The more you bike the more you get twisted. In my case, I can’t bare the sight a beautiful weekend day unless I can ride. Take last Saturday for example. With partial sun and mid-40’s temps, it was the perfect mid-winter day for a long ride. I was scheduled to go to a party/meeting of the Appalachian Mountain Club’s backpack committee in Ossining, NY. I needed no better excuse and decided to bike there.
This was my route, for the most part, going 45 miles from Brooklyn to the Ossining, NY Metro North station. If you try and follow it, know that Google mis-identified some one-way roads as going the wrong-way. It took me 4 hours, including stops for “comfort breaks.” I rode an HP Velotechnik Grasshopper fx, with Ortlieb recumbent backpack/rack-top bag, and one bunch of collard greens strapped onto the rack-top bag with a bungee net (get it from Rivendell Bicycle Works).
Three years ago, I first rode this route. At that time, the South County Trailway (Westchester) was incomplete and there were numerous miserable detours connecting sections of the rail trail, if you could find them. (“Why should I mind riding a Rans Screamer recumbent tandem on rocky and muddy single track?” “I think the rail trail must continue up there, somewhere.” “Who says I can’t shoulder a recumbent tandem like a cyclocross bike and carry it up a hill?”) That trip, estimated at six hours, ended up taking 12 or more. Admittedly, the long, hard day may have been due to the ozone alert, 110-degree temps, numerous breaks, as well as getting lost, still, the route was eminently blamable.
These days, hallelujah, it’s a straight shot, from New York’s Van Cortlandt Park, where you pick up the Old Putnam Rail Trail, on up. Only a short section through Elmsford takes you on city streets. As a result, this is now one of the best routes out of the city.
Peter and I (Robert) running into each other unexpectedly at the Croton Reservoir.
Note about this entry:
From time to time, I’ve updated this entry as my experience with Cruzbikes has evolved. Meanwhile, I’ve also posted new entries at later dates. To see all entries on this subject, simply click the “Cruzbike” label.January 2012
I feel like I’m learning to ride a recumbent bike again.
The other Wednesday, I took out the new arrival — a moving bottom bracket Cruzbike “Sofrider” — to get a feel for it and test the build. This was my first time on a moving bottom bracket front-wheel-drive recumbent. I’ll say this, although I got “going” on it immediately, it’s an odd sensation to coordinate turning the wheel with changing the leg angle. I admit that I had a great deal of trouble controlling the front wheel for the first five minutes. Or maybe it was 25 minutes. No doubt, to others on the bike path, I looked like I was learning to ride a bike for the first time.
Also, it was strange to feel so much movement in my hands while riding a recumbent bike. I spent about 45 minutes practicing various exercises, as if I was teaching a customer to ride a bent for the first time. Honestly, it was frustrating. Ultimately though, I became comfortable and, after a couple of breakthroughs, I found the frustration was self-caused. The bike was fine. It was me who was acting uncoordinated.
After 45 minutes, I mastered the basic elements of handling the bike and was able to do jerky figure-8’s and double circles within the width of an 8-foot bike lane. (So far, pretty impressive; try achieving a turning radius like that on an ordinary SWB recumbent.) I still needed to figure out the coordination between my arms and feet while pedaling, and develop better control in tight turns, but I was progressing steadily in that direction.
The next time we had good weather, this being January and all, I took it out again. After an hour of practice, I was sufficiently comfortable with the handling that I felt ready to ride it to Prospect Park, 3/4ths a mile away on city streets.
As of now, here’s the tally for how long it took me to learn to ride a Cruzbike moving bottom bracket recumbent bike for the first time (your own results may vary):
Day 1:__0:45 (hr:min) (mastered the basics)
Day 2:__1:00 (hr:min) (ready to ride on road)
Day 3:__2:00 (hr:min) (Improving technique. Working on: figure-8s, tight and open loops, S-turns, increasing speed, climbing, handling uneven surfaces and dirt.)
Day 4:__1:00 (I was away from the bike for about a month, busy with work and riding for practical reasons.)
[Update, a few months later (Aug. 2012), see last paragraph. In summary, great bike.]
I anticipate feeling ready to ride intermediate MTB trails after another 4 hours of practice. I look forward to this test of the off-road handling. Although, if the snow hangs around, that may need to wait till spring.
Originally, after that first day of 45 minutes, I thought it would take me about 8 hours to begin to feel comfortable on MTB trails. However, during my Day 2 ride I experienced two breakthroughs that helped me understand the bike. The first breakthrough was to handle the Cruzbike more like a diamond frame while standing on the pedals. Namely, as I pressed with my feet for each “stroke,” the key was to apply an equally strong pull in a countering direction with my hand.
