a.twiddler
Veteran
Took the car for in some work today. I bunged the Viking Safari in the back so I could ride home. I haven't ridden it for some time as I've been evaluating my Linear recumbent this summer. In fact I've been evaluating it so much that I haven't ridden any of my uprights at all! Still, horses for courses, and I've had some good rides on this folder, including the Monsal Trail as well as local rides. I dropped the car off, unfolded the Safari, and after some seat adjustments set off on the 3 mile trip home.
I wobbled a bit at first. Why are the wheels so close together? Why are they so tiny? Why is the saddle so tall? The unaccustomed altitude threatens to give me a nose bleed. Why is the handlebar the only part I can see when riding? What is this strange object that my behind is pressing down on so heavily? (it's the saddle, stupid!) I will call this syndrome Recumbentitis, the sense of disorientation you get when returning to a previously enjoyable bike after riding a recumbent for months. Because it only has an empty rear carrier and a tiny toolbag it feels like riding on nothing compared with the stuff I usually cart around on my steel tourer, some of which is migrating to my recumbent. It felt quite liberating.
I rolled on through a bit of an industrial estate avoiding the artics. I marvelled at how many of them were parked up in their compounds. The economy has obviously not recovered enough to get them all busy and back on the road yet between Coronavirus waves.
I passed the local McDonalds and couldn't believe the size of the queue for the drive through. It stretched back from the entrance on to the road outside and round a roundabout on to the local bypass. There were so many cars that marshals in hi viz were having to direct them to avoid conflict with traffic for the supermarket opposite. Are they that desperate for their salty sugary fatty fix? (but why was I salivating?)
I came to the roundabout and hopped onto a shared use cycle way alongside a dual carriageway. We are quite well served with these in our locality. It is decently wide, too. The bike was rolling well. I had forgotten how comfortable this bike is, having owned it head to head with a Dahon and finally selling the Dahon. The Dahon possibly won out on finish, certainly on ease of folding but for my purposes at least, this bike won on ride quality. At the end of the dual carriageway is another, smaller roundabout and I crossed over and then on to a path which led to a steep grassed area with a path down to a dual carriageway by the River Weaver. The path seemed very steep from my stratospheric perch on the saddle but I reasoned that it was just subjective, and I had ridden it a few times before. I flew downhill covering the brakes, waited for traffic then crossed over. I took the first turning after the bridge over the roundabout and then got into low gear and got up the first steep pitch without trouble. When I first got this bike I upgraded it from 6 to 7 gears and it has a Shimano Megarange freewheel on it for occasions such as this. Up the continuing but lesser hill to the top, wheel across a pavement to a flat stretch then a gradually increasing hill for a mile or more. Over the top, left at some lights then down a lane to my back gate. A different kind of bike, a different kind of ride.
Most enjoyable just the same. Here is a pic of the bike, not taken that day, but just so you can get some idea.
I wobbled a bit at first. Why are the wheels so close together? Why are they so tiny? Why is the saddle so tall? The unaccustomed altitude threatens to give me a nose bleed. Why is the handlebar the only part I can see when riding? What is this strange object that my behind is pressing down on so heavily? (it's the saddle, stupid!) I will call this syndrome Recumbentitis, the sense of disorientation you get when returning to a previously enjoyable bike after riding a recumbent for months. Because it only has an empty rear carrier and a tiny toolbag it feels like riding on nothing compared with the stuff I usually cart around on my steel tourer, some of which is migrating to my recumbent. It felt quite liberating.
I rolled on through a bit of an industrial estate avoiding the artics. I marvelled at how many of them were parked up in their compounds. The economy has obviously not recovered enough to get them all busy and back on the road yet between Coronavirus waves.
I passed the local McDonalds and couldn't believe the size of the queue for the drive through. It stretched back from the entrance on to the road outside and round a roundabout on to the local bypass. There were so many cars that marshals in hi viz were having to direct them to avoid conflict with traffic for the supermarket opposite. Are they that desperate for their salty sugary fatty fix? (but why was I salivating?)
I came to the roundabout and hopped onto a shared use cycle way alongside a dual carriageway. We are quite well served with these in our locality. It is decently wide, too. The bike was rolling well. I had forgotten how comfortable this bike is, having owned it head to head with a Dahon and finally selling the Dahon. The Dahon possibly won out on finish, certainly on ease of folding but for my purposes at least, this bike won on ride quality. At the end of the dual carriageway is another, smaller roundabout and I crossed over and then on to a path which led to a steep grassed area with a path down to a dual carriageway by the River Weaver. The path seemed very steep from my stratospheric perch on the saddle but I reasoned that it was just subjective, and I had ridden it a few times before. I flew downhill covering the brakes, waited for traffic then crossed over. I took the first turning after the bridge over the roundabout and then got into low gear and got up the first steep pitch without trouble. When I first got this bike I upgraded it from 6 to 7 gears and it has a Shimano Megarange freewheel on it for occasions such as this. Up the continuing but lesser hill to the top, wheel across a pavement to a flat stretch then a gradually increasing hill for a mile or more. Over the top, left at some lights then down a lane to my back gate. A different kind of bike, a different kind of ride.
Most enjoyable just the same. Here is a pic of the bike, not taken that day, but just so you can get some idea.
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