|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
Due to age and Prostate surgery I find that I cannot ride a standard bike
comfortably. I want the exercise and a recumbant bike was suggested, however, I know very little about them. I would appreciate any suggestions and comments about brands and availability. I currently live in Florida, no hills and mostly paved roads, although some sand to contend with. TIA, Paul |
Ads |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
You can start at alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent
Phil Brown |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbent bike
paul wrote:
Due to age and Prostate surgery I find that I cannot ride a standard bike comfortably. I want the exercise and a recumbant bike was suggested, however, I know very little about them. I would appreciate any suggestions and comments about brands and availability. I currently live in Florida, no hills and mostly paved roads, although some sand to contend with. TIA, Paul Paul, You would have better results searching for information if you spell it as "recumbent". This may not be the best forum to ask questions in, since there are very few recumbent riders among the regulars, and one of them has a perverse fascination with a couple of very rare, out of production models from an out of business manufacturer (I will be polite and not mention names). There is a Usenet forum dedicated to recumbent bicycles alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent. My first suggestion is to find a place that rents recumbents by the week, so you will have a chance to adjust to recumbent balancing and steering which is quite different [1] than that of a conventional upright bicycle. Test rides will be much more meaningful once you gain some familiarity with recumbent riding. The variety of available recumbent designs is much greater than that of uprights, despite being approximately 1% or less of the quality bicycle market in the US. Rather than suggesting a particular model of recumbent, I suggest that you find a specialist recumbent dealer that has a good selection of recumbents in stock and the ability to set them up properly for you on test rides (there are several recumbent shops in Florida with good reputations). [1] But no more difficult, in my experience. -- Tom Sherman – Quad City Area |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
paul wrote in message ...
Due to age and Prostate surgery I find that I cannot ride a standard bike comfortably. I want the exercise and a recumbant bike was suggested, however, I know very little about them. I would appreciate any suggestions and comments about brands and availability. I currently live in Florida, no hills and mostly paved roads, although some sand to contend with. TIA, Paul I went to a specialist recumbent dealer who insisted I try out his full range of bikes/trikes etc. I must have ridden over 20! Some are great fun, many are rubbish, most are impractical. One thing for sure, if you do go over to the dark-side, it will become a thoroughly absorbing obsession, and you will become a bore. I particularly like the Optima Baron and the Challenge Taifun. Beware that you cannot actually turn the front wheel on many lowracers, they have little load-carrying ability and motorists tend to either give you plenty of room or not see you at all! For speed, comfort, practicality and fun, I recommend a trike! http://www.windcheetah.co.uk/ LGF |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
paul wrote in message ...
Due to age and Prostate surgery I find that I cannot ride a standard bike comfortably. I want the exercise and a recumbant bike was suggested, however, I know very little about them. I would appreciate any suggestions and comments about brands and availability. I currently live in Florida, no hills and mostly paved roads, although some sand to contend with. TIA, Paul Http://www.recumbents.com is a great resource website with a national (but incomplete) list of dealers, showing several shops that carry LOTS of 'bents in FL. It's also a great info website in general. If you don't like reading webpages...you could always buy a copy of a book I publish, the only one on recumbents, called "The Recumbent Bicycle"---check it out at http://outyourbackdoor.com (or Amazon). It also has a dealer list plus all the rest about 'bents. Tom Sherman already gave a fine answer but I'd like to emphasize a couple things differently: I think that if you find a shop with a lot of models and a good testing loop that you could pick a good 'bent for you in an afternoon. But it is hugely recommended that you do this testing. And pick a shop with lots of models and agreat loop! These are the most impt things in 'bent buying. Tom said 'bent handling is different but not harder. I would agree. Actually, I would say it's not really different. A bike is a bike. They're more alike than they are different, at least in the sense that there's no cause for intimidation. The stability factors are basically the same. You get on, you ride away...YOU GRIN. Give yourself a whole afternoon to test these things. It's like going to the circus, a very fun time. Then buy the bike from the dealer whose bikes you test (the most). An afternoon of test-riding a dozen 'bents for the first time ever is an experience worth paying for in itself. It's just great fun! It's also worth a sizeable drive. 'Bents are becoming so popular now that most high-end full service shops will carry a line or two. You may find one that suits you fine nearby. 'Bents are so well-made today that you can't really go wrong---but you will probably be partial to a certain style. Still, I suggest trying at least several models to get a feel for the range of ride qualities. Enjoy! --JP |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
On Thu, 03 Jun 2004 22:57:23 +0000, paul wrote:
Due to age and Prostate surgery I find that I cannot ride a standard bike comfortably. I want the exercise and a recumbant bike was suggested, however, I know very little about them. I would appreciate any suggestions and comments about brands and availability. I currently live in Florida, no hills and mostly paved roads, although some sand to contend with. TIA, Paul Look closely at the EZ-1 and EZ-sport. Designed by EZ Racers, built by Sunn in Taiwan (I think), and available or can be ordered by most bike stores. The cheaper model has straight square tubing, the more expensive one has round curved cruiser-style tubing, a smaller back wheel, and is lighter and sits lower to the ground. Both are very comfortable. Based on a few hours riding them, I'd take either over a bike-E, Linear or the 1979 Nashbar I had for a few years. Parts are nothing exciting, but not completely crap either. |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
David Johnson wrote:
Look closely at the EZ-1 and EZ-sport. Designed by EZ Racers, built by Sunn in Taiwan (I think), and available or can be ordered by most bike stores. The cheaper model has straight square tubing, the more expensive one has round curved cruiser-style tubing, a smaller back wheel, and is lighter and sits lower to the ground. Both are very comfortable. Based on a few hours riding them, I'd take either over a bike-E, Linear or the 1979 Nashbar I had for a few years. Parts are nothing exciting, but not completely crap either. A few minor corrections and comments. The EZ-1 and EZ-Sport are built by Sun in Taiwan, and imported to the US by Sun's parent company, J&B Importers [1]. They are designed by Gardner Martin of Easy Racers [2]. Any bicycle shop with a J&B account (almost all US shops) can order the bike for you. As a point of comparison, the "Nashbar" (probably an Infinity) and Linear designs are far from the state of the art, and the BikeE design has its limitations. That being said, the EZ bikes from Sun are well designed and are a very good value for the money (compared to production recumbents as a whole). I am partial to the RANS designs [3], and would recommend considering the Rocket, Tailwind, and Velocity Squared. [1] http://www.jbimporters.com/ [2] http://www.easyracers.com/ [3] http://www.ransbikes.com/ -- Tom Sherman – Quad City Area |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
On Fri, 04 Jun 2004 19:19:25 -0500, Tom Sherman wrote:
A few minor corrections and comments. The EZ-1 and EZ-Sport are built by Sun in Taiwan, and imported to the US by Sun's parent company, J&B Importers [1]. They are designed by Gardner Martin of Easy Racers [2]. Any bicycle shop with a J&B account (almost all US shops) can order the bike for you. I know I've seen a bike with a 2-N Sunn badge, but I won't swear it's the EZ. As a point of comparison, the "Nashbar" (probably an Infinity) and From what I found out, Nashbar sold at least 2 recumbents in the late 70's/early 80's. Mine was the first of these designs, built in 1979. I talked to someone associated with Infinity, and he said that they weren't related. There are some significant differences--The Nashbar has a fixed seat, brazed to the frame (and more annoyingly with a fixed seat angle) and the bottom bracket is clamped on and moves to adjust for different riders. Linear designs are far from the state of the art, and the BikeE design has its limitations. That being said, the EZ bikes from Sun are well designed and are a very good value for the money (compared to production recumbents as a whole). My main point was that even though the EZ's are the cheapest recumbents that I'm aware of, they are better than several that cost a good bit more. |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
Jeff- It's like going to the circus BRBR
You can say that twice, twice. Jeff 'Bents are becoming so popular now that most high-end full service shops will carry a line or two. BRBR Really? Where? Name three cities where this is true. Not here in Boulder, the home of many 'high end shops'. Jeff- I suggest trying at least several models to get a feel for the range of ride qualities BRBR So I guess they aren't 'just a bike' then, with huge differences in seating, steering, wheels sizes, drivetrain, etc. If ya 'need' a 'bent, great but a replacement or improvement on a double triangle upright it is not. Ya really ought to mention the shortcomings of these as well. Like ablity to ride and drink, the ability to carry water(no camelbacks), the diffuculty of seeing behind you w/o a rear view mirror, the lack of some parts, like small tubes and tires, etc. Hopefully the dealer will point out these things. They may work for you but are not a panacea for those nasty things called 'uprights'. I have ridden many, inncluding a 'bent tandem and I wasn't 'grinning'. Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302 (303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene" |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
Advice for recumbant bike
Qui si parla Campagnolo wrote:
... If ya 'need' a 'bent, great but a replacement or improvement on a double triangle upright it is not. Ya really ought to mention the shortcomings of these as well. Like ablity to ride and drink, the ability to carry water(no camelbacks), the diffuculty of seeing behind you w/o a rear view mirror, the lack of some parts, like small tubes and tires, etc.... Well, I have ridden thousands of miles on recumbents, and I have drunk from water bottles while riding thousands of times. I have also carried a Camelbak on most of those rides. Riding in traffic with a mirror on a recumbent is very similar to using a mirror on a motor vehicle - hundreds of millions of people do it successfully every day. The are plenty of high pressure road tires in all the sizes commonly used by recumbents (and upright folders). I have no idea where Mr. Chisholm gets some of these false ideas about recumbents (a subject he obviously knows very little about) other than creating them out of prejudice. -- Tom Sherman – Quad City Area |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
buying my first road bike | Tanya Quinn | General | 28 | June 17th 10 10:42 AM |
Bike Stores Endangerd Because of Super Chain Stores? | James Lynx | General | 112 | June 5th 04 01:22 PM |
Duct Tape reduces vibration! | Wayne Pein | Techniques | 22 | April 29th 04 11:35 PM |
my new bike | Marian Rosenberg | General | 5 | October 19th 03 03:00 PM |
Need advice about a used bike! | Adam | Mountain Biking | 1 | August 14th 03 12:12 AM |