I could have learned this faster. The Cruzbike website has a nice and very short set of instructions at the “How to Ride” link. At first, I thought the instructions were too simplistic. Not so. They were accurate once I understood the bike: keep your hands soft and ride with open palms. I found that by maintaining soft hands and counterpressing (or counterpulling, if one prefers), one offsets the turning force of the legs. (Note, much later: I’ve come to prefer “counterpulling” since this is what I’m used to on a standard frame and on my Concept II rowing ergometer.)
The second breakthrough was to maintain “soft” legs during turns, or remove the feet from the pedals entirely: turn with the hands only, don’t use the legs. In other words, I needed to relax my legs as I turned the wheel, and let my legs be guided by the pedals.
The mistakes I made during my Day 1 ride, which made the bike difficult to ride, included…I tried both to counterpress and counterpull with my hands (didn’t work); I tried to relax my hands too much, as if I were riding an ordinary fixed bottom bracket recumbent (didn’t work); and I rode with firm, straight legs (come on, dude…). Given the hand coordination issues, I anticipate some experienced recumbent riders may have more trouble learning to ride a Cruzbike than some diamond frame riders. Not what I would normally expect at all!
There are people who will be very well-served by this design, but who may find it hard to ride, especially in a demo ride context. I have to say, I hope they will persist for it will be well worth the effort. It’s a neat bike and a very good value. My good initial impressions remain. I love the responsiveness of the drivetrain, the overall lightweight of the bent, and the feeling of the front wheel drive. I look forward to riding it at speed, on hills and on trails.
To learn more about riding a Cruzbike, be sure to watch the nice videos on the Cruzbike website and take their instructions at face value. It’s as simple as they say, as long as you do what they say.
Day 3 Update
For first three minutes that I got back on the bike I wobbled like I had forgotten how to ride it. I quickly worked that out and then rode through city traffic (I’m in Brooklyn, NY) to and from the park. In Prospect Park, I practiced my technique including figure-8s, double loops, S-turns, increasing my speed, taking it on dirt and rough surfaces. I’ve concluded this is more than learning to ride a ‘bent. It’s learning to ride a whole new type of bike which has a unique body-mind input and a unique performance output. Compared to a normal ‘bent or to a standard frame bike, different muscles and coordination are called for, steering is different, weighting is different, pedaling technique is different, heck, even shifting is different (I seem to prefer riding the Cruzbike in a higher gear and with a slower cadence than I do on a “normal” bent, so I’m shifting up and down among high gears more frequently).
After about 45 min. of practicing technique, I felt the big breakthrough: the bike began to feel natural. I began to anticipate the motion of the bike and began controlling it without much thought. Also, I began to like the way it felt as opposed to struggling with it. Huh! After an hour and 15 minutes I felt ready to begin playing with increased speed of 15-25 mph. After an hour and 50 min., I felt ready to ride through rush hour city traffic for 3/4ths of a mile, back home.
It really does climb better.
On the park loop, Prospect Park has one primary hill to climb. I was pleasantly surprised to discover — wait a second, I’m lying here — I reluctantly discovered beyond any shred of a doubt — that it’s true: the Cruzbike climbs better than my other bents. I was climbing in a higher gear and with less effort and at a higher average speed. As a huge fan of HP Velotechniks and that relaxed style of riding, I have to admit that I hoped this wouldn’t be the case, but it is. This design really climbs nicely, and very possibly as well as a standard frame bike. I can’t believe I’m saying that. I didn’t think it was possible. (Note, later: I guess I wanted to believe that a relaxing ride would also be the fastest. But no, a bike that engages all the muscles and applies that energy to the wheels is the fastest. Seems so obvious, now.)
Here’s what I think is going on. First of all, the chainstays are short like a standard frame, so we don’t lose energy in the long frame as it twists under the application of large forces, as when climbing. Secondly, the chainstays are stiff, so they transmit energy well to the wheel. Thirdly, in the muscles, it’s not that I somehow use my arms to add power to the pedals, as if this were a row-bike. It’s that I can apply more pressure with my feet because I can counter-pull against the handlebars, engaging my core and arm muscles. This is instead of pressing my back into the seat as I mash the pedals. Normally, with a bent, I press against the seat back as I hammer. But this is an unstable position. I can feel my back squirreling around against the seat as I ride, so I can’t press as hard as I might. Further, if the seat is soft (as in, comfy), energy is lost. With a Cruzbike, the countering force comes from my core and arms, creating a stronger platform for applying muscle to the pedals.
