Vision

Anyone heard anything?

As a matter of fact, I called the Vision company today. While it's
difficult to get a hold of a real live person through their phone tree
(many extensions for people who probably don't even work there any
more), I nevertheless left a message for Joel Smith (president and
founder of Vision), and to my surprise, he returned my call within about
90 minutes. I was especially surprised since my question was fairly
trivial (I just needed to know the steering tube dimension for an R-40).
While talking with him, I asked him about the future of Vision, and all
he could/would say was that he was fairly certain the Vision Company
would return to production in some form or another. I also had a
conversation today with the owner of GoBentBikes in Wenatchee who just
recently drove over to the Vision factory to see for himself what was
up. He told me that he spoke with the other co-founder of the Vision
Company and got a similar story. He said the high overhead of their
current facility together with some legal matters are necessitating a
change, but that expectations are that they will resume production from
a different facility. As a concerned Vision R-40 owner I have followed
the rumors and speculations about ATP-Vision with great interest. I was
sorry to see them criticized for not being more forth coming about their
current status, since I have a strong feeling that the legal matters are
preventing them from making public comments, even if they would like to.
I have seen other innovative companies go through similar growth
problems and survive, and I believe that Vision will too. Out of respect
for the great contributions the people of Vision have made to recumbent
cycling, I think we owe it to them to just be patient and let them work
through these difficult times. I for one would be very sorry to see ATP-
Vision shut down for good, especially if our own misguided gossip in any
way contributed to the demise of a good company run by good people.



--

I've ridden my 1999 Vision R40 USS in three configurations: fixed fork
SWB (1000+ miles), LWB (1000+ miles), and new Ballistic fork SWB (500+
miles).
- The SWB fixed fork is very sporty in way of handling and a little
more maneuverable than the LWB in city traffic. But it really cries
out for some type of suspension on anything but the smoothest roads.
- The Ballistic fork offers suspension but is very heavy and a tad
less stable at higher speeds.
- The LWB is also a fairly heavy configuration, but offers the best
balanced distribution of weight, both for steep climbs (I live in
hilly Stuttgart Germany) and high speed descents, since rider weight
is not so heavily loaded on the front wheel). The vertical flex of the
LWB boom also provides necessary shock absorbtion. For slow speed
climbing you need to have the steering bar in the most sensitive
position. In my view, LWB is the way to go for the most satisfying R40
experience.
- My only complaints about the Vision are 1) lot of weight to lug up
hills; 2) not easy to transport on a traditional Rhode Gear Shuttle or
similar bike carrier.

Hi Dale,

Since your considering a convertible SWB/LWB recumbent, why don't you
check out the Burley Canto and Taiko bikes. they both sport fixed
frame monotubes, so no chain or boom to adjust when switching and
neither configuration needs active suspension because of the passive
suspension built into the frame. Of course you can't get a Burley with
USS.

Gene

Thanks for the detailed report. I'm pulling for them all the way. There's
just no reason they should go under now, when the recumbent market is
growing and the economy is improving. I bought a V70 last year for my wife
and it's a great, innovative product. But the bike business is tough, no
doubt about it. Recumbent dealers tend to be small and at the ordinary bike
shops, floor space for recumbents is usually enough for about 2 bikes.