Recumbent bike?

Question

Recently when I was out cycling I encountered someone using one of these. I'd never seen one before but he was doing a fair speed. Has anybody ever used one of these and could you tell me how they compare with ordinary bikes particularly from a safety viewpoint?

Answer 1

I've owned both a recumbent bike and a trike, and ridden dozens of different types of each.  My current favourite is the trike - looks like the one below, although I have covered mine in little reflective bits of tape and I have an 8 foot tall flag.  You do get a LOT more attention on a recumbent and when doing long rides it's downright envy from other cyclists!  A couple of weeks ago I did a 60-mile ride around some undulating countryside and at the start, the other cyclists were briefly curious before they shot away up the hill.  I caught them up and overtook them on the downhill bits, before I got scared and applied the brakes.  However, by the end of the ride, when they had aching wrists, legs and...erm...undercarriages, and totally numb hands and feet, I was able to sail serenely past them, lying back with my feet up, with no pain at all.  The following day, I could walk while they...couldn't really.

The most I've done in one day is 90 miles, but then I'm not very fit - many people do far more than that.  

Safety-wise, I feel safer on the trike than on an upright/DF bike, because drivers pay you so much more attention, which means they're much less likely to tune you out or ignore you.

If you're interested, visit the links below and have a read of the stuff that people are talking about.  The BHPC is the British Human Powered Club, for mainly recumbent cyclists.  It's a bit esoteric, so if you want something more digestible try bentrideronline instead - it's based in the US and a bit more populist.

Answer 2

They are more efficient,as you can put your back into the pedalling as well.

Down side,low to the ground,you have got to have at least 1,if not 2 warning flags flying to let the idiot drivers know you are their.

Answer 3

I commute every day on a recumbent tricycle (I just turned 4k miles today with three weeks left for this year! Hooray!) which is a special case of recumbent but with similar characteristics.

Recumbents are more comfortable. You don't get saddle sores or numb nether parts. Much more relaxing too, since you can recline and kick back. Because of the smaller frontal area you have the potential for a higher top speed (or rather  you can go faster with less effort). You are also lower to the ground so the handling is more nimble.

On the other hand, they are generally pigs on climbs because of the wierd biomechanics (you can't stand on the pedals and you are sort of pulling yourself uphill) and because they are often heavier than upright bikes (diamond frames, or DF's in 'bent parlance).

Finally, they are expensive. There isn't one worth riding that costs less than a grand and it's two thousand plus for a really good one (trikes are even worse: decent ones start at $1500 and really good ones are $2-$4K and up).

Safety wise there is very little difference between a recumbent and a DF. You are only a little less visible (you're not that much lower really) but you get a LOT more attention so you probably wind up being MORE visible. Never the less, I always have a flag and if I'm in traffic the rear blinker goes on. Actually trikes are a lot worse because they're a lot lower and a lot wider!

BTW on a flat I can hold 23-25 mph with the same effort I would use to hold 19 mph on a DF. And I can break 40 mph on a downhill that I would have a hard time breaking 30 on a DF. If speed is your drug, 'bents are crack!

Answer 4

From a safety viewpoint, I have found recumbents to be SAFER than uprights. When cars scan the road, the are mostly looking for potential threats, which means car- or truck-shaped objects. Upright cyclists don't fit the threat profile, so they often get ignored. A recumbent, on the other hand, looks longer and lower than an upright bike, more like a small car. I've noticed since riding recumbents that cars will see me before seeing my friends on uprights, and also that they seem to give me more clearance when passing.

Aside from the visibility issue, there is also the collision issue. If the unthinkable happens and you have a blowout or a car pulls out in front of you, it's better to go down on your side feet first, rather than over the handlebars head-first. Plus, no matter how you fall, a recumbent will put your center of gravity closer to the ground, so you won't fall as far.