I DESPISE my replacement saddle - which has been sitting around for a few years, having come off the fixed-gear bike that I flipped about 4 years ago - but that's putting the cart before the horse.
Pulled into the greenway lot to see this interesting conveyance. One does not see many all-terrain e-quad-recumbents. The owner is a slightly older gent who has a prosthetic leg. I asked him if he built it himself (he did not, but I forgot the name of the company he mentioned. I will have to suggest this to my little brother in Portland who is waaaaay into e-bikes to rub it in).
Anyway, I had visions of riding from the usual trailhead to the far end of the greenway and back twice, and things got off to a smooth start. It was overcast and traffic was quite light for a weekend. I realized a couple miles in that changing seat positions often was going to be critical, as I could feel the saddle cutting circulation in my iliac arteries about 5 minutes in. Despite that, Bumblebee was a lot more fun to ride today. I muscled up four of the first five short hills on the route, pausing to capture the underside of the bridge that passes by Black Dog Salvage.
and the other direction. Not sure if this is art, or a sandbox, or an unused fire pit.
Shortly after this, I quite accidentally figured out how to get the bike to operate in 1st gear. I made it back to the car after the 1st circuit, took some water, stretched, and set off to attempt a second circuit. Just beyond the halfway point, it was clear that I would likely not have feeling in my legs for several days if I didn't head back - so I did. Still, I managed to log 20.39 miles, to push the total to 32.35. I am hoping to be able to get back out tomorrow, but unless my legs stop tingling, I may have to wait. In any event, the current saddle situation is untenable. Does anyone have a saddle they want to sell me? I have $2.91 left in the budget.
Post-ride, an even older gentleman on a newish Specialized who had parked beside me asked if Bumblebee was a 3-speed, and was reminiscing about the green, 3-speed "English Racer" he had gotten in 1953. (Evidently it wasn't a Raleigh). I didn't tell him that mine was older than that, but seeing it put a smile on his face, and when we went over to see if the gent with the all-terrain e-quad-recumbent needed any help putting it back in the bed of his truck, he was telling the recumbent rider that my bike was a 3-speed like the one he had, it nicely capped the day. Overall, it was a good day out, even if I still lack some feeling in my legs.
edit: Some days I'm slow, and on others, even slower. As I was pondering my saddle dilemma and taking stock of what is hiding in the saddle department, I came across the Ideale saddle that had come off the Hetchin's that I used to have. Now it might have been on the J A Holland that I had before that. In either case, I acquired the J A Holland for $185 (plus overseas shipping). I then agreed to a trade offer of it for the Hetchin's - which I sold the frame/fork/headset of for something like $850.00 - so in either case, it's a free saddle - and while I haven't gotten it to conform to me yet, it will not make my legs go numb, so tomorrow - on it goes.