After the Linear

[deejayen]

It looks good! Hopefully it will sell quickly - if that's what you want!

Your Stratus XP looks a great replacement, though! I'd spoken with Paul about it over the years, and would have been tempted to add it to my recumbent collection, but (thankfully?) it wasn't my size!

 

[grldtnr]

The Linear is finally up for sale on the Bay of e after much heart searching. It's taken a while to find a bike that can replace it after the ups and downs of of other bikes owned and found wanting over recent years. Of course I might have it for a while yet, such are the vagaries of that auction site. I'd hoped to list it during August, but it's September now, and the Christmas stuff is already in some shops! It's always later than you think.

A gratuitous pic of the Linear, just because.
View attachment 785690

Surprised to see that offered on the Bay of E, thought xou'd rather liked it but In truth it's getting on a bit now and parts might be getting scarce, tho most are standard bits.
Something I should have realized when I bought the PG, in truth I haven't no ded with it, but that's more a case I haven't got to grips with riding it. A legacy of riding the trike with built in staberlizers.
It might happen yet, but I reckon it's time to .ove it on,I've yet to solve the front tyre problem , not something I am prepared to fling money at, but for now the outsize 20 " shopper tyre makes it ridable, although I still have the original tyre, which I will put back on ,if I ever move it on.

 

[a.twiddler]

It couldn't be said that I haven't bonded with the Linear. There are a lot of things that I like about it, and there have been no issues getting parts. I've upgraded and modernised it a bit over the years, done a bit of "bodgineering" too. It's expanded my horizons a lot, after finding I could do less and less miles on a conventional bike before the aches and pains set in.

After the high hopes with the Grasshopper, and the eventual disappointment when its expectations didn't work out, I'd have been content to have just the Linear and the Spirit in my garage for the forseeable future, as they complemented each other.

Then along came the Rans Stratus XP. After the cosy familiarity of the Linear it came as a bit of a shock. I'd wondered if it might be just a bit too high end for someone with my modest aspirations, so I put it through the same on and off road local routes as I'd done with the Linear, and it coped very well. Where it stood out was on longer rides, with the first longish ride being 0.05 miles short of 90 miles.

I knew when I bought it that there wouldn't be room in the garage for two LWB bikes long term, and thought long and hard about which one would stay and which would go. I did wonder if the Linear would shrug off this one too. If there was the space, I'd keep them both.

So soon, after five years with the Linear, it'll be just the Rans and the Spirit.

 

[a.twiddler]

So, the deed is done. The nondescript, trusty Linear has gone to a new home in Wales. As I gaze glumly at the empty space in the garage where it once stood I wonder if the shiny Rans will grow to fill its boots. There's something about having a non shiny, weatherbeaten bike that makes you more likely to take it to mucky, unlikely places. When you have a nice bike there's a reluctance to get it dirty. I'm sure I'll overcome that with time, as my relationship with it develops.

At least the Linear has gone to someone who has an idea about bikes, and might make the most of it, maybe even more than I have.

 

[404 Not Found Anywhere]

It’s the end of an era 😢

 

[a.twiddler]

It’s the end of an era 😢

It certainly feels like it at the moment. It felt like part of me went with it. But if not for the Linear, I wouldn't have been motivated to try other recumbents, with their strengths and weaknesses, and learned what works for me or not.

I started riding recumbents in 2020, which was a bit of a magic time for cycling anyway, what with lockdown, permitted exercise and very little traffic. I'm glad I experienced that while getting to grips with the Linear.

 

[recumbentpanda]

You sound sad . . .
. . . This why I can’t let go of my Linear. Something about their weird combination of fragility and ruggedness. Bit like an old Landy. Nothing in recumbent world is even similar unless it be an old Peer Gynt or similar. Mine is still in the shed, will I ever be able to let go . . . ? 😧🥺

 

[a.twiddler]

The Linear's tall shadow lingers as dusk approaches. Complete with sun hat and front panniers.

On my way back on my 100 miler. Wirral Way, homebound. It turned into a memorable night ride, having got lost at the Neston end of the Wirral way. Hard to believe it was only last month, the way the weather's been recently.

I hope to do the whole Wirral circular trail on the Rans before the nights draw in this year, being quite aware that the Dreaded Pericarditis struck me down this time last year, putting an end to all that stuff for a while.

 

[a.twiddler]

It looks good! Hopefully it will sell quickly - if that's what you want!

Your Stratus XP looks a great replacement, though! I'd spoken with Paul about it over the years, and would have been tempted to add it to my recumbent collection, but (thankfully?) it wasn't my size!

Curiously enough, it only took two days to get a decent offer for the Linear, similarly to the Grasshopper. Previously the Dawes Low Rider took months to sell, then the Sinner Comfort trike just a few weeks. Maybe I'm just getting better at promoting my used bikes? Though the chap who bought the Linear said he'd been following some of my stuff on here, so perhaps there was more background to that sale. Anyway, the lady who bought the trike seemed particularly delighted with it. I hope she's still enjoying it. It would be interesting to know how the buyer of the Grasshopper is getting on with it. Sometimes, unless you buy or sell a bike on this forum, they disappear into the wide blue yonder. It's nice to feel that you might have spread a little happiness sometimes.

 

[a.twiddler]

15/10/25
Update on the Rans Stratus XP

About 5 weeks since the Linear went now. When I see a picture of it I still feel a pang. Mainly using the Rans now. Have had a brief ride on the Spirit, and used the Brompton when I took the car for an MOT.

Marathon Greenguard now fitted to the front wheel. 40-559, actually measures 38mm on these rims. Surprisingly, the Continental was more reluctant to come off than the Greenguard was to go on. I’ve read a lot about Marathons of various types being hard to fit but generally they’ve gone on with thumb pressure, as did this one. Perhaps I’ve been lucky so far with rim tolerances. It’s a lot bigger than the Continental that came before. Getting a balance between some mudguard clearance and crank clearance is a fine line. I do not want my manoevreing to be upset by mudguard strike, so I have to accept the compromise of a less than ideal gap between tyre and mudguard.

Rear Pasela measures 42mm, though nominally the same size.

All set to go for a test ride earlier but something came up. I took some photos instead. The mudguard/crank clearance is minimal but there is no contact. The 165mm crank is curious as it looks as if it’s long enough for 170mm but the pedal is actually set in from the end to 165mm. A 170mm crank might be fitted with the pedal in the conventional position without upsetting the mudguard clearance. On a recumbent the pedals are vertical rather than horizontal as on an upright bike so there would be no toe overlap. It works well enough with the 165mm cranks so it will stay that way unless I need to change them.

The Rans Stratus XP leaning on the shed, with the recently painted green garage door in the background. It needs some retouching, as the primer coat has leached through in places. The Rans looks even more of a beast with the 40 -559 on the front, though in reality it’s only the same size as the rear.