Recumbent - Tandem 'Bent

I just wanted to say I saw two people on a tandem 'bent during my commute home yesterday. They were slow and having problems riding in a straight line, but I imagine that sort of thing takes a lot of practice! Looked like fun. :)

This was on the Island Line Trail north of Burlington, VT.

heh, newbies I guess. Or maybe one of them had an inner ear infection. ;)

The captain's configuration on a Screamer is so similar to my V-Rex that when I test rode a Screamer, I was rock-steady even on takeoff. Made the owner jealous. :) Some bent riders just never learn how to ride a straight line; for which I blame them, not the bike.

I have a Vision R44 SWB above seat steering and I also have a Vision R84 tandem. They both are very simular and I'm rock solid on both of them and enjoying them very much.

It would probably be safe to say that a bent rider will never be *quite* as steady as a good DF rider. That's because the bent rider can't use body english to smooth out the small oscillations that are inherent to 2-wheelers. But bents can get to a point where there's no practical difference.

Well I could never ride a really straight line on my DF either but I'm no worse on the 'bent. Also could never trackstand on the DF no matter how much I practiced. I guess I'm just "balance challenged".

What make tandem was it? The wife and I passed though their last wek on tour.

What make tandem was it? The wife and I passed though their last week on tour.

Gosh... I don't know... Sorry. It would have been around 4:20PM though.

Don't see many recumbents around here though. They do look like fun. Does anyone ride in the winter?

Yes, we ride in the winter. We use or bike(s) for running to the store, draging home the X-mass tree, etc. I know that it was not the wife and myself, I was just wondering what brand it was.

If you had seen us we were on our Longbikes Gulfstream. It's hard to miss as it's bright yellow and has a 106" wheel base, with a complete set of bags the bike is hard to miss.

My Wife and I bought a Rans Screamer recumbent tandem a little over a year ago. An injury not related to biking kept me from riding bike until last fall.
There is a period of getting used to the steering and learning to be compatable while riding together on a tandem. I find that when I communicate my intentions it really helps.
We love our tandem and ride mostly on converted rail to trail locations here in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The tandem is great for easy conversation and it is a great equalizer to keep couples of varying power and ability riding together. My Wife no longer complains of her "rear" getting tired and sore. She likes the riding position and not having to worry about gear changing. Where she used to ride about 15 miles and be ready to quit, she now can ride 30 miles with only a short break or two for a brief rest.
The tandem is quite long (about 9 feet) and we solved the transportation problem by building a special low-cost 2-wheel trailer to haul the tandem. Works nicely and we have the rest of the car to haul other people and gear.
Regards - Dex and Jan Henschel