Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - And now for something different

Inspired by Mr. Beanz and Sayre Kulp, I decided to take my recumbent trike down our local bike trail. Since Mr. Beanz has given us a tour of the SART trail, I figured I'd let the non-locals see what our American River Parkway trail looks like. Since Sayre Kulp kicked some arse on his recumbent, I figured I'd ride mine instead of the hybrid. Gotta keep those recumbent muscles from atrophying, you know:D

Since this is a car-free area, you actually get to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature on this trail, unlike most of my other rides where there are too many cars for that. Don't worry, there's no heavy breathing:D:p

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR6IJRas424

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR6IJRas424

Very nice. I can't wait to get back out on the trails again.

Very nice. I can't wait to get back out on the trails again.
Thank you:) This is a nice peaceful place to get away from motorized traffic. Sometimes there's lots of bike traffic though:D

Hmm, that's pretty different from our trail. Ours is flat with lots of straights. Good for cranking it up. But lots of wind.

How about posting a pic of the bike so we cans see what you were riding. How did you mount the camera? I was thinking helmet cam till you followed the birds, then I thought exorcist!:roflmao2:

Hmm, that's pretty different from our trail. Ours is flat with lots of straights. Good for cranking it up. But lots of wind.

How about posting a pic of the bike so we cans see what you were riding. How did you mount the camera? I was thinking helmet cam till you followed the birds, then I thought exorcist!:roflmao2:
Most of the trail is pretty flat (at least compared to those climbing ride vids I've posted). Those are just pimples you see me climbing:D

No mount at all. I was holding the Casio point-and-shoot in my left hand and shifting and braking with the right. When I heard the geese, I just aimed the camera in the general direction of the sound once the birds were directly behind me. I just happened to get lucky that I actually followed them with the camera:D

Here's the bike. I was NOT in the race you see advertised on the SUV it's sitting next to. I was a spectator.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5052/5454271704_cddd511cf7.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/29998767@N07/5454271704/)
Sun EZ-TAD CX recumbent trike (http://www.flickr.com/photos/29998767@N07/5454271704/) by kittyz202 (http://www.flickr.com/people/29998767@N07/), on Flickr

Ahhhh, prety cool bike!:D


Yeah, I know just bumps but compared to ours,....... our trail is pancake flat. It's hard to believe that some riders consider heading in the opposite direction as climbing back up!:p Over 20 miles, maybe 3 little bumps.:D

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l267/gulpxtreme/012409G.jpg

It would be really fun to ride a bent.... I think:D

Ahhhh, prety cool bike!:D


Yeah, I know just bumps but compared to ours,....... our trail is pancake flat. It's hard to believe that some riders consider heading in the opposite direction as climbing back up!:p Over 20 miles, maybe 3 little bumps.:D

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l267/gulpxtreme/012409G.jpg
Thanks:)

Wow, you're not kidding! Flat and straight! Ours is pretty curvy and it has its ups and downs. The "ups and downs" get more pronounced the further east you go:D


It would be really fun to ride a bent.... I think:D
It is, especially around corners at speed:D But my recumbent is still slower than my hybrid, let alone my road bike:p

I have got to get me a camera. These vid's are awesome!!

Keep 'em coming!!

Nice video. I commute on the Parkway nearly every day between Folsom and downtown Sacramento. Always an enjoyable ride.

I have got to get me a camera. These vid's are awesome!!

Keep 'em coming!!


Nice video. I commute on the Parkway nearly every day between Folsom and downtown Sacramento. Always an enjoyable ride.

Thanks guys:) The Parkway is definitely a safer way than Folsom Blvd, even if it's not as straight and flat.

Thanks for the video freighttrain. As usual, one of the best on this forum. But..............why the warning (don't worry, no heavy breathing)? Your videos are so natural that it makes one feel like he/she is there with you. If I want to hear music, some of which I would not like video or not, I can turn on the radio. Problem with music drowning out the natural sounds is it may be OK if you like the particular music that is playing but what if it is just not you? Then it kills the effect that the provider was striving for. Love natural sounds and if there is music, let it not drownd out the natural sounds. Now what I would have loved to hear would be the sound of your sweet voice telling us what you were seeing along the way. Was that a deer? Loved hearing the nature sounds like the birds and also the gear shifting. You did such a great job and to think it was in your left hand. As I watched, I came up with some of the same questions that other posters did like the picture of your ride and how you were videoing and with what. Keep up the great job videoing and posting and I'll do my part and watch. :-)

Very nice vid... and that network is MONSTER! (At least compared to what I have available, although ours is improving....)

I'd LOVE to take my kids out on that; although, I could see us (on that section with an upper and lower trail) bombing the little hill to the lower section! (Oops!)

