How much would this cost me? ( and other questions)

Hiya,

How much would it cost me to buy a 'bent with simililar stats as
these?

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/bridgest...ne-1991-38.htm

My current bike is a diamond frame Bridgestone CB-1, that I've had
since 1991, that weighs roughly 30 pounds.

A picture of my stationary recumbent bike...
http://www.outdoorreview.com/Channel...duct_80392.jpg

I ride for 7.5 mi./12.07 km a day, twice a day. This usually takes me
40 minutes or so to complete. After 372 days of active use,I didn't
ride every day , I I have over 4600 miles on the bike.

My question is: Is all that exercising going to come in handy should I
decide to buy a 'bent?


On a 'bent a backbpack is out of the question, right? Ok, so how do
you:

1) go to the market and pick up a few things. or,

2) if you go on a day trip or a trip that lasts for weeks, where do
you put all the foodstuffs? (so that you don't have to stop off at
restaurants, which cost money.

I admit it. I don't know how they do it. I'm just wondering, as far as
the eating goes.

Thanks in Advance, (TIA)

Mooch

Mooch wrote:

Hiya,

How much would it cost me to buy a 'bent with simililar stats as
these?

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/bridgest...ne-1991-38.htm

My current bike is a diamond frame Bridgestone CB-1, that I've had
since 1991, that weighs roughly 30 pounds.

Plan on spending $1100+ for a reasonably lightweight recumbent with
decent all-around performance.

Here are a couple of bikes that have been on the market long enough to
be fully proven designs for a company that has been selling recumbents
for more than 2 decades:
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/Rocket.htm,
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/V2.htm.

Not that these are the only bikes to consider, but they are safe choices.

A picture of my stationary recumbent bike...
http://www.outdoorreview.com/Channel...duct_80392.jpg

I ride for 7.5 mi./12.07 km a day, twice a day. This usually takes me
40 minutes or so to complete. After 372 days of active use,I didn't
ride every day , I I have over 4600 miles on the bike.

My question is: Is all that exercising going to come in handy should I
decide to buy a 'bent?

Probably. The RANS bikes mentioned above will be a lot faster on the
road than your stationary bike, however.

On a 'bent a backbpack is out of the question, right? Ok, so how do
you:

1) go to the market and pick up a few things. or,

2) if you go on a day trip or a trip that lasts for weeks, where do
you put all the foodstuffs? (so that you don't have to stop off at
restaurants, which cost money.

I admit it. I don't know how they do it. I'm just wondering, as far as
the eating goes.

Most recumbents will accept rear pannier racks, and several will also
accept underseat racks. Here is a RANS Rocket with a touring load:
http://www.phred.org/~alex/pictures/bikes/rocket/loaded-1.jpg.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)

Mooch wrote:
Hiya,

How much would it cost me to buy a 'bent with simililar stats as
these?
My current bike is a diamond frame Bridgestone CB-1, that I've had
since 1991, that weighs roughly 30 pounds.


I see a pageful of specs. Almost-all recumbents are heavier than upright
bikes. The confort advantage is typically huge, however. Judging from
the reactions of people who've rode mine for the first time, on flat
ground you won't mind pushing around a few extra pounds of steel to be a
lot more comfortable.


My question is: Is all that exercising going to come in handy should I
decide to buy a 'bent?


The typical "transition" pain you get when starting riding a bent is you
get a new form of hip soreness for a few days. Some say that the higher
the pedal position, the worse it usually feels but it does not last
long, and isn't anything so bad to keep you from riding. There have been
people who have found that bent riding did not suit them--usually if
they happened to have back, hip or neck injuries that it aggravated. But
for most people, it is a huge improvement in comfort overall, and people
who have not been riding or exercising AT ALL can often put 8-10 miles
on my bike's computer inside of an hour of use.


On a 'bent a backbpack is out of the question, right? Ok, so how do
you:

1) go to the market and pick up a few things. or,

2) if you go on a day trip or a trip that lasts for weeks, where do
you put all the foodstuffs? (so that you don't have to stop off at
restaurants, which cost money.

I admit it. I don't know how they do it. I'm just wondering, as far as
the eating goes.

