Recumbent bikes

[CopperBrompton]

how do they handle on a fast switchback descent ?

Uphills hard work, downhills ... wwwwhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

One big ask.....what's it like in a crash on a recumbent ????

Hmm, I guess having overturned one at speed, it's down to me to answer that one ...

Well, it still hurts, and on balance, given the choice between crashing and not crashing, I would tend towards recommending the latter. However, given a choice between crashing a DF bike and crashing a recumbent, I'll go with the recumbent.

Ben

 

[ufkacbln]

I'll have recumbents as 'odd ball' bikes then........ cheeky buggers you lot......I'll 'ave ya.........

Quite right it's the riders that are "odd balls"

 

[ufkacbln]

Crashes are a two pronged discussion with pros and cons. No hard data - these are personal observations.

With trikes there is a "cage" formed by the frame that can protect the rider. The machine tends to travel with the impact. With two wheelers you still fall off. However the good news is that with most recumbents you are above the bumper level so leg impacts do not tend to happen.

In simple falls you are lower so don't tend to have the impetus of a fal from an upright.

It takes some doing to fall off a trike - I use mine exclusively in snow rain and ice, as it is a superbly safe machine to ride.

 

[ufkacbln]

How to crash a trike!

You will see what I mean about the difficulty and the "cage"

 

[byegad]

Another disadvantage is that recumbents are generally not so easy to quickly mount and dismount as on an upright.

Unless it's a trike!!!!

 

[BentMikey]

It's not 'upright' FFS !!! my bikes are hardly 'upright' - flat back and going some.....

Right............ I'm not having 'uprights' as a pseudonym for any conventional bike..... up right is a shopper...not a race bike...grrrrrrrrr

I'll have recumbents as 'odd ball' bikes then........ cheeky buggers you lot......I'll 'ave ya.........

LOLOL! Would you prefer me to call them upwrongs? Or wedgies, ass hatchets, stick bikes, or something worse?

 

[CopperBrompton]

I think we do have to show some tolerance and mutual understanding here. I mean, diamond-framed riders are people too ...

 

[dodgy]

Another negative for recumbents is sweaty back. I don't really get aches and pains on my upright on long rides, but I did get a very sweaty back on a short recumbent ride.

 

[CopperBrompton]

Another negative for recumbents is sweaty back.

Only if you choose a hardshell seat; doesn't happen with mesh seats.

Ben

 

[dodgy]

Only if you choose a hardshell seat; doesn't happen with mesh seats.

Ben

I'm sure there was a mesh seat recumbent owner on here complaining of the same.

 

[wafflycat]

Handling on descents? OH MY GOODNESS - it's the most fun and exciting thing ever. Like a jet fighter, fast, tight turns, *AWESOME*. Trikes are supposed to be even better - I take care on skog-filled country lanes on a two wheeler, but apparently you can just blast them on a trike.

+1

Downhills on my 'bent trike are *serious fun* Low centre of gravity means stability, so you can be fast...

 

[wafflycat]

Another negative for recumbents is sweaty back. I don't really get aches and pains on my upright on long rides, but I did get a very sweaty back on a short recumbent ride.

Not on mine - mesh seat you see.

 

[Riding in Circles]

I'm sure there was a mesh seat recumbent owner on here complaining of the same.

I have a back as hairy as a monkeys and it is still ok on the trike, no more sweaty than walking around in any given weather.

 

[BentMikey]

Another negative for recumbents is sweaty back. I don't really get aches and pains on my upright on long rides, but I did get a very sweaty back on a short recumbent ride.

No sweaty back for me - I have a ventisit seat pad, and a hardshell seat. Admittedly it used to be a problem with the std Challenge closed cell foam padding. The ventisit lets a cool breeze over my back, it's great.

 

[BentMikey]

I think we do have to show some tolerance and mutual understanding here. I mean, diamond-framed riders are people too ...

LOL! I hope you didn't think I was serious?