Honestly, as I said earlier, I’m reluctantly impressed by the performance improvement. Given how odd the handling feels, I was hoping this wouldn’t be the case, but rather that the luxurious feel of an HP Velotechnik would, somehow, be better on a hill. However, I can’t refute it. Even the entry-level Sofrider is faster on the uphill.
The Cruzbike is clearly for those who have the patience to “learn new tricks” and who place a premium on overall speed. Face it: when we’re talking about speed, we all know that better is better and faster is faster and we’ll learn to ride whatever we must to get the best results.
Prospective Cruzbike riders are going to have to make some hard choices. For those who want a high-performance bent, this odd bird is a fast one. However, you must invest time learning to handle it. If you don’t have the patience, don’t have the time, or you’re really attached to the idea of the “comfort bent” where your hands don’t do any work, stick to a bent that’s easier to ride at the beginning, like an HP Velotechnik.
What I foresee doing here is sticking to the HP Velotechnik Street Machine Gte for touring, but going to the Cruzbike for racing. (By the way, we can install SON hub dynamos and all the usual stuff for brevets and all-night racing. Don’t worry about that.)
Day 4 Update
Day 4:__1:00 (I was away from the bike for about a month, busy with work and riding for practical reasons.)
I got back on it and rode off without problems. I’ve got the hang of it now after 4:45 hours:minutes. Long and short, I like it. I’m riding this Sofrider with rather “basic quality” components, and I’m keeping up with Prospect Park riders who normally drop me on the hills. Long and short, it’s a heck of a machine. It’s not about the bike, it’s about the design in this case, and the Cruzbike is a winner. I’m very tempted to add on some racks and fenders, etc. to the Sofrider so I can begin riding it as my daily ride, maybe even take it out for some weekends. I tell you: it’s growing on me. Riders who itch to go fast will like it too.
Update, a few months later (Aug. 9, 2012):
I’ve been using the CB Sofrider as my city “beater” for the past three weeks, handling all the city throws at me (not literally, I shall hope). Keep in mind, like 7,500,000 other New Yorkers, I don’t own a car, so this is my vehicle for commuting, grocery shopping, hardware store runs, whatever. It’s taken me a bit of time, but I’ve figured out those vital elements of city riding: how to add large bags and panniers so I can load it with groceries, how to lock it, where to carry the lock on the bike, how to start on a hill without wobbling when the light changes and there’s traffic all around me. And so, it’s become more and more useful as my daily ride. The other weekend, just for fun, I put on clipless pedals (for daily errands I always ride with platforms) and took it out to Prospect Park to ride with the dogs (small, big, medium, whatever). I was maintaining avg. speeds I normally never touch over 30 miles of repeating the main (hilly) loop and no one was passing me, even on the main climb, which I was taking at just over 15mph. I’ve become thoroughly convinced of the effectiveness of the design, as odd as it was to ride the first time.
Another update, August 13, 2012.
This morning I took the Cruzbike Quest 26″ out for a training ride, doing loops around Prospect Park. I averaged 20.2 mph over 34 miles with a maximum speed of 33.2 mph. To put this in some context, the last time I did a triathlon, about 8 years ago, the bike portion was 24.8 miles (40k) on a flat course, and I remember averaging 19.5 mph. I think that was my fastest ride for any substantial distance. Given that I was riding at race pace in that previous instance, I’m rather pleased — to say the least — with my training pace this morning. I wish I could say it’s all about me, and not about the bike, however I strongly suspect it’s mostly about the bike in this case.
Update, January 2013.
I’m still riding the Sofrider as my city beater. Like it a lot. Glad to have the shocks. I put on some fat tires. I put on those ugly-when-they’re-old-but-oh-so-useful Wald metal pannier-like side baskets. I use the Radical Design seatback bag on it every day to carry my basic stuff. People have asked me whether the front tire slips. I don’t have a problem with that but I know what they’re talking about. Learning to control the front wheel and minimizing slippage became one of those riding skills I simply had to develop. One thing I like about the format is that it requires a full-body effort. I think it adds to my overall fitness.
In addition, I continue to enjoy taking the Silvio for training rides in the park. Without my intending it, it may have become “my” bike by dint of the continual fine-tunings I’ve had to do to learn how to fit it to the rider (me, the test rider). But that’s the reality of high-end road bikes. You must dial it in for the individual rider for it to work as well as it is supposed to. And as you dial it in, it really stops fitting anyone other than the primary rider. In this case, that seems to be me.
