Newbie

[Bolex]

Hi there now decided to look at getting a recumbant after cycling for 2 years on upright and having health issues to do with the saddle may have developed cycling crelated prostatitus doc reckons im male and 37 years old.I. know Nothing about recumbant and all cycle shops been to in Norwich have never even seen one. I live in the UK near Norwich Norfolk so far seen a lot of kmx trikes on eBay ?so many questions and struggling to know where to start what to get would have to be secondhand are there sizes on the frames to fit persons height like there is one an upright ?

 

[voyager]

wow. , ask one question at a time , Welcome to the forum , you might have to travel to find a " local " dealer , most trikes have an adjustable boom and one size fits virtually all.
KMX are the low cost entry level trikes , find someone local and get a test ride.

 

[Handymann]

You need D Tek in Little Thetford. He sells old and new bents.

 

[PaulM]

Welcome. Two wheels or three? What kind of riding are you aiming for?

 

[Bolex]

Hi I use to ride up to 55 miles a week on upright max although would love to one day to a long distance trip across the UK I'm unsure of the benefits of two wheels or three many thanks

 

[Andy in Germany]

Welcome. Nothing helpful but I'll be following along. Please keep us posted.

 

[raleighnut]

 

[recumbentpanda]

Living where you do, there is one easy answer to all your questions: you need to visit a gentleman called Kevin, who runs an operation called D-tek. He is essentially a dealer in good quality second hand recumbents of many styles, and I read that he has been very helpful to many. Google around and /or search on here, you’ll soon find him.

The fact that he usually carries a varied stock is also an essential plus for one in your situation, starting from zero. This is because recumbents come in a huge variety of forms and geometries. The only way to find out what will suit you is to plonk yourself down on a few and experiment.

I am into two wheel bents which come in long or short wheelbase, and in various seat heights from super high to super low. There is also a wide range of steering and handlebar configurations. Degree of recline, seat hight and bottom bracket height relative to ground and relative to seat are also big factors for both two and three wheel bents. Get the picture?

Visit Kevin if you can, read up as much as you can (the US site ‘Bentrider Online’ is a very useful resource and not totally US centric.) and finall, look at lots of pictures, generally, and on manufacturers websites. Some names to start with: Ice, Haase, Greenspeed, Azub, Nazca, HP Velotechnic, Linear, Bachetta . . .

Buying something cheap and entry level like a KMX Kart may not be a bad idea. You may end up loving it, or you may end up selling it on with a much clearer idea of what you do or don’t like!

And have fun! Many, like you, investigate bents for medical reasons. That was never the case for me. I love them because they are a blast!

Hope this helps . . .

 

[Tigerbiten]

Hi.

All two wheel bents have a learning curve when you start to try and ride one.
A rough rule of thumb is the lower the seat and/or the more reclined it is the bigger the learning curve is.
So try before you buy just in case you cannot get on with it.
If you can get to Kevin at Dtek for a trial session then he'll start you on something fairly high and upright and you'll get lower and more reclined as you go on.

Trikes are easier, you can just get on and go.
This time it's the lower the seat and/or the more reclined it is the faster you can go around a corner before you tip up.
But lower seats are harder to get out of.

When riding a recumbent you use your leg muscles slightly differently from an upwrong.
This means even if you ride a bike it may take you a 1,000 miles to get your "bent" legs and get fully cycling fit.

Luck .........

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Hi Bolex, I live over in Watton and have been riding a recumbent for a few years now. If you want to come over for a test ride on my trike you would be welcome. Just send me a message.

 

[Bolex]

Hi thanks for your kind offer I live in great Yarmouth but at the moment I'm still in a lot of discomfort from riding my upright quit just over 2 weeks ago and going to sell my bike as terrified what it may have done to me in the last few months was getting a very slight ache after urination then few weeks ago got off my bike and was in lotslot pain down below plus tingling numbness. Scared hell out of me! , I work in health myself and spoke to few people been told it's a nerve issue to prostatitus or maybe even irritation of pudential nerve ? As my lowerlcoccyx is tender to touch Im only 37 and would not consider myself excessive rider got up to 55 milesoverall a week over 3 cycle rides a week during the last summer and this winter before this all happened. My saddle had slight drop with cutout out on it only change was I had lost a stone in weight in three months leading up to event which may not sound a lot but guess is when you only weigh 10 and a half stone to begin with as I'm very slim built .

 

[BlackPanther]

Hi I use to ride up to 55 miles a week on upright max although would love to one day to a long distance trip across the UK I'm unsure of the benefits of two wheels or three many thanks

2 or 3 wheels? Depends on what your priorities are. If you want fast, then a sporty 2 wheeler will leave a sporty trike behind. You’d struggle to fall off a trike, though if you corner enthusiastically you can lift a wheel or tip one. Trikes are far better for carrying loads. Price wise, both are expensive new, but I’ve always bought via forums or eBay for half the price.

I did a few years mainly on 2 wheel sporty bents, but now I have one main steed, a Catrike 700. It’s not much slower than my Metabike 2 wheeler, carries my work gear, and in the wet, or high winds, there’s no better style of machine to be on imho.

My perfect machine would be an Ice sprint, purely cos it folds and could be thrown in the car.

 

[bladderhead]

I use both of mine for commuting and utility. I sometimes ride in parks and pedestrian places. It is sometimes hard to get a 'bent through the bollards and barriers. A trike may be impossible.

 

[jeffoi]

I use both of mine for commuting and utility. I sometimes ride in parks and pedestrian places. It is sometimes hard to get a 'bent through the bollards and barriers. A trike may be impossible.

I can attest this, I have a narrow track ice, wouldn't be able to commute to work with a full width trike and I have to be very careful through some of the sets of bollards