Hello all

[seanthesheep]

Hi, I have just joined this forum and wanted to introduce myself. I am currently a mountain biker living in Leicestershire and have been riding bikes since 1991, i have also been a roadie for a few years in the late 90's. Recently i have had a itch to try a recumbent, a bad neck and the need for comfort as i get older could have something to do with it, or maybe i just need a change from mtb's, whatever it is it brought me to here, so i signed up. I have been lurking on here for a couple of weeks and have read and enjoyed a good many of your posts, i look forward to reading more in the future.

Sean.

 

[bauldbairn]

Welcome to the CC Forum Sean, there are a good few recumbent owners on here - I'm sure they'll be along shortly with some useful advice.

 

[Arch]

<materialises as if by magic>

Hello Sean, and welcome. I'm a recumbent owner (as well as owning three uprights), and all I can say if, if you have a yen to try it, then do! Great fun. I'm on three wheels (and about to get a new set, very exciting!), and love it, although for practical reasons I don't ride recumbent as much as I should - I don't have room at the flat, so it lives in a lock up across town, and of course I never get round to going out on it (also, the old one needed some work). I'm hoping the new one will inspire me to try harder (and I'm half wondering if I can get this one in the flat, it's much lighter and smaller). I'm off on a bi-annual tour in France this year, with friends, 7 of us on recumbents, it's like the circus hitting town!

Anyway, if you can, get a go on some. Dealers like D-tek in Ely have a wide range to try out. And look out for any announcement on here from Hilldodger about open days at Cyclemagic in Leicester - all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff to have a go on....

 

[ianrauk]

Welcome aboard good ship Cycle Chat

 

[marc-triker]

hi and welcome.
cyclemagic are very helpfull, they helped me be4 i owned my own trike i test rode several of the trikes/bikes and even a 4 wheeled recumbent pedi-cab. you can find them online and they are based in Leicester nr abbey park.

 

[numbnuts]

Hi &

 

[Alf]

Hi Sean

I also came to recumbents (about 6 years ago) through a niggling injury - back ache in my case. I have never looked back and would certainly recommend taking the plunge.

Like you, I enjoyed riding fast road bikes and it was a bit of a disappointment when I found that I seemed to be slower on hills than I had been on an upright. The flat and downhill were definitely faster but uphill was an issue at first. You might find the same.

Part of the solution is that your legs take a while to adapt to recumbent riding and you carry on improving even after several months - a few thousand miles, I found. I probably also mentally adapted to being a bit slower on the hills. I am not sure if anyone really knows why recumbents are slower on hills but they do tend to be heavier. I have recently bought a 'lightweight' (at great expense) but even that is a couple of kilos more than an upright racer that would have cost half as much. Amazingly comfortable to ride though - no back ache, no saddle soreness, no wrist ache, natural head angle gives you a view of the road and not your front brake, etc. Only the legs get tired!

Alf

 

[seanthesheep]

Thanks for the replys everyone, i did'nt know about cycle magic so will have to pay them a visit, thanks for the heads up. As for being slower up hill, that will be hard to get used to i guess, is it just a trike thing though or are all recumbents slower going up?

 

[fergal penge]

Hi, I have just joined this forum and wanted to introduce myself. I am currently a mountain biker living in Leicestershire and have been riding bikes since 1991, i have also been a roadie for a few years in the late 90's. Recently i have had a itch to try a recumbent, a bad neck and the need for comfort as i get older could have something to do with it, or maybe i just need a change from mtb's, whatever it is it brought me to here, so i signed up. I have been lurking on here for a couple of weeks and have read and enjoyed a good many of your posts, i look forward to reading more in the future.

Sean.

Hi Sean, welcome aboard i'm a newie to recumbent triking. I've only been out a few times (i,m weather sensitive) but i'm learning and it's fun.Peoples curiousity is really something, there aren't many tribents in our neck of the woods.

 

[Campfire]

Hi Sean, I've a delta recumbent trike although I don't get to ride it in company very much around here and they're difficult to transport. I'm sure there are plenty people on here to give any advice you need.

 

[bauldbairn]

<materialises as if by magic>

Hello Sean, and welcome. I'm a recumbent owner....

See! I knew I could rely on Arch to fill in the blanks, Sean. -

 

[Alf]

Thanks for the replys everyone, i did'nt know about cycle magic so will have to pay them a visit, thanks for the heads up. As for being slower up hill, that will be hard to get used to i guess, is it just a trike thing though or are all recumbents slower going up?

I haven't ridden a trike (except round a field at the York Cycle Rally). I do find recumbent bikes a bit slower up hills but faster on the flat and much faster down hill!

Alf

 

[sunnyjim]

Thanks for the replys everyone, i did'nt know about cycle magic so will have to pay them a visit, thanks for the heads up. As for being slower up hill, that will be hard to get used to i guess, is it just a trike thing though or are all recumbents slower going up?

I found it really easy to get used to going slowly uphill on a trike - rather than having to get off and push.

 

[bauldbairn]

I haven't ridden a trike (except round a field at the York Cycle Rally). I do find recumbent bikes a bit slower up hills but faster on the flat and much faster down hill!

Alf

Alf - I've a friend, who's a First Bus Driver "Trainer / Instructor" - he said he and some fellow instructors/trainees spoke to a guy on a recumbent bike(the first they'd seen) in Penicuik. Was it you?

 

[Arch]

Thanks for the replys everyone, i did'nt know about cycle magic so will have to pay them a visit, thanks for the heads up. As for being slower up hill, that will be hard to get used to i guess, is it just a trike thing though or are all recumbents slower going up?

I think it's all, and I'm not sure why. There is the extra weight, even a light recumbent is heavier than a very light bike. And you can't 'honk' like on an upright, although personally I always find honking is slower than just sitting and spinning anyway...

But once at the top. Oh boy! And that's why I prefer three wheels, because I'll descend faster and with much less fear on the trike than I ever will upright... Add in a couple of nice sweeping curves and you're in heaven.... Last time I was in France we did a ride that included several km of up, very slowly, and then a glorious DOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN of the same length, just in time for lunch at the bottom.

And the other thing about a trike is, no matter how slow you go uphill, and believe me, I've been overtaken by elderly pedestrians, you can't fall over, and if you stop, you can always get going again without a wobble.