Shinkers

So I'm sure you get tons of these questions all of the time but I thought I'd ask.

I'm a healthy, 27 year old, reasonably fit, rider that has ridden DF (upright?) bikes for around a decade. I like to ride several centuries a year (this year I'm slacking off), and I don't find distance riding debilitatingly uncomfortable.

But I've been stricken with the idea of trying a recumbent since they do seem more comfortable to ride. But if I can already ride a DF with relative comfort is there really a reason to try a recumbent? I see a lot of conflicting info online, those saying that DF's are just as comfortable when setup properly and those that say the comfort of a recumbent can't be matched by a DF.

With zero dealers locally, I can't exactly run right out and test ride one. I've been looking at a Bachetta Corsa that's for sale locally but I'm really interested in something like a Cruzbike S40 since the FWD setup is more similar to a traditional DF drivetrain.

linberl

I'd never ridden one until I just got my first, a tadpole trike. 20 years on 2 wheelers. Had professional fits and my bikes were pretty comfortable but...........eventually your butt says enough is enough no matter what saddle you use. My butt hasn't said a word to me since I got my recumbent. There are no limits to distance or time with it. If I could magically go back to being able to ride DF again, I'd still ride the recumbent 90% of the time.

downtube42

I'm riding upright these days, after a few decades of long distance on a bent. Comfort wise, for me, it's night and day. The bent is frickin luxurious. 200k, 300k, 400k in a day, 400 miles/24 hours, 1200k brevet, 1500k brevet... on the bent, no pain except the legs from effort. On the upright after 150k it's hands, butt, shoulders, lower back all becoming distractions from putting out power. YMMV.

Go for it. You'll be wicked fast on the flats and descents, and if you're a lightweight, you'll blow people's minds on the climbs.

BlazingPedals

Up to about 20 mph the big difference between bent and upright is the way they drive. Yes, drive. A bent doesn't FEEL like a regular bike under you; instead, you sit in the cockpit and pilot the thing with you of course being the engine. Some folks never get used to that. Not all bents have speed potential, either. For the most part, trikes do not. Bacchettas and Cruzbikes do, with the proviso a Cruzbike is VERY different. Putting the drive train on the front fork makes for 'interesting' handling. I could never get used to riding one.

If you're still in your 20s, then you have lots of time to train and get fast. Or if you're not into speed, then the other side of that coin is going further with less effort.

rydabent

In so many cases, mine included, once you ride a bent for a few miles you will be hooked. In my case I was completely hooked, and my road bike and mountain bike never turned a wheel again. Then after 6 years on bents, I also got a trike. It is now my first choice for riding around town on the city trails. My bent goes out of town on bike club rides.

And---------------there is no law that says you cant have both a DF bike, and a recumbent or trike. That way you have the best tool for the ride at hand.

VegasTriker

Anyone out there who insists you can find an upright bike that is as comfortable as the right recumbent is lying. Just read the many posts of DF riders trying multiple different seats in an effort to find one that is comfortable for a really long ride. Most of us come to recumbent bikes and trikes way later than your age and wish we had made the transition way earlier. In my own case (second recumbent bike) I went from riding a couple hundred miles a year to riding 3K miles the very first year. I had a fine, lightweight, very old Motobecane Le Champion road bike that suited me very well when i was your age but became progressively less fun to ride as I got older. I didn't know didly about recumbents and bought a BikeE AT as my first one. That was a terrible choice. Shortly thereafter I bought a used long wheelbase Linear. That's the one I rode 3K miles in 11 months. It was a personal goal to ride the equivalent of riding from NYC to LA and I accomplished it just before the new year arrived. I finally gave away the Motobecane after realizing it was just taking up space. I would never go back.

Wilbur Bud

My advice is do not try to get it perfect in one try. Buy a reasonably priced used one and learn to ride on that one and then also learn what you really want in that second-and-perfect bike and then go for it.

downtube42

To me it's not an either/or proposition; I ride both, and find they each have their benefits. YMMV.

