Your commute is about a mile longer than me and I had a Bacchetta recumbent for a short while.
First, you're using different leg muscles so you might actually be slower at first. Not to mention a little bit of learning curve for balance and such.
Second, even if you are substantially faster on this eventually, you're only going to save what... 5 minutes? I wouldn't get one JUST in the interest of saving time.
Third, I ended up selling it because my riding is in-town and I found a recumbent more limiting as far as what terrain I could traverse. No hopping curbs or anything like that. Emergency maneuvering also more difficult. And you can't see over cars and I felt less visible to oncoming/side traffic. If I was out in the country, I'd totally have one. They're pretty fun. But didn't work out for me for commuting around town.

I used to commute to work from L.A. to O.C. everyday(6 days a week) for 18 years.I was on the road 5-6 hours a day,for a 48 mile round trip.If I averaged 10MPH in the morning with traffic,lights,stop signs,I was happy.If you have a family,you won't be seeing them much.

Given that you were asking about the feasibility of the commute, I think you will be hurting if you try to do this more than a couple times a week (at least at first). 66 miles RT is doable, but that is a lot and if you are not in pretty good shape, your legs will be toast by the end of the week.

I think you're nuts if you try to do it on you fixed speed cruiser. If you have to fight headwinds on the way home, you will be in a lot of pain.

If you try this, be sure to eat before each leg of the journey and don't forget to carry water.

My question is really one of magnitude' I have 0 (zero) experience with recumbents. But the people who are passionate claim they are alot faster then a standard bike. I was just wondering if it would be a 2 minute or a 15 minute time savings. My commute can be entirely rural AND reasonably flat If I want to use that route. The visibility angle definitely concerns me. Really with my commute I only get up 15 to 30minutes earlier to ride my bike and if I could negate that with a recumbent then it suddenly makes a whole lotta sense.

You just have to think about it realistically.
Lets say your average speed over your 12 mile commute is 16 mph and this thing gives you an average speed of 19-20 mph. That's a considerable jump! But really... how much quicker is that, time-wise? 9 minutes? And you won't see a jump like that until you train and build up new muscles. When i got mine I was just happy to be running at about the same speed I was before. I was definitely not any faster.

It might be worth checking out some of the recumbent forums if you want to look into it further. www.Bentrideronline.com is one of the biggest. You can get lots of advice from others who made the switch.

Up until this month my commute was 50mi RT...took about 3 hours of my day total, averaged 16-18mph most days. Point is, everyone's route is different.

I have a 33 mile commute each way if I ride it all, the reality of my situation is that I end up taking the train most mornings (I just don't give myself enough rest) and am selective about when I ride the full distance home, or whether I'll just get off at an earlier stop to increase/decrease my rides. I usually only end up averaging 20-25 miles a day for my commutes. My diet and food routine is getting better, I just need to dial in to get myself proper sleep

My 33 miles takes me from just over 2 hours to 2:15/2:20 based on past rides so far. In the mornings my goal is just to get there, I don't totally haul ass so as I'm a jelly-legged sweat fest, but only a moderate sweat fest. Riding home is different, and providing I'm fuelled up enough, I'll haul ass as much as I can (I treat my commutes as training a lot of the time).

I've mostly ridden on my fixed gear using a backpack/messenger bag for my stuff. I *always* carry a small repair kit including a fresh new tube. Also, take as much water as you can - never hurts to have too much of this stuff.

Riding a beater bike over that distance will make even baby Jesus cry, I'd suggest your road bike with some decent locking for this trip... And a comfortable saddle.

My own Rans V2 is about 3-5 mph faster on flat pavement and headwinds are easier too. Because you have about 25% less frontal area you can go faster with less effort. Its kind of like riding with aero bars only none of the drawbacks to your blood vessels in your leg/hip region etc. I have no vision problems on my recumbent but it is true that riding in city traffic can be more difficult. On a lowracer you will get the max aero position but starting from stop lights can be somewhat tricky. It is true that your legs will have to adapt but I don't think that the learning curve or the conditioning is all that rough, especially if you are in shape to begin with. I wouldn't however try a 33 mile one way commute without getting a few hundred progressive miles in first. If your route is flat and more or less rural, a recumbent is a blast to ride.

