I can't criticize the guy personally. I couldn't get comfortable with a recumbent a friend loaned me last year after I was hit by a car on my regular bike. I tried it for a few minutes in the parking lot and said nope. I just waited a few weeks until I was ready to ride my other bikes again.

The fellow in that video looked and sounded terrified. He was grunting at times with labored breathing. He seemed uncomfortable with the limited sight lines and sat up a few times, especially on climbs.

And wobbling around while hugging the pavement edge... you could see a disaster coming. Especially when he picked up speed on the downhill grade. And that should have been a fast and fun downhill blast on that bike, if he'd taken the lane. He'd have been going as fast as most cars at that point.

I'm just glad it wasn't any worse. Most of the passing cars gave him enough room but the large bus not only didn't give him adequate room, it also passed in a bad zone with limited sight lines (blind hill or curve) and an oncoming bus. Classic example of why we should either take the lane or avoid some roads.

I've seen good recumbent riders, both in videos and in person locally. It can be done. But it ain't gonna be me. As Harry Callahan said in Magnum Force...