Thoughts on upcoming new Sun recumbents?

Howdy folks!

I'm curious as to how people feel about the new Sun recumbents coming out
for 2004? I understand that they're going to have:

CLWB with dual 20" wheels , OSS and rear suspension
SWB
tadpole trike
delta trike with USS

Evidently they're thinking of making them all in three different flavors;
hi-ten steel, cro-moly, and aluminum.

I'll be interested to see how the tadpole turns out. I know they've been
tinkering with the frame geometry a bit. You can see some pics of the bikes
he
http://www.bentrideronline.com/Interbike2003.htm

I have seen and read of some rather harsh criticism of some of the Sun
bikes, but I'll say this about them. They're getting more people interested
in recumbents and that is a good thing. When I bought my Tour Easy and then
when my wife decided she really loved the bikes too, there was no way we
could afford to get her a Tour Easy. We were able to get her an EZ-1 Lite
and she really loves it. It seems a well engineered bike.

When we ride our recumbents, there are times that we get a vibe off of
people who see us; a similar vibe that we get when we're sailing. Many
times people make assumptions about you because of the hobbies and loves in
which you elect to participate. Sailing, at times, is viewed as elitist,
despite our being anything but! Sailing history and the perception of
people regarding sailing as a "yacht club" thing has done little to dispel
that. We sail affordable sailboats and eschew the notion that there is
something inherently elitist in sailing, period. But, people are oft times
reluctant to let those perceptions go... We've encountered similar things
when riding our recumbents. No doubt, my Tour Easy wasn't cheap, but my
wife's bike was certainly far more affordable and yet no less fun to ride.
I like the fact that Sun might be opening up recumbents to more mainstream
viewing and acceptance. Are their products top of the line? No. Are they
bottom of the barrel? I don't think so. Do they at least give folks a
decent chance at enjoying this wonderful experience without breaking the
bank? You bet.

I guess I just felt the need to say this, as I've read out so much stuff out
there on the 'net that decries Sun and their position in the recumbent
world. You know what? If they help people get their first start in
recumbenting, well I say go for it. After a time, I bet most riders move up
to different steeds and different companies, so eventually lots of folks
benefit.

Recumbent riding is a blast and good for you to boot! Who WOULDN'T want to
share such a great thing?

--
"Sea" ya!
--Lars S. Mulford
"You can find evil anywhere you look.
The question is, why are you looking?"