a.twiddler
Veteran
How many recumbents have you actually seen on the road?
I read posts from recumbent riders from time to time but unless you are involved in BHPV racing or similar it’s possible that unless you have one in your garage you might never have seen another one on the road while out riding.
Before I ever thought about riding a recumbent myself I used to see a two wheeler being ridden quite quickly from time to time on the A556 Northwich bypass while taking my lad to school around 2005-2008. I remember thinking at the time, I wouldn’t mind having a go on one of those.
When I acquired the Linear in 2020 my son remembered that, so it shows that random sightings can kindle interest a long time later. Curiously, I met that rider in another context after I’d been riding the Linear for a while.
A few years earlier I was riding a motorbike on Dalefords Lane between Sandiway and Whitegate when a bright yellow enclosed contraption, with just the rider’s head visible, whizzed by in the opposite direction. I immediately thought at the time, from its small size, “Pedal power! How cool is that!” I know now that it was a velomobile.
April 2020 while out on my touring bike heading towards Sandiway on Norley Road I spotted an unidentified tadpole trike and trailer as it turned off as I approached from the opposite direction. I was going downhill at the time, didn’t turn off and follow.
September 2020. While going uphill on the Linear, spotted an unidentified SWB recumbent bike going down in the opposite direction. The rider just had time to shout, “Hey! Another one!” before disappearing.
Summer of 2022 while taking the car for a wash I spotted a tadpole triker sitting at a town centre traffic lights with an inane grin on his face. I recognised that grin, being a recumbentist.
April 2023. On the Monsal Trail on a Brompton. Many walkers and cyclists about. Amongst them, coming the other way, someone on an unknown SWB recumbent bike, who flashed past in the opposite direction.
3 bikes, 3 trikes, one of which was a velomobile.
I read posts from recumbent riders from time to time but unless you are involved in BHPV racing or similar it’s possible that unless you have one in your garage you might never have seen another one on the road while out riding.
Before I ever thought about riding a recumbent myself I used to see a two wheeler being ridden quite quickly from time to time on the A556 Northwich bypass while taking my lad to school around 2005-2008. I remember thinking at the time, I wouldn’t mind having a go on one of those.
When I acquired the Linear in 2020 my son remembered that, so it shows that random sightings can kindle interest a long time later. Curiously, I met that rider in another context after I’d been riding the Linear for a while.
A few years earlier I was riding a motorbike on Dalefords Lane between Sandiway and Whitegate when a bright yellow enclosed contraption, with just the rider’s head visible, whizzed by in the opposite direction. I immediately thought at the time, from its small size, “Pedal power! How cool is that!” I know now that it was a velomobile.
April 2020 while out on my touring bike heading towards Sandiway on Norley Road I spotted an unidentified tadpole trike and trailer as it turned off as I approached from the opposite direction. I was going downhill at the time, didn’t turn off and follow.
September 2020. While going uphill on the Linear, spotted an unidentified SWB recumbent bike going down in the opposite direction. The rider just had time to shout, “Hey! Another one!” before disappearing.
Summer of 2022 while taking the car for a wash I spotted a tadpole triker sitting at a town centre traffic lights with an inane grin on his face. I recognised that grin, being a recumbentist.
April 2023. On the Monsal Trail on a Brompton. Many walkers and cyclists about. Amongst them, coming the other way, someone on an unknown SWB recumbent bike, who flashed past in the opposite direction.
3 bikes, 3 trikes, one of which was a velomobile.
