yangmusa

He he. Eddy Merckx once said "if you want to go faster up hills, don't upgrade your ride - ride up hills". I.e. getting fitter is the best way to go faster. That said, there are huge differences between bikes (e.g. my Tidalwave vs my Birdy) and so it's frustrating to find yourself on an inefficient bike if your goal is to go fast.

IanBristol

Perhaps I was generalizing when I said bents were slower up hills and faster down. In fact i was. As I quite often outclimb uprights when going up, in most cases it depends on the motor, and the terrain in question.

yangmusa

I also often pass people while climbing on the 'bent. But I pass them slower than if I was on my upright, and it takes more effort. I'm not denying that the motor has a large influence on climbing ability!

IanBristol

I think a large part of it comes down to knowing your engine. Because I climb certain hills every day I know the exact cadence and gears to use to get up there it's very easy to overtake someone who maybe doesn't do it as often or just isn't in that great shape. Some cyclists avoid hills, I don't want to be one of them, however I'm sure if you put me up against a serious road cyclist up those same hills he/she'd smoke me in no time.

On my ride into work every morning it's faster on my bent simply because it's downhill most of the way, whereas going home it's uphill mostly so my road bike probably has the edge there. I favour the bent simply for comfort reasons.

aikigreg

It's all good, and the BIGGEST factor is your overall comfort on the bike. That more than anything else will make the biggest difference. How did I get to ride it? I asked

aikigreg

No offense, but it's obvious you have no clue what you're talking about. What you say is true to a degree, especially with uprights. I've owned nearly every performance bent in the book, including a CA 1.0. Currently I own a carbent (race for Team Carbent) and just sold my corsa to buy an x-stream production model. It can be make a lot lighter, by the way.

What you propose might bear out to play for ONE hill. Instead, shift your focus to a century or Race Across Oregon. In RAO I got my butt KICKED by a guy on a heavier LWB bike. Why? All of what you say PLUS rider position. I don't know why, but there's something about the x-stream that puts you in a superior climbing position. Perhaps you're unfamiliar with the results of this year's RAAM?

I've put the x-stream proto through a thousand miles. Is is as streetable as a v-rex? No, but it's eprfectly fine. I have video somewhere of my friend Bud doing 2mph 360's on the bike. it's eminently maneuverable, especially for a LWB.

While you're quoting facts, can you please state for me the fact of how many miles YOU have put on an x-stream? If it's isn't > 500, you really just need to stop talking.

Nothing worse than people with little to no experience of a bike running their mouth off as if they do.

PaPa

That's nice, so answer my original question: Are you implying that the Xstream will consistently out-climb a carbon Aero (or Carbent) with the same rider on the same hill? Yes or No.

The 2009 RAAM results you speak of, falls short of the 4-man recumbent record, currently held by Bachetta - a SWB high racer. In that light, Team RANS has a firm grip on second place.

You'd be wise to curb your blind hunches and personal attacks. You know absolutely nothing about me or my cycling experiences.

aikigreg

So answer MY question - ho wmany miles do you have on an x-stream? Then it won't be a blind attack. You know you're spouting off at the mouth about something whith which you have no experience.

As to YOUR question, I'll have the answer for sure within a few weeks as I get acclimated to my x-stream when it arrives but I doubt my answer will change. An individual will climb better over time an distance on the bike which is more comfortable for him/her and fits their individual physiology better. I expect for me that would be the carbent but when I prototyped the xstream I remember some serious climbs I attacked with serious speed.

You can't easily compare RAm results to RAAM results. What is MORE telling is that the year Bacchetta set the record, they were still beat by a team of comparable uprights. THIS year, all the upright teams were crushed.

Finally, in the end, when we're talking about such high performance machines, the end results are going to be incredibly close anyway for the same rider.

BlazingPedals

I did a 'birthday' ride today on my new-to-me M5 Carbon Highracer. It still needs a few more tweaks, but so far I'm very happy with it. We went up the biggest hill in the area (small by most standards, about a half mile at 5-6%) and I ended up dropping all the wedgie riders I was with. Not a very scientific assessment, but this may be the best-climbing recumbent in my stable.

aikigreg

Nice bike, isn't it? I had a good 100 miles on one. Fast, light, and stiff. It's not surprising you'd outclimb yourself, since it's the exact position you like and are used to - open like a lowracer. The only thing that kept me from buying it was the fact that it has some of the negatives of a lowracer. You're gonna enjoy it.

PaPa

You're a class act, aikigreg,

But yet you repeatedly avoid answering my question. And what is even more disturbing, is that you continue to embrace the distorted illusion that just because the RANS team was riding Xstreams, that is why they climbed so well.

* Real world climbing is 90% human and 10% hardware. And when it's an endurance race such as RAAM, the crew also plays key role.

* Riders are continuously rotated in an attempt to avoid unrecoverable fatigue and possible injury to the rider - especially during extended climbs. The technique is not unlike using a cordless drill; When the battery's energy loss begins negatively effecting the drill's overall performance, it is swapped-out for a fresh one. In glaring contrast, the solo, 50 year-old roadie chaser doesn't have that option, nor does he posses the stamina and endurance that RAAM riders require, so overall climbing performance will undoubtedly suffer. And you think that some magic bike will somehow, miraculously transform the scenario? ... boy, you really do have a problem.

aikigreg

Really, is that how it works? I'd never know, only having set..let's see....4 or 5 records at such events, two of them solo. And I'm chump change and slow.

You've said nothing which leads me to believe that you have anything to say that is based on anything but your own bloated opinion. Not worthy of consideration. I'm done with you.

BikeZen.org

I've done Ride Across the Rockies and other substantial rides and tours using my Seiran with no problems. Some stretches are 15 degrees for 1/4 mile, and even steeper for shorter segments. (Note: my smallest gear is 16", since I have a triple front and a triple internal hub as well as 9 cogs on the cassette -- total 81 gears.) I've also done centuries in the mountains with my diamond frame. Both work well for different purposes.

The Seiran gets the job done comfortably (and VERY fast on flats and downhills), but my rig weighs 55 pounds (including 8 pounds of water, 1 lb. GPS computer, extra clothing, and all tools and extra parts), so uphills are done "methodically" [translation: slowly] on all-day rides. Then when I ride short 40-50 mile rides on my diamond frame with my diamond-frame buddies, I kick their @ss on the hills (since I'm used to pulling 55 pounds up hills and my diamond frame weighs around 20). So, the Seiran is something of a training tool as well as a very comfortable commuter and long-distance rig.

David

rancilio

I have mine just over a year now. The M5 CHR is definitely a better climber than my 1st crmo low racer. It is also amazingly fast on the flat too.

The Smokester

I'm sorry, but these "FACT"s just aren't having much of an impact on those of us with experience riding 'bents. They are easily neutralized by a rider's ability.