Improve your Cruzbike technique: work out with a jump rope.
A hint for those who want to develop better Cruzbike technique: skip rope. Specifically, do one-legged skipping and a variety of tempos. This helps develop excellent coordination between the hands and legs, which is what you need for really good Cruzbike riding. It also helps strengthen the recumbent muscles. I’m using a Buddy Lee speed rope, but you could use a weighted rope as well.
The first Cruzbike front-wheel-drive recumbent bike arrived — nice design and the components are decent quality. Eager to build it and take it out for a ride. One of the most exciting aspects of this recumbent bike is the clearance for fat tires. We may well have a mountain bike here, folks. I’ll write more after I have the chance to thoroughly abuse it, er, I mean, ride it.
A Volae recumbent rider uses a Windwrap fairing and thick clothing to help fend off icy temps.
Yesterday, Sunday, had a nice 8-hour ride in 20-18 degree F, not counting substantial windchill. Promise to post soon about cold weather clothing and the Terracycle Windwrap fairing on a Volae Century/Tour-type frame. For now, suffice to say…wear wool and carry down! …And the fairing mounted easily, traveled well with no slipping, and was easy to adjust during the ride when necessary (while wearing gloves). It sits sufficiently low compared to the handlebars on a Volae Tour (or Century) that a handlebar-mounted B&M Ixon IQ headlight lights the road w/o excessive obstruction from the faring. It wasn’t necessary to use an accessory mount to position the headlight to the sides or below the fairing.
The only cold-weather induced hassle (not counting the water freezing in the water bottles) was that the derailer for the SRAM Dualdrive would sometimes stick on the Grasshopper fx. I think there was moisture in the housing that froze as we rode. It was easy to loosen up the cable as I rode by shifting to a lower gear and then back down to a higher gear but I never had the highest gear/smallest cog. No big deal, but a bit annoying. The only other time I’ve seen that was when I had actual ice hanging off the cables. Biking remains an adventure.
Not me, not my pony tail, but it is a nice photo of
Ortlieb’s recumbent backpack and panniers in action.
(External link. Photo thanks to therandonneeshop.com).
Review: Ortlieb recumbent backpack. Got one, love it, but verify size of rear rack.
I’m a New York City Ortlieb dealer, just so you know. Call me biased, but if I thought there was a better bag, I would have bought whatever was better. The Ortlieb recumbent backpack is the bag I use as my racktop bag.
On a typical day-long ride, it carries my water bladder, the day’s clothes, food, maps, rain gear, “ten essentials”…. Coolest thing is that it sits in the slip stream and I’m convinced it gives me a slight speed increase in the same manner as the very cool (but now discontinued) Terracycle tail sock.
The Ortlieb bag has nifty backpack straps that attach (click, click, click, click, easy) to turn it into a surprisingly decent daypack. Water bladder drinking tube goes through a standard-sized sealed hole so pack contents stay dry in the rain. The reflective patches are 3M or similar quality — VERY bright and positioned for good reflection both to back and sides. All in all, it’s a great bag. I wish it were cheaper, but when you see it, you’ll understand — very high quality and built to last.
Rack size can be an issue. I use it on a 4 1/2″ wide, 18″ long HP Velotechnik rack (as on the Grasshopper, Street Machine or Scorpion). It’s designed for racks of this dimension, pretty standard for Euro bents. It wouldn’t work as well on a narrower rack like a Tubus or a shorter rack.
The Ortlieb “recumbent backpack” on a Grasshopper fx,
on the George Washington Bridge, during a two-day trip
through Harriman State Park. Nice bag.
The tour operator Experience Plus publishes a series of workout schedules that will help cyclists prepare for long day rides and multi-day touring. Start training now so you’re ready when the weather warms up!
A customer — who rides a sky blue Volae Century ES — named Wylie (see her excellent blog Couch Surfing Cook) sent me a link to a nice site about long distance touring: www.skalatitude.com. This blog, written by a female cyclist touring solo, contains tips and ideas that apply to anyone, male and female alike, who wishes to bicycle far.
She specifically directed me to an entry about lightweight cycle touring with only two panniers, a minimal amount of carrying capacity. It challenges the notion that long haul cycle tourists need the capacity provided by four panniers. This is a welcome and interesting voice in the discussion around ultra-light packing as we continually seek knowledge on how to travel “better.” (I define “better” as “safer, more fun and more expeditious,” just so you know where I stand.) Is it better to pack minimally and light? Is it better to pack for comfort and security? How do we pack and prepare for the most common and/or serious pitfalls? Do we carry a water filter or iodine? What goes into our first aid kit? Synthetic or down jacket? Tent or tarp? Shoes or sandals? Each of us determines our own comfort zone in the continuum.