Thanks in Advance, (TIA)

Mooch

If you are really concerned about having lots of carrying capacity, then
I suggest you only consider bikes that are known to have lots of rack
space available. Some bents can use regular bike racks, some have custom
racks available and others have neither. Long-wheel-base LWB bikes tend
to be popular for touring and have lots of carrying capacity, while
short-wheel-base SWB ones are "racers" and generally don't. But there
are exceptions, so shop around.
~~~~~

How much would it cost me to buy a 'bent with simililar stats as
these?

You could probably find one for $600 or so, if you get a Sun EZ-1 as
your starter recumbent. Biking position same as your exercise machine.
Not the highest end parts, but good enough for 50++ mile rides or
more.

My question is: Is all that exercising going to come in handy should
I
decide to buy a 'bent?

Yes. Your various front & back thigh muscles, and your knees, will be
used to the position and the pedal work. If you use foot straps on
your machine, try similar accessories (pedal cages or power grips) on
your new bike. Your arms will get almost no workout except for
steering, since all of your weight will be on your seat.

On a 'bent a backbpack is out of the question, right? Ok, so how do
you:

1) go to the market and pick up a few things.

No. A backpack is fine. For example, the EZ-1 has a taut mesh
seatback on a square frame (like a lawn chair), and you can hang a
regular knapsack over the top. Some of the more severely recumbent
styles, such as lowracers, can't take backpacks, but they sometimes
have tailboxes with storage inside.

2) if you go on a day trip or a trip that lasts for weeks, where do
you put all the foodstuffs? (so that you don't have to stop off at
restaurants, which cost money.

If you get a rear rack, you can add side panniers to hold more stuff.
You can also get a handlebar bag. For water, you can get a
bag-and-tube arrangement (Camelbak brand, for instance) which hangs
behind your seatback and from which tube you sip. A day trip is an
easy load of food; a long tour might involve many panniers and bags.

I admit it. I don't know how they do it. I'm just wondering, as far
as
the eating goes.

Just like backpacking. You can carry bread, peanut butter, nuts, candy
bars, fruit , tinned meats etc., with you. If you intend to tour for
several days, you can take along a backpacker's stove and pot set.

Are there any recumbent bikers in your area? Try to meet them, try
out their bikes, and ask for advice. The newest part of the experience
of recumbency for you may be the slight difference in balancing while
leaning back.

C.C.

Tom Sherman Wrote:


snip

Plan on spending $1100+ for a reasonably lightweight recumbent with
decent all-around performance.

Here are a couple of bikes that have been on the market long enough to
be fully proven designs for a company that has been selling recumbents
for more than 2 decades:
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/Rocket.htm,
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/V2.htm.

snip

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)

Nice to see "proper" rans nomenclature has expanded to the lower case.


--
meb

meb wrote:

Tom Sherman Wrote:


snip

Plan on spending $1100+ for a reasonably lightweight recumbent with
decent all-around performance.

Here are a couple of bikes that have been on the market long enough to
be fully proven designs for a company that has been selling recumbents
for more than 2 decades:
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/Rocket.htm,
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/V2.htm.

snip

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)


Nice to see "proper" rans nomenclature has expanded to the lower case.

What do the computer geeks know about proper capitalization anyhow?

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 14:56:23 -0600, Tom Sherman
wrote in message
:

What do the computer geeks know about proper capitalization anyhow?

Is this a geography round?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

85% of helmet statistics are made up, 69% of them at CHS, Puget Sound

Tom Sherman Wrote:
meb wrote:

Tom Sherman Wrote:


snip

Plan on spending $1100+ for a reasonably lightweight recumbent with
decent all-around performance.

Here are a couple of bikes that have been on the market long enough
to
be fully proven designs for a company that has been selling
recumbents
for more than 2 decades:
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/Rocket.htm,
http://www.ransbikes.com/2005bikes/V2.htm.

snip

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)


Nice to see "proper" rans nomenclature has expanded to the lower
case.

What do the computer geeks know about proper capitalization anyhow?

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)

That when something is case sensitive, upper and lower case characters
are not interchangeable, i.e. an upper case "A" is ascii 41h, a lower
case "a" is ascii 61h.

Computer geeks are accustomed to case critical characters.


--
meb

"Just zis Guy, you know?" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 14:56:23 -0600, Tom Sherman
wrote in message
:

What do the computer geeks know about proper capitalization anyhow?

Is this a geography round?

'F' is the capital of "France", right?

Jon Meinecke

On Mon, 28 Mar 2005 12:11:20 -0600, "Jon Meinecke"
wrote in message
1112033433.eb67f925925041a9324618d1cd44ff03@teran ews:

'F' is the capital of "France", right?

That is very much where we were headed, yes :-)

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

85% of helmet statistics are made up, 69% of them at CHS, Puget Sound