Rans V2 (fastest bike I own)
Surly Long Haul Trucker ( my all rounder)
Vintage Centurion Super Lemans (mustache bars)
vintage Flandria road racer (campagnolo running gear)
vintage Raleigh conversion to single speed. (my commuter)

Now, that's a SERIOUS commute! I'd take the road bike for sure, and plan on a two hur ride each way!

And, to think I'm beat after a 42 mile loop!

My hat's off to you - and keep us informed.

WTG!

what bent is that?

Since your 12.5 mile commute is relatively short, I think this is very bikeable. On flat, smooth, roads and windless conditions, somewhere in the 24mph+ range is definitely achievable if you normally can average 20.

However, while the commute is going to be right around a half hour, the real time lost will be in gearing up and gearing down since this would be a threshold ride. Having said that, I think the commute is doable with the time constraints you have. You will not save 15 minutes each way, but you'll almost certainly save more than 10 on your round trip commute time and it may work out to about 15 total.

Bents are lower, but they aren't necessarily less visible. Because they are funny looking, they attract extra attention which gets you more notice.

Not all bents are faster, and the engine is still the most important part.

Whats a recumbent like at switchbacks? I'm curious as I've never tried one. What different muscles do you use?

Depends on what kind you have. My highracer totally sucks on them. The tadpole trike, on the other hand is a total blast. I brake with the inside wheel to throw the bike around the corner and I can descend tight turns at speeds that uprights would never match.

OP:

Did it? Still thinking about it? My commute, if i ever do it by bike, is 23.5 miles. But it takes me trough a ghetto that I rather avoid. So I'm guessing it's gonna be around 30ish miles. I can do 30 miles in 2:15 without even pushing it, but that's just running time. With stops is a different story. I usually don't take any breaks but waiting for traffic lights can add up a lot of time to the ride.

What to take? Two water bottles should be enough...Insulated if you want your drink to be somewhat cold. Forget the pump and use CO2 (you are on the clock) with an extra cartridge just in case. A spare tube and you are set. Oh, some money and a cellphone too.

I would not make it every day at the beginning. Every other day sounds better, till the body get used to the millage... it's 66 miles round trip.

Optima Baron

https://www.rbr.info/store/recumbents...er/optima.html

Ok guys, I chickened out at the last minute. I had scoped out the route but couldn't sleep last night because of the mere thought of the distance. A big factor in why I didn't do it was that it was 100 degrees today. It would not have been wise but I am planning to do it another time. I will let you know how the commute is another time.

Well I read the OP checked out the route on Google maps or map quest.... but I'd say you better drive it to see if there is any significant climbing along the way. That could make a big difference. With that said, it's definitely doable.

I ride a 60 mile round trip commute on my single speed cyclocross bike (a Surly Crosscheck) to or three times a week. My ride is basically 10 miles of slight downhill, followed by 10 miles which includes two good climbs and descents, and ending with another 10 miles very slight downhill. It takes me about 1 hr. 40 min. to ride to work, and about 2 hrs flat to get home - more if I get nailed with a headwind.

Now even though I ride a single speed (42/15, about 75 gear inches) I run 28 mm wide tires on a bike which weighs 24 lbs before I load it up with water, lunch lighting and clothes. It's not road racer light, but it's not a tank either. If you're talking about a single speed beach cruiser that weights like, 35 or 40 lbs., you better allow 2.5 or 3 hrs each way. Drive it first. Then take the fast bike with a good lock.

DanO

I commend for riding that distance because I drove to school instead and it was quite far. I took the way that I was planning to ride at. It looked safe and easy enough. I think I will be taking the road bike and not mess with the comfort or the cruiser(not one of those beach). Thanks for your experience.....

You made the best decision. I cycled 100 miles a week without commuting for the first twenty days. I rode multiple routes without the pressure of being somewhere on time. I was then ready to tackle my 35 mile RT commute. I'm now upgrading from my Comfort bike to a Cyclocross model.

Michael

Try it when you don't have a schedule to keep. That will give you an idea about how you will handle it. Use the same bike and load that you would carry on the commute. Have a backup plan in case things don't work out the way you expected.

33 miles is not bad, but it will take a while, and you might need to contend with light/dark, weather changes, unforseen events (flats, etc.,) tiring early. One tip--take it easy, don't be in a big hurry. You can cover a lot more ground without getting worn out that way. A lot