Recumbent - Which is Better in the Rain - Bent or DF?

I am begining to hate winter. Cold, gray dreary days filled with rain or drizzle. Come back sun! It is no fun getting soaked on my bike on the way to and from work. Now to open a can of worms:D. Which do you think is better for riding in the rain, a recumbent or a DF? I am tending to think that a DF is better in the wet because you don't get as wet and it is easier to see the wet road markings at night.

It all depends on the rider and the skills..

Personally, I prefer to go down in the rain, less road rash.

depends on the bent. I think a LWB would be best overall. My p-38 does extremely well, but I might be more iffy about the lowracer.

It not only depends on the bent, it depends on how much rain. In light rain, I'd take my front-faired V-Rex any day. In heavier rain, though, water runs down my forearms and pools in my rain jacket's elbows. It also pools in the folds at the front of the jacket and seeps through the zipper onto my chest. The biggest problem with the upright in heavy rains is that I don't have a way to keep my feet dry. Water runs down my legs, into any boots I wear.

Think WAW, Go-One... or other enclosed Velo for those "iffy" days.

Which do you think is better for riding in the rain, a recumbent or a DF?
Whichever one's got a roof on it.

Since that's much more likely with a bent trike, I'll say a bent. But honestly, of all the people who own bent trikes (at least in the US) very, very few own a full body for them.
~

Think WAW, Go-One... or other enclosed Velo for those "iffy" days.

Ten thousand or so dollars is a bit expensive for a rain suit... Velomobiles aren't very common in the US because they're not seen as a viable transportation alternative and they cost almost what a car costs.

Ten thousand or so dollars is a bit expensive for a rain suit... Velomobiles aren't very common in the US because they're not seen as a viable transportation alternative and they cost almost what a car costs.
You're just not looking in the right places. The velokit (http://velo-kit.com/)shown below lists brand new for $975. I actually got mine cheaper, but it's an early experimental model and many enhancements were made after I got mine.

It adds less than 20 lbs to an existing trike that you supply and can be assembled and disassembled in a few minutes and tossed into the back of a subcompact. Before I went to work today, I noticed it was raining so I put it on. It is easy enough to maneuver that I brought it into my second floor office.

I've been riding mine since last October, so I've been in darkness, rain, hail, freezing cold, you name it. I have 2 grocery panniers in there so I can carry a 10 lb bag of dog food, a 6 pack of beer, and still have room for other groceries. I park right at the entrance of stores which is really nice when it is stormy.

If it's 42 degrees and rainy, I wear a short sleeve jersey and shorts -- no jacket is necessary. Today it was warmer, so I opened the windows a bit and set adjusted the doors to let in more air. I think the kit is the best idea out there.

http://alptown.com/temp/Oregon.2007.BadDayCommuter.jpg

I am tending to think that a DF is better in the wet because you don't get as wet and it is easier to see the wet road markings at night.
I assure you that you can get soaked to the bone on a DF. Visibility from a DF can be significantly better since some bents are really low. Headlights are more likely to blind you on a bent and if you're in a velo like the one shown my earlier post, the water droplets make things worse. This is not a problem in town, but on open highways where there is no lighting except headlights, it can be a big deal.

Seeing road markings is easy enough. However, debris and roadkill is another matter entirely.

Rain, if it happens while you're riding, just plain sucks. Then add hail to the mix without any protection, why that's even worse. That's what happened to me last week and the hail was without warning. That's when I discovered that my trike seat will hold water, as in a puddle, even though it's mesh. But at least with a helmet on you can put your head down and charge through it. Kind of hard to see though.

A trike with a front fairing and fenders is an excellent start! I used this setup straight through a Canadian winter, and intend to do the same for the coming winter.

We don't get much rain here, so I chose the last one. My recumbents are 2-wheels, with road-type tires, and I have to admit, that I think a mountain bike is better in slick conditions. Certainly in snow, and less so in rain. I ride my mountain bike through the tough winter months.

A trike would probably be a lot better in slick conditions.

If I lived in Oregon, I would seriously consider getting a trike with one of these Velokits. Even though I commute year-round, I usually only get stuck in rain, less than 5 times a year in this dry Colorado climate.


You're just not looking in the right places. The velokit (http://velo-kit.com/)shown below lists brand new for $975. I actually got mine cheaper, but it's an early experimental model and many enhancements were made after I got mine.

It adds less than 20 lbs to an existing trike that you supply and can be assembled and disassembled in a few minutes and tossed into the back of a subcompact. Before I went to work today, I noticed it was raining so I put it on. It is easy enough to maneuver that I brought it into my second floor office.

I've been riding mine since last October, so I've been in darkness, rain, hail, freezing cold, you name it. I have 2 grocery panniers in there so I can carry a 10 lb bag of dog food, a 6 pack of beer, and still have room for other groceries. I park right at the entrance of stores which is really nice when it is stormy.

If it's 42 degrees and rainy, I wear a short sleeve jersey and shorts -- no jacket is necessary. Today it was warmer, so I opened the windows a bit and set adjusted the doors to let in more air. I think the kit is the best idea out there.

http://alptown.com/temp/Oregon.2007.BadDayCommuter.jpg

I am seriously considering building a coroplast rans fairing for my vrex. Then I will be unstoppable!!

Get out of the rain.

If I were some of you guy’s I’d seriously consider moving. Welcome to Tucson AZ.
It’s November we're still in the 70’s-80’s.

Moving isn’t so bad, our family due to work has moved about 20 times. Look at moving from the bright side. It is said three moves equals a fire. Hey, that means you can buy brand new stuff after three moves.