Before I get into a discussion about bag capacity, I’ll make clear my position on the subject of packing for preparedness: I pack for safety above all else because if I don’t arrive safely, I don’t arrive. Secondly I pack to have fun, because that’s why I do trips. Thirdly, I pack only the essentials that I’ll need to get where I’m going. I carry tools to repair every element of my bike. I carry water purification and a stove when I’m in remote areas. I always have backup lights and batteries. I carry a first aid kit that is larger than my Western Mountaineering sleeping bag and I know how to use it thanks to Wilderness First Responder training. And, fortunately, at this time, I’m healthy and strong enough that while I do count pounds, I rarely count ounces; bike weight is of minor concern.
Going forward now, I’d like to delve into a specific aspect of the article, concerning the writer’s two-pannier baggage carrying system, and translate it for short wheelbase recumbent bikes. Sometimes the wisdom about bike touring needs to be translated over to the recumbent frame.
How much capacity do we need and where do we mount it?
Optimal bike handling (a.k.a., safe bike handling) is retained by loading the weight near the center or gravity and low to the ground. So, on a standard frame (“SF”) bike, generally people load a bike in this order: 1. frame packs (water bottle cages, seat bottom, center triangle); 2. top of the rear rack; 3. handlebars; 4. large panniers on the rear rack; and 5. small size panniers on the front fork, if necessary. All the while, one seeks to keep the weight low (food, water, tools go at bottom of rear and front bags). Unlike bents, SF bikes lack the option of mounting low rider packs in the center of the bike.
On a short wheelbase (“SWB”) recumbent, optimal handling is retained by loading as follows: 1. low on the back of the seat (at the center of gravity); 2. frame packs; 3. small panniers under the seat; 4. large panniers on the rear rack; 5. rack top; and 6. high on the back of the seat. As on a standard frame bike, a bent handles best if you place heavy items as low as possible. Unlike SF bikes, SWB bents rarely accept panniers on the front fork. As for traditional handlebar bags, they are generally unmountable and all the bent-specific versions I’ve seen are minuscule. (If you know of an exception to this, send me the link [rmatson AT theinnovationworks DOT com].) I suggest loading bents in this sequence because one’s upper body weight is not available (as it is on a SF) to comfortably counter-balance a lopsided load (e.g., top heavy or side-weighted). Also, an improperly loaded bent may tip at low speeds or in slow sharp turns, and no longer track easily when guided by hand, as when walking through a train station or up a steep hill.
In terms of carrying capacity, a challenge for SWB riders is that large size “rear” panniers — usually the first panniers we’d load on a standard frame bike — will scrape the ground on steeply angled turns when mounted under the seat, in a bent’s first loading zone. So, the first bags we load are small capacity panniers under the seat. What I find is that those are quickly filled and, even for just a weekend tour, I soon need another bag on the rear rack, whether it’s a rack-top bag or a rear pannier (or two). As a result, even on short trips, it is not unusual for me to use a four- or five-bag setup, but with half-full bags! My objective is to properly distribute the weight so the bent handles well. Optimal handling translates directly into safer riding which, since safety is my first priority during a trip, is paramount to any other consideration, including whether a half-full bag adds wind resistance or an unnecessary pound of weight. What is interesting is that a good bent, properly loaded, will handle almost identically to how it handles without any load and it is precisely this quality that makes a (good) bent a welcome traveling companion.
Here’s a photo of my bag setup for a two-day bike camping trip in rainy weather but moderate temperatures (50-70 F day, 40-50 F at night). It shows two small underseat Ortlieb bags plus a rear rack bag with bungee net to hold rain gear. On the frame I’ve mounted a bike lock (since half the trip was in urban areas), odometer, map and pepper spray. I carry a water bladder, the day’s food and extra warm layers in the rear rack-top bag which is an Ortlieb recumbent backpack.
HP Velotechnik Grasshopper fx loaded for an apx. 160-mile weekend trip, from Brooklyn, NY, to Harriman State Park and around about and back.
Here’s a photo of your humble servant looking “high-vizible” and slightly unshorn. New York City Recumbent Supply owner Robert Matson.
As for analyzing what to pack and how to lighten the load, I will hold off for now but will continue to post articles on that subject as I find or write them.
Recycling the World
David publishes his gear list from two round-world trips. Both gear lists are streamlined and small. Him and his wife Julie have some nice photos too. http://recyclingtheworld.us/gear.php
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