If money, space, and time were limitless, I'd have every kind of bike imaginable. As it is, I have an upright road bike, a 'bent, a MTB, and a cx bike I use for community/utility. If I were forced to shrink the herd down to one, it would be the road bike, albiet with both 650bx42 and 700cx32. But that's a false scenario; I'll keep them all.

OP ought to pick up a decent 'bent, and find our for himself if that's an arrow he wants to have in his quiver.

PhilWinIL

About 6 years ago I met up with a couple of cousins and rode a DF on the Katy Trail for most of the 220 miles. We drove ahead one day because of the weather, but biked the majority of it. After that distance on a DF, you find out which biking shorts work and which ones do not! REI has the best. Top speed for us on the KT was about 12 mph. on a DF make certain you lower the tire pressure about 10 psi so they can tolerate the gravel surface. Fast forward another couple of years and we did the KT again. In that period of time my cousin found a Sun EZ-1 for sale on Craig's List. I went for it and rode it the next time we did the KT. Such a difference! We rode for a longer distance between stops, and it is MUCH more comfortable. The soft seat definitely beats the padded shorts. A couple of years later I moved up to a Sun Sport. The extra length makes a huge difference in riding comfort. Speed is still about 12-15 regardless which type of bike you ride. The biggest difference between a DF and a 'bent is that you cannot stand up on the pedals, so you have to downshift on hills. KT Trail hills are l-o-n-g in some areas. Not that steep, just long. I prefer the Sun brand because you are up at the driver's height on the seat when you are in traffic, not down at practically ground level.

My 2 cents
PhilWinIL

mitchmellow62

My 2 cents: Everything is a tradeoff. In the majority of cases a recumbent is more comfortable. But there is "recumbutt" for some. And others get numb feet, evidently when the bottom bracket is significantly higher than the seat bottom. Many recumbents are more difficult to transport, especially longer wheelbase. I have limited experience, but I find balancing and controlling a recumbent with a very reclined seat difficult. It takes away much of the body "English" used on an upright and you are left with only steering input. Moving bottom bracket recumbents like the Cruzbike's are in a class by themselves. That spinning mass out in front of you introduces all sorts of new dynamics. Some seem to adapt easily. Some never do. I was able to ride a home built but was never comfortable with it and I'm afraid my beginning rides were worthy of Laurel and Hardy or the Three Stooges. Finally, within recumbents I feel there is more difference than within uprights. A Tour Easy, a Lightning P38, a carbon M5 and a Cruzbike Vendetta are all very different animals.

Shinkers

Thanks for all of the replies. Still trying to weigh out if I want to go for this yet or not. There's a Bacchetta available locally but I need to decide what I'm willing to spend and if it's worth waiting until next spring.

I learned to unicycle before I started biking and was really into that for a while so I'm not really afraid of a learning curve.

downtube42

Oh man. Once you've crossed that barrier of riding a unicycle in public, anything is possible. Levels unlocked, just do ****. Get that 'bent, it'll be an experience.

steelbikeguy

I was having neck issues and a friend loaned me his Bacchetta for a week or so. Very nice of him, and gave me a chance to find out whether I could adapt to the high racer style or not. I can't imagine just buying one without the chance to spend some time on it first.

I did end up buying a Bacchetta Giro 26 for commuting, and a bit later, a Bacchetta Carbon Aero 2.0 for go-fast riding. No particular problems with them, but as with everything, there are pro's and con's.

After 7 years on 'bents, I got some better physical therapy and was able to ride upright bikes again without pain. I now spend one or two days a week on the Carbon Aero, and the other days on the uprights. No problems with comfort on either bike type. I typically do a 70 mile ride once a week, and will do one or two centuries each year, on the upright bikes. The 'bents are mostly for recovery days. Annual mileage is around 8000 miles.

a side note: When I bought the Bacchettas around 2008, 2009, recumbent trikes were uncommon. Now they seem to be the standard, and 'bent bicycles are the rare unicorn. My 'bent riding friends tell me that the local trike folks discourage 'bent bikes from joining their rides, just because the speed and other characteristics are so different. By comparison, I used to ride the Carbon Aero in double pacelines with friends on their uprights (although that wasn't really ideal).