Seriously, I hate rain, cold weather and love the southwest. I can ride about 330 days a year, cold isn’t the problem the rain is,, I don’t ride in the rain. Even though it may rain more then 22 days per year, it doesn’t rain all day everywhere.

I'm somewhat realistic; some of you don't like the southwest, some don't want to move, but if neither is a problem...have fun wherever you are.

I would have to say my white Buick with a top and heater.:o
I guess I am not tough enough.
Wink

I've ridden both. The clear plexiglas fairing kept the rain off of my face sure. The wet fairing was too hard to see through. Without the fairing I just got a face full of rain. No problems with a DF.

I rarely ride in the rain because it rarely rains here but IMHO riding a trike in the rain really sucks. Mine, a GS GTO, has 20 inch wheels and only a standard back fender which I ditched quite some time ago as being unneeded. Small wheels spin at a much higher rate compared to larger wheels for the same mph and pick up a lot more water than a larger wheel. It doesn't take long before I am covered in grime since the streets collect a lot of it between rainstorms.

There is an emeritus professor from Michigan State University who built chloroplast wheel covers for his trike and who swears they keep him dry in the dismal winter weather in Michigan. Unfortunately he doesn't post here.

Think WAW, Go-One... or other enclosed Velo for those "iffy" days.


Ten thousand or so dollars is a bit expensive for a rain suit... Velomobiles aren't very common in the US because they're not seen as a viable transportation alternative and they cost almost what a car costs.

I have fair skin and sunburn very easily. My WAW protects me from both sun and showers. The entry level price maybe what a good used car sells for, however when cost of ownership for my car were added up it wasn't anywhere near my WAW. In my opinion velomobiles are not popular because they're hard to get. I made a two thousand mile trip twice to get my WAW. First time was to see if I could fit inside and the second time was to pick up my WAW. Sure, I could of had it shipped to me but I wanted to drive the freeway back showing the world my bike. At last count I'm one of seven WAW's in the US and there are other velomobile brother and sisters out there. I'm part of a minority of recumbent riders but I like it that way. It keeps me and my velomobile safer and more secure.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2139/2069011663_dbb33c6725.jpg?v=0
.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2261/2069014543_ab2e654717.jpg?v=0

There is an emeritus professor from Michigan State University who built chloroplast wheel covers for his trike and who swears they keep him dry in the dismal winter weather in Michigan.

Byron is an interesting person - he rides his trikes year around (he has a Cattrike and a Windcheetah,) rides his Champiot Irish Mail twice a week, and belongs to the local boat club so he can scull a few times per week. It's a good thing he's retired, because he doesn't have time for work. Actually, he's the featured rider on the home page for Tri County Recumbent Riders (http://www.biketcba.org/TRICORR/). He's even wearing his 'ram air' helmet cooler ( patent pending :D )

Edit - the wheel covers he uses in the winter are only good for keeping the wheel spray out of his face. They don't keep the rest of him dry in the rain.

wow..to your WAW... it just looks bulky and heavy. What sort of speeds do you get on that? Can you climb a small hill?

wow..to your WAW... it just looks bulky and heavy. What sort of speeds do you get on that? Can you climb a small hill?

It is actually rather small (narrow) but long. The widest part of the velomobile is about 29" It's a hair over 9' long. As far as being heavy it is known as one of the lightest production velomobiles at around 66lbs. It is made of carbon fiber and Kevlar As I ride mine with all of my accessories and supplies it weighs in at around 80lbs. I have a custom sub-frame for a trailer hitch and a full set of lights and turn signals with a 12v battery. Problem with my velomobile is that it is too easy to carry extra stuff and that adds weight quickly. The WAW was designed for speed with it's light weight and superb aerodynamics. It takes approximately 250w of power to do 31mph. Given a slight down hill grade I can easily keep up with traffic doing 35mph. Most of the time I ride just above 20mph. The WAW is second only to the Quest from the Netherlands in speed. Being a trike it can not only climb small hills but large ones also. I don't enjoy going uphill but do look forward to going down hill.

I don't mind rain at all and now that I am driving a bent my back stay's warm and dry, but this is the first winter that I won't be driving a bike and after 25+ years of DF all seasons riding this is gonna drive me nut's!!!

You've got to get the booty, er booties.
Several shops worth their sauce (including Nashbar) have rain booties which go over cycling shoes. I always wear pants in the rain (it only rains in the winter here) and I run my pants over the booties with an ankle strap. My feet might get wet from spray, but no water running down problems.

I don't have any really great pictures. Here in Oz we seldom experience rain, but some of us are concerned about sun, and the principles are similar.

I found a shade canopy pictured below to be semi-effective in rain on a recent trip to foreign lands, without being all that bothersome on other occasions. I am planning to make a much bigger one now.

The solar racing crowd sometimes put their pannels right above their heads on flexible poles on trikes. This gives great all-round vision, plus perfect rain and sun cover. Somebody did it on a SWB once too.

The only warning here that going below your eye level this approach can obstruct your vision around the front wheel, so can be a pain in the bum when potholes are an issue.

I found a shade canopy pictured below to be semi-effective in rain on a recent trip to foreign lands, without being all that bothersome on other occasions. I am planning to make a much bigger one now.


I found that a front fairing, at least on a 'standard' SWB or LWB, can really help to block the sun, as well as protect in light rain. And I will say that a SWB with said fairing is pretty good in light rain, as long as something is done about wheel spray. That bit about blocking your view in case of pot holes is sort of a non-issue; I can't see my front wheel anyway. It's true, though, that using a fairing requires you to look down the road further for possible obstacles.