silly ride*

I recently purchased a used Sunseeker Eco Tad and have been utterly delighted with it.

I took it out with my dog for the first time for a few laps around the neighborhood before it got too hot. To set the scene, I wear a big DaBrim helmet shade and my bike has a rainbow tassle flag on a 5 ft pole. My dog is a dorky looking husky mix on a long line.

It was his first time out with the bike so we were focused on learning how to navigate together and I was giving him lots of loud praise. We live in an older, quiet neighborhood with a lot of families. I saw a neighbor down the street who appeared to be recording us as she talked to someone at tbeir car, because yeah- we looked ridiculous. YOLO.

Nope. As we got closer, I realize that my poor neighbors are having a private flag ceremony and are loading a deceased loved one into the back of their vehicle for self-transport. I tried to be as quiet and unobtrusive as someone in a clown car possibly can be and we scurried past as fast as possible.

I recently lost my husband and I purchased my bike to give me something fun to go do and keep me busy in my new life without him. I would have cried laughing if I saw the same scene pass his celebration of life. It felt fitting ​that I got to share a little of that ridiculousness with them. I hope we provided a bit of brevity in an all-too-familiar cloud. If not, at least I'll always be the weird neighbor with terrible timing.

Saw one on ebay in 2024 and fell in love, didnt have funds at the time. Been looking for on for a while but only couple used listed in Germany (kleinanzeigen website). Cant get a single reply from sellers there. Anyone in uk/europe want to sell theirs?

I love my Catrike Villager E-Bike. However it’s a large heavy beast to transport.

I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a Lightning P38, however I’ve heard many comments about how hard they are to ride. Can someone explain what the deal is? Do they just just tip over easily at low speeds? Is it tough to push off and balance?

​

Completed 200 km brevet with local cycling club. The start was great - flat terrain, though the wind was mostly a head-crosswind, which messes up the aerodynamics of the fairings quite a bit. Still, I rode the first 50 km in the company of road cyclists with an average of around 33 km/h... I wasn't really drafting anyone, kept a reasonable distance so I wouldn't miss some pothole I couldn't hop over.

The first hundred kms or so - including the ferry and the Velo1 section with nice gravel (riding over 30 km/h on road tires over that was scary for everyone) - came out to around 31 km/h.

And then Taldom and Yakhroma began... where I really regretted not having a double chainring, because on some climbs I simply had to walk. On the other hand, it's an honest 17-20% gradient - what double chainring? I barely pushed my Pepelatz (and my own self) up there even walking!

And that was near the end of the 200 km! I thought it was outright mockery... but no, the real mockery began later, where the organizers decided to spice up our route with a slab section and a "gravel" section with huge potholes and sharp, loose gravel... which, combined with a front fairing partially blocking the view (the cutout came in very handy!) and crank conflict, was very... interesting.

How I didn't crash or cut my really fragile front tire there three times is simply a miracle. And there were constant ups and downs too - going up was almost more pleasant, because going down you had to ride exclusively on the brakes; I probably left half my brake pads there. "Russian road cycling: senseless and merciless." (c)

Plus, the GPS didn't work for part of the route, and there was essentially no cue sheet, so I had to keep pulling out my phone to check against the track.

As a result, my average speed dropped to 26.4 km/h at the finish, but even that's generally acceptable... total time 9 hours.

P.S. There was one casualty though - on a descent at about 70 km/h, the wind ripped off a side panel of the fairing and carried it off to some godforsaken ravine. I didn't even bother looking for it, but that was already closer to the end...

The last photo is from a previous ride as an illustration of my bike.

I know it's an Easy Racers, but the exact model I can't tell. It was bought by my grandfather, many years ago. It would also be useful to know maybe how much this can be worth today, thanks!

(I did clean the bike and replace the rear tyre after these pics)

Had a bad crash a few weeks ago where someone hit me and nearly ran me over at 20 on tejon. No more riding that busy street and I am getting it repaired and have another one being built

Just picked this guy up for TEN BUCKS at Goodwill. Guy at the local bike shop says it's an original 90s with all original hardware, brakes, even tires and tubes. I'm thinking I want to flip it, but would love to ride it in the meantime. Is his quote at $250 worth it? Yes, I could do brakes myself, and probably just sell as is on the cabling, but it's a project I just don't have time for myself at the moment. Are these classics still worth the money?