Steve in Peoria

linberl

I'm not a group ride type of person but there is a regularly scheduled recumbent group ride I see every month when I cross their route. It's always a mash up of trikes and 2 wheel recumbents so maybe it depends on the location. This group seems to have everything from high end trikes to what clearly looks like a home built trike along at least two Bike Friday Saturdays (2 wheel recumbent they no longer produce). First time I had seen a Saturday irl and it looked awesome.

steelbikeguy

Group rides can be a great way to share a hobby with others. The dynamics of groups can vary quite a bit, with some being pretty casual and happy to include just about everyone, and others wanting more conformity and uniformity. There are good reasons for the differences and I've participated in both (all?). Of course, the moment that some type of bike or rider is excluded is when things can get unpleasant, so diplomacy is an important skill... which applies to just about any gathering of people.

Still, finding a group that you can ride with and have fun with is a wonderful thing!

Steve in Peoria

Harhir

If you decide to go for recumbents I strongly recommend to buy used.
1. Choice of bikes: There are way more brands out there which no longer exist or no longer make recumbents. Burley, Cycle Genius, BikeE, Trek, Vison... Just to mention a few. Meaning you have a wider choice with used ones than with new ones. Most components are generic and most parts are available.
2. Prices for used ones: The market for 2 wheel recumbents has collapsed. Not many people want to buy 2 wheel recumbents anymore. This is why many companies stopped making them or are out business. Used ones can be found cheap compared to what they cost new a few years ago. You won't loose to much money if you sell a used bike vs selling one you bought new. But still then it can take time to sell one. I have bought and sold quite a few in the past years and it took weeks to sell them.
That also brings me to another point. Most makers of recumbents only offer(ed) one type of seat fits all. If you are a tall rider like me and/or have back problems like me you need to find a bike that works for you. Meaning you have to try various bikes. And sometimes you only find out after many days or miles. This is another reason for me to buy used. Sell it if it does not work and try another one without breaking the bank.

Just my two cents....

rydabent

Some 20 years ago I started noticing recumbents, and thot they looked logical, not unusual for a coldly logical person, such as myself. The comfort, the view, and arriving at an accident feet first instead of head first interested me. As as I have posted, I pulled the trigger and got my first bent in 2005, and sold off my road and mountain bike almost immediately.

BlazingPedals

I will add that the effort of perching atop an upright bike, supporting part of your weight on your arms, represents a significant amount of work over time. An upright may be relatively comfortable for some; but always represents extra energy spent vs curling up in a chair.

probe1957

I give up. What is "DF?"

VegasTriker

DF - shorthand for "diamond frame", sometimes referred to by diehard recumbent riders as an" upwrong bike". It is just a road bike.

rollagain

Shinkers You might consider a half-step into the 'bent experience: crank-forward. sometimes called semi-recumbent. My current #1 is a Day 6 (Cyclone, out of production) but there are plenty of others and you can probably find one used for a good price. Most of them have a wide flat seat typical of many full recumbents, and some, like the Day 6 models, have a small backrest. I love the comfort and ride quality of the Day 6 (I call it the Buick) but the head tube is raked too much and it suffers from wheel flop, which is worse at slow speeds.

With few exceptions, it's impossible to stand up on the pedals, so you use a different set of muscles and put more into pushing against the backrest as is the case with full recumbents.

It's another possibility to look into.

Tony Marley

I was in my mid-40s when I first started riding 'bents, and wished I had known of them (and had the money to buy them) decades earlier. I still ride upright bikes as well as my trike and long wheel base Ti-Rush. I have done two coast-to-coast rides on uprights (single once and a tandem once), so did not find uprights uncomfortable. But they are nowhere near as comfortable as a recumbent. When I participate in organized rides (Hotter n' Hell, etc.) I generally do not get off my "bent at rest stops unless I need the toilet, because it is that comfortable.