Originally Posted by
Homeyba
If you want to see where there truly stand overall you have to compare them to the fastest four man teams.
Okay, comparing fastest to fastest...
The record for (upright) men's was set by a 4-man team in 2004, 5:08:17 for 2959 miles, for an average speed of 23.06 mph.
The record for recumbents was set by a 4-man team in 1989, 5:01:08 for 2911 miles, for an average speed of 24.02 mph.
Doesn't really prove anything about hill climbing though. Hill climbing is all about power to weight ratios. Recumbents weigh more, but once you take the weight of the bike plus rider, the difference is pretty minor. Using Homeyba's argument, you just don't lose 24 hours due to poor climbing.