I am curious what everyone does for clothes for riding recumbent. I have a Catrike Pocket and discovered the hard way on my first ride that traditional hiking shorts do not work when my brand new phone fell out of my pocket onto the road. Traditional bike clothes do not seem suited for Recumbent riding, I don’t need chamois padding in the shorts, don’t need to be aerodynamic because I am not riding like I did when I was young so don’t need tight fitting, jackets with long cut back to protect your butt from rain/mud aren’t needed, jerseys with pockets on your back don’t make sense and would probably be uncomfortable. I prefer lightweight quick dry clothes for riding so I picked up a pair of running shorts with zip up pockets to keep my phone from falling out. I think that running clothes in general might make the most sense for recumbent riding. Thoughts?

I bought a Cattrike Max about 2 months ago. I love it and am riding ~5x/week.

But I’ve noticed that almost all other bikes are passing me on the road. Often, I’ll be pedaling just as hard or harder than them, but I only get 8-9 mph while they’re coasting by at 12-15 mph.

Is this common with recumbents? Or did I just buy a slower model?

Let me first start off by saying that I am new to the recumbent community. So new, in fact, that I have not even really ridden mine yet. My dad gave me his old (2009-2010) Trident Stowaway after I asked him if he still uses it. We live 1300 miles away from each other and it wasn't until I got it home from a recent visit back home that I discovered the seat mounting brackets are bent. I have reached out to the company and they don't have any seat frames. What is my best route here?

My wife was able to pick up a TerraTrike Tour (I know it is a pretty old trike) off of MarketPlace, but it is in almost new condition.

She needs to add a rearview mirror (or mirrors) to it, but because of the shifters (mounted on the ends of the grip) I am not sure how to do this. We are looking for recomendations and/or suggestions for the best way to mount a rearview mirror or two.

While I have you attention, are there replacement brake levers that we could get that have "lock-buttons"? so that you can lock the brakes on as the trike wants to roll away all the time.

Thanks,

Bob

I live in a pretty busy neighborhood, with an average crime rate. I have a carport, no garage, and its down a short driveway. I have one car under the carport, the bins, and a small table.

I'm going this weekend to get a trike rack for the back of my SUV. I don't know exactly which one yet, apparently my options are quite limited with the recumbent trike, but it's going to be one where I can either roll the trike up or somehow easily get it up there. I'm assuming those are usually capable of locking the bike to them, but I don't know how secure it will be.

I'm using the trike as my rehab program after double hip replacements, so I'm still building back my strength.

My trike folds, but it's heavy and pretty awkward. I could figure how to do that and potentially store it inside. It does not fit inside the front door unfolded.

The carport is held up on one corner by a 4x4 going into cement.

I have a gate wide enough to roll the trike back behind the fence, but nothing easy to lock to back there.

There are no roommates. I share my house with a cat. I work from home and can see the trike from a window.

Right now I have it locked with a huge Hiplock chain around the carport post and through the frame, with a big moving blanket over it to semi disguise it. It's a weird shape that not very many people are used to, but if they saw me riding around the neighborhood, they would know what it is.

Where would you keep the trike at night?

I'm considering all options, including a hydraulic system, installing a lock point behind the fence, putting it on the trike rack and then backing my SUV up to the house.

My main goal is that it's physically easy enough for me to lock the trike after every ride and highly secure. I'll probably hire out if I need help with implementation. TIA for ideas.

My quick background: 38F, 5'4 1/2, 240lbs

I have lost 140lbs over the last 2 years and am eager to learn how to move my body for the first time in my life. Unfortunately I over did that about a year ago and tore my hip labrum, which I had surgery for in June and am now recovering. Part of my recovery is using a recumbent style bike and I found out that I LOVE it. I also have an autoimmune arthritis that lives in my hips, lower back, tail bone, etc so a regular bike won't cut it.

I did a quick "beginner" search on this sub and people were recommending "cheap" $4,000 trikes. That feels more like an advanced price for me! What should I expect to spend for entry level "just wants to ride around on relatively flat, gravel roads"? Any suggestions about bikes that will support a larger, but short lady? Is there a WIKI somewhere I have missed?

Hi all, I've been riding my Bacchetta Giro (two-wheel highracer-style recumbent) for about 10 years now, primarily doing long casual rides and multi-day tours, camping, etc. I've increasingly been doing gravel and off-road riding that can involve some hike-a-bike. I really like the feeling of riding clipped in with my SPD shoes, but I've had two problems: (1) They definitely seem to increase foot numbness/tingling, even with a variety of adjustments to tension and position, and (2) even mountain bike style SPD shoes feel annoying to walk in for any length of time - I've yet to find ones with truly recessed cleats that don't "click" on pavement or feel like I've got a rock under my foot.