Thanks for the video freighttrain. As usual, one of the best on this forum. But..............why the warning (don't worry, no heavy breathing)? Your videos are so natural that it makes one feel like he/she is there with you. If I want to hear music, some of which I would not like video or not, I can turn on the radio. Problem with music drowning out the natural sounds is it may be OK if you like the particular music that is playing but what if it is just not you? Then it kills the effect that the provider was striving for. Love natural sounds and if there is music, let it not drownd out the natural sounds. Now what I would have loved to hear would be the sound of your sweet voice telling us what you were seeing along the way. Was that a deer? Loved hearing the nature sounds like the birds and also the gear shifting. You did such a great job and to think it was in your left hand. As I watched, I came up with some of the same questions that other posters did like the picture of your ride and how you were videoing and with what. Keep up the great job videoing and posting and I'll do my part and watch. :-)
Thanks Tony:) I was just being silly with the heavy breathing warning:D I know some people don't like hearing heavy breathing, so I put that there so they wouldn't feel like they shouldn't watch it because of the breathing. Don't worry, I'm still proud of my heavy breathing, so I'll eventually upload another climb video when I lose more weight and gain more strength. I already noticed a strength gain on the last two climbing rides. I was able to climb some hills in a higher gear, and those hills plus some others were easier.

You never have to worry about me covering up my ride audio with music. I agree with you 100% about music covering up what you actually WANT to hear:). I just finished watching some awesome raw footage from the Koppenberg cobbled climb in the Tour of Flanders. Some of it was regular people climbing it, or attempting to. Good stuff:thumb:

I hope you get a camera and put up some videos some day. I would LOVE to see a climb video from you;)


Very nice vid... and that network is MONSTER! (At least compared to what I have available, although ours is improving....)

I'd LOVE to take my kids out on that; although, I could see us (on that section with an upper and lower trail) bombing the little hill to the lower section! (Oops!)

Thanks:) Yeah, those tiny rollers are big fun at speed:D

Now it's time for me to ride some big rollers. Same climb I did in the "Salmon Falls Sufferfest" put up or shut up video:D

But..............why the warning (don't worry, no heavy breathing)?
Almost forgot about this one:D You may have missed it, but I did post a new climb/descent video last weekend. It's in this thread:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/716398-New-climb-descent-video-%28Kodak-Playsport-test%29

Plenty of heavy breathing in that one:D;) plus a top speed of 40.2 on one of the descents.

Now I've gotta go climb. See you all in a few hours:D

Thank you:) This is a nice peaceful place to get away from motorized traffic. Sometimes there's lots of bike traffic though:D

The problem I find with trails like that is that you often get meat pylons in the way and you end up riding at walking speed, trying to avoid them all....

I need to move somewhere else quickly.

Any local paths when the weather is halfway decent is littered with dog walkers with leashes 25ft. long, mothers pushing baby strollers while talking on there cell phone, or fitness walkers who have to walk next to one another gossiping about something.

What was the weather temp that day?

[quote=exile;12317574]

any local paths when the weather is halfway decent is littered with dog walkers with leashes 25ft. Long, mothers pushing baby strollers while talking on there cell phone, or fitness walkers who have to walk next to one another gossiping about something.

We definitely have that problem here - on the trail (American River Bike Trail) freighttrain video'd. Although in my experience, most trail users are responsible and courteous - but it only takes one jerk to ruin the experience for many. I rarely go near there on weekends in fair weather just because of the sheer numbers of users on the trail - if I do it's usually with my friend and her granddaughter (7) - and then it is most definitely "family time" on the trail.

It's kind of a "catch-22" though - we need a considerable population of people to take an interest in the trail in order to maintain and save it every year. Most trail users don't know it I imagine, but the bike trail as it exists, has to be fought for against developers, every year - even quarterly some years. Even though the trail is aptly called a "bike" trail, it is designed for those on foot and horseback as well. There is a 15 mph speed limit for very good reason.

Some of the rudest encounters I've witnessed have been cyclists going 25-30 mph, in full kits and aerodynamic tuck (and space wear :p), angrily shouting profanities at some little kid who may have slowed him down a bit because he couldn't "thread the needle" as it were, between the kid and an oncoming peleton of similarly clad riders, riding in the opposite direction, with his $10,000 carbon monocoque machine.

How dare some 8 yr old, abiding all the parkway rules, riding his bike with his family on a gorgeous, sunny, saturday, ruin his splits!!

Nothing wrong with going fast - I like it too. Nothing wrong with putting down beaucoup cash on every available component or other cycling "accoutrement" to help you go faster. Having the arrogance to believe the bike trail was built, SAVED OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN, and maintained daily/monthly/yearly, only for you, in my book is quite in-excuseable. :notamused:

I try and stay away from trails ecovelo (although none seem to be going where I want to anyway). It seems easier to dodge traffic than it is to dodge pedestrians.

It was in the video freighttrain showed there wasn't anybody until about the 1 minute mark, and then it started picking up until about the 4 minute mark. Even then I didn't see any of the nonsense I usually see on such paths.

It looked like a nice day and since he was in shorts and others in t-shirts. I think California weather spoils people because I'm watching the snow melt right now.

The reasons others have given are why I also don't use that trail on weekends. I don't even ride the trail that often. I prefer roads, especially Fair Oaks Blvd because of the rolling hills that get better and better the closer you get to the town of Fair Oaks:D Yes the traffic sucks, but I'm used to playing in traffic:D

PS: exile, I'm a female. It's all good:)