will never be faster than a road bike. Neither will most trikes. The bents that can actually beat a road bike are few and far between.
You have a point. There might be 3 people in the USA that still ride their Rebikes. Never made any claims for trikes.
ON AVERAGE, the average recumbent is faster than the average road bike. Add a partial or full fairing and there is no contest.
But you are right, speed depends on the design of the bike. A low racer like the M5, Nocom, or my Raptobike FWD are the fastest, although the Cruzbike Vendetta with its reclined rider position may be almost as good.
If recumbents are not competitive speed wise, why did they bother banning them from competition? If you can't beat them, ban them, I guess.