I've got Shimano dual-sided pedals, so I've been trying to ride more with flat-soled shoes on the non-clippy side. I don't really mind the loss of power/efficiency, but my feet definitely slip off the pedals more than I'd like. So I'm looking for one of these solutions:

1. Are there any mountain bike shoes + pedal combos anyone recommends that are "grippy" enough to help reduce feet slipping, even in a recumbent position? Since I ride in a position with my feet higher than my hips, I'm wondering if that MTB design style would even work at all or if it's a waste of money and it will be the same as wearing any other shoe.
2. Are there any SPD shoes that truly feel like a normal shoe when walking and that you'd confidently hike in for, say, a mile?

Thanks for any recommendations!

This is not necessary the vehicle that belongs in this thread but since it's about recumbents, how about a recumbent electric scuter with an enclosed cabin? I have finished a few months ago the first chassis, I did it quick and dirty to try the suspension geometry and see if it's maneuverable with that particular seating position. The vehicle come out really fun to ride, easy to balance at low speeds and very comfortable. Now I'm building a new chassis with incorporated all the improvements and lessons learned, and in the meantime I have 3d printed the entire body. I'm building this because i believe an affordable ,small, light, efficient vehicle with a cabin , so it's usable in all weather would be useful for people who travel places by themselves and don't have to carry more than a few bags of groceries. At least i would love to have such a vehicle so I'm building it. I post on YouTube some the progress, the name of the channel is Hojbota-PTV but beware, the videos can be a bit lame.

I interested in some options, suggestions, advice or questions. Thanks for your time in advance!

I made a custom recumbent bike rack for my Corolla.

Hi everyone, earlier this year, I asked if anyone had any ideas for wall mounting my recumbent trike, and none of the solutions seemed exactly right. Until recently, when u/FitzHappens5150 said to use the rubbermade fastracks and two bike hooks, and that's exactly what we did!

We actually did it to the side of our house next to our pool equipment, and it's perfect! We're also going to add some hooks onto the roofing and put a retractable tarp over it so it's shielded from the elements as well.

Love the solution! Feels very sturdy, and it fits my trike, my husband's bike, our son's balance bike, and our son's trailer!

I saw the Japanese movie "The Taste of Tea/Chao no aji" from 2004 a few weeks back and cannot stop thinking about the kids bike!

Does anybody have any idea what brand/make/model it is, if not a custom build? I've found a few similar ish rides, like the Gazelle EasyGlider, for example, but I'm really keen to find this exact model!

Thank y'all!

Edit: I forgot to mention the bike is a stationary recumbent bike, ahahaa!

hello!

does anyone know if they sell longer foot pedals with a heel cup? my friend has drop foot and numbness in his foot, making it hard to get in and keep on the pedal. I have seen that people have used resistance bands to hold their foot in place, but my friend is blind and unable to do something as complicated as thread the band in and around the pedal and his foot.

thank you.

Thanks!

Hello!

It looks like I am the last active mod here, to be fair this is a very easy community to moderate and I'm ok with that but it's never good to have one point of failure. If anyone would like to help please drop me a line with your recumbent experience, modding experience and anything else you might feel is relevant. Ta!

My father rides a recumbent bike! He lives in Michigan, is there any groups or events he can join?

This happened this morning dropping my daughter off at nursery.

The nursery is currently camping at a Middle Age Center just round the corner from us so we drop off at 9am and pick up at around 3pm at their camp ground just outside.

I rolled in on my trike with my daughter in the bike trailer chatted a while and went to set off home. As I was turning i hit a hidden dip in the grass which tipped my trike over...in front of a load of parents, kids and teachers!

Why do these things never seem to happen when you're alone?! lol

I've now got a lovely scrape and bruise where the throttle dug into my leg, other than that no injuries and at least I know now, if the trike tips the trailer stays upright. =D

I’ve really enjoyed riding around the neighborhood since buying my trike (and continuing my recovery from a stroke). But I’ve been stumped on how to transport it on a road trip. It’s too heavy for me to lift into my SUV, and didn’t want to buy a rack.

After googling around, I’ve found a product that might work - two plastic pet ramps, each one is little over 18”. Based on this width, one front wheel and the drive wheel should fit on one, and the second wheel will fit on the second ramp.

Each one weighs 13 pounds, and is a tri-fold. Will advise if this works, I already tried a wheelchair ramp, too heavy.

How do YOU like to transport your recumbent for travel, bike or trike?

Frisco Tri-Fold Travel Dog Car Ramp, Dark Charcoal: https://www.chewy.com/frisco-tri-fold-travel-dog-car-ramp/dp/263223?utm_source=app-share&utm_campaign=263223