Ever Ride in City Traffic?

NYC, that is! On a weekday in mid-town Manhattan? I did bike
messenging for almost two months one summer -- only job where I wish I
had more time in the day for (second hardest after Army infantry, no
joke!) -- and now that I'm curious about recumbents, I'm trying to
picture myself in all kinds of situations.

How do you lock up a 'bent, anyway?

Is it good for weaving in and out of traffic?

Does it brake just like an upright?

Is it harder to go real slow?

Ever run red lights with them?

How would they fare on the sidewalk? How well do they go over curbs
and speed bumps?

Ever get mugged on one? (Serious! Twice I had to jet away from some
miscreants in broad daylight in the parks.)

And apparently they make lots of squeaky noises??

And they're actually worse for certain kinds of back problems???

Many moons ago, I commuted into NYC on an upright (over the GWB into
midtown). At the risk of getting flamed, I would not ride a recumbent
in NYC. The reasons are many: acceleration, jumping curbs and potholes,
visibility, etc. Maybe someone here will disagree with me and set me
straight, but that is my 2 cents worth.

"rBOB" wrote in message
ups.com...
Many moons ago, I commuted into NYC on an upright (over the GWB into
midtown). At the risk of getting flamed, I would not ride a recumbent
in NYC. The reasons are many: acceleration, jumping curbs and potholes,
visibility, etc. Maybe someone here will disagree with me and set me
straight, but that is my 2 cents worth.

rBOB is right. Recumbents really don't work all that well in heavy city
traffic, especially for something as wild as bike messaging. You want to be
on an upright where you can be like a deer. On a recumbent, you will be like
a hedgehog and nothing but an accident waiting to happen.

I have deleted the other newsgroups as posting a message to more than one
newsgroup is an abomination. There ought to be a law against it.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

"NYC XYZ" wrote in message
oups.com...

NYC, that is! On a weekday in mid-town Manhattan? I did bike
messenging for almost two months one summer -- only job where I wish I
had more time in the day for (second hardest after Army infantry, no
joke!) -- and now that I'm curious about recumbents, I'm trying to
picture myself in all kinds of situations.

How do you lock up a 'bent, anyway?

Is it good for weaving in and out of traffic?

Does it brake just like an upright?

Is it harder to go real slow?

Ever run red lights with them?

How would they fare on the sidewalk? How well do they go over curbs
and speed bumps?

Ever get mugged on one? (Serious! Twice I had to jet away from some
miscreants in broad daylight in the parks.)

And apparently they make lots of squeaky noises??

And they're actually worse for certain kinds of back problems???

Why post this message to multiple newsgroups when what you want to know will
only be found on ARBR.

I once spent several years in NYC and never saw a single recumbent bicycle.
Forget nyc.general.

Rec.bicycles.misc is too miscellaneous for any information of a worthwhile
nature.

If you want to know something about recumbents, then post to ARBR and only
to ARBR. After all, we are the experts on the subject of recumbents. All you
will get from other newsgroups is a lot of bum information.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

Edward Dolan wrote:

Why post this message to multiple newsgroups when what you want to know will
only be found on ARBR.

I doubt that. I didn't even know ARBR existed until half-way through
my research into recumbents!

I once spent several years in NYC and never saw a single recumbent bicycle.
Forget nyc.general.

You tend to see them mostly during the annual 5 Boro Bike Tour, but you
know, it was this past Thursday, when I saw the stereotypical fat
bearded middle-aged white guy on a 'bent that I remembered my long-ago
interest in those bikes.

Rec.bicycles.misc is too miscellaneous for any information of a worthwhile
nature.

I dunno...was hoping there'd be folks like myself, upright riders who
also believe in the virtues of a 'bent.

I guess I'll stick to my Trek 7500FX for NYC, then, and use a 'bent for
other travels.

If you want to know something about recumbents, then post to ARBR and only
to ARBR. After all, we are the experts on the subject of recumbents. All you
will get from other newsgroups is a lot of bum information.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

Yes, Your Cycleness!

Hmm...is it not possible to have a rather more upright position -- but
still relatively reclined compared to real uprights -- and maybe front
wheel drive? Someone ought to design a bike that's half-way between an
upright and a 'bent...it'd be more upright than 'bent, but still
recognizably non-upright...the legs are elevated just enough to allow
for a real seat, but an upright otherwise so as to be manuverable....

Like http://www.easyracers.com/ ?

NYC XYZ asked:

How do you lock up a 'bent, anyway?

I use a motorcycle cable and Master padlock.

Is it good for weaving in and out of traffic?

No.

Does it brake just like an upright?

Better, because there's no danger of a header.

Is it harder to go real slow?

At first, yes -- but with practice, not much.

Ever run red lights with them?

No. Running a red light in city traffic can be the last stupid mistake
you ever get to make.

How would they fare on the sidewalk?

Not as maneouverable as an upright.

How well do they go over curbs and speed bumps?

Not well.

Ever get mugged on one?

No. I was mugged on my upright by two attackers, though. After I
flat-backed the first one, the second one shagged ass. I'm not a good
choice of target by a mugger: I don't carry money or valuables, but I do
carry over 200 pounds of bad attitude.

And apparently they make lots of squeaky noises??

No.

And they're actually worse for certain kinds of back problems???

I can't imagine the kind of back problem for which a recumbent is worse
than an upright.

--
"Bicycling is a healthy and manly pursuit with much
to recommend it, and, unlike other foolish crazes,
it has not died out." -- The Daily Telegraph (1877)

"Paul Hobson" wrote in message
...


Paris was easily the scariest. Also, it was my first time riding on the
streets of a major city ever, so let's throw that one out.


Yet I loved cycling in Paris - the Parisian rush hour was so easy! Yes, it
was busy, but the motorists had such an excellent attitude to cyclists,
giving me loads of room. As well as me cycling, my husband and our then 14
year-old son cycled said Parisian rush hour, and we all thought the same. At
the hotel where we were staying was an American (Texan, but no, not that
one) who was also cycling and he too thought cycling in Paris was fun. Are
we talking the same Paris? ;-)

Cheers, helen s

I ride in NYC traffic and I see recumbents from time to time,
especially with the critical mass groups. Even with the 8 foot flags,
the fear I have is cars can't see that low.

I was off the bike for five years and then popped into a shop and test
rode a carbon fiber bianchi through Times Square in rush hour, I was
hooked.

People ask me, but I explain you never forget how to ride, it's just
like riding a bicycle, you never forget!

How is that for clever?

NYC XYZ wrote:
NYC, that is! On a weekday in mid-town Manhattan? I did bike
messenging for almost two months one summer -- only job where I wish I
had more time in the day for (second hardest after Army infantry, no
joke!) -- and now that I'm curious about recumbents, I'm trying to
picture myself in all kinds of situations.

Most of the questions you ask don't have specific answers, because
'bents are not a single functional class of cycle, just a general
description of the seating layout. What goes for a BikeE will not
necessarily go for an Anthrotech touring trike, and what goes for that
probably has little to do with what will go for an M5 Lowracer.

How do you lock up a 'bent, anyway?

Most have some sort of frame/wheel interface where you do it same as you
would a DF. But not all of them.

Is it good for weaving in and out of traffic?

As above, /very/ much implementation dependent. A compact city 'bent
like the HPVel Spirit, pretty good, a lowracer or a long wheelbase
tourer will suck at it Bigtime.

Does it brake just like an upright?

Most of them brake considerably better. With a lower centre of mass
there's far less tendency to disappear over the bars, so usually a skid
is the worst you can manage. Being usually pricier, 'bents are
typically aimed at a market who appreciate more expensive things, like
hydraulic disc brakes, and that can be a factor too.

Is it harder to go real slow?

On a bike, as a rule of thumb the lower the seat is the harder really
slow travel is. On a trike, you can do an indefinite track stand if
you want to.

Ever run red lights with them?

Same as on an upwrong, something that is possible, but I don't do,
'cause it's Very Dumb.

How would they fare on the sidewalk?

Same as on an upwrong, depends on the other population and not something
I go in for.

How well do they go over curbs and speed bumps?

You typically can't hop the front wheel, so going up kerbs is a question
of wheel size and suspension. Going down them isn't really a problem
IME. Speed bumps will also vary with wheel size and suspension, but you
won't go over the bars if you hit a nasty one unexpectedly.

Ever get mugged on one? (Serious! Twice I had to jet away from some
miscreants in broad daylight in the parks.)

I haven't been...

And apparently they make lots of squeaky noises??

Oh. Mine doesn't. No particular reason they should be squeakier than
any other bike AFAICT.

And they're actually worse for certain kinds of back problems???

For /some/, yes. But probably a typical upwrong crouch will be worse
for rather more. If your back problem is made worse by a recumbent
position then something /really/ upright (maybe a Pedersen) would be a
possibility in the other direction worth considering.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/