Lying down bikes

[gazzab]

What is it with these bikes where the rider almost lies down with legs stretched out in front. Do people pay good money to look like a tw@t ?

[beyond rational]

Wash your mouth out they are the fastest way of moving on human power alone....Speed matters

Edited by beyond rational on Monday 23 April 22:45

[tombaron]

Ah recliners. Really popular in Canada. They are good for old people and people with disabilities etc. and if it keeps them into cycling it cant be a bad thing.

[pdV6]

tombaron said:

Ah recliners.

Recumbents?

[mat205125]

Does anywhere in the UK sell them?

Are they really that much quicker on the flat than a "proper" bike?

[mat205125]

Do you just get a collar and neck blasted with grit and water when it rains?

[sjg]

Ben who runs Kinetics - www.kinetics.org.uk/ - is probably one of the best to speak to.

They do make a lot of sense in many ways - a proper comfy seat, more room for your lungs to expand and work properly, no weight on your hands, less wind resistance.

Of course, the downside is cost (niche market, lots of bespoke bits - about a grand minimum for a full bike), you're not as visible in traffic, and you do look a bit silly riding one.

I've only ridden one briefly, but would love a proper go. Seems ideal to load up with panniers for a long trip to somewhere.

[mat205125]

Fancy attacking a nice bit of wet single track down hill to eh?

[pzero64]

From here…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recumben

The IHPVA hour record is 85.991 km (53.432 miles), set by Fred Markham on July 2, 2006. The equivalent record for an upright bicycle is 49.700 km (30.882 miles), set by Ondřej Sosenka in 2005. The UCI no longer considers the bike Chris Boardman rode for his 1996 record to be in compliance with its definition of an upright bicycle. Boardman's Monocoque bike was designed by Mike Burrows, whose Windcheetah recumbent trike (see above) also holds the record from Land's End to John o' Groats, 861 miles in 41 h 4 min 22 s with Andy Wilkinson riding.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Bur

www.bbc.co.uk/wiltshire/entertainment/days_out/hpv_castlecombe.shtml

www.windcheetah.co.uk/

[tombaron]

pdV6 said:

tombaron said:

Ah recliners.

Recumbents?

Possibly

[agent006]

There's a bloke round our way who rides a hand powered recumbant. Looks muchos cool, both hands at the same crank angle rather than 180 degree opposed like normal pedal cycles. I presume he's a wheelchair user (but could well be wrong).

[Roman]

agent006 said:

There's a bloke round our way who rides a hand powered recumbant. Looks muchos cool, both hands at the same crank angle rather than 180 degree opposed like normal pedal cycles. I presume he's a wheelchair user (but could well be wrong).

I've seen him around Cheltenham too - he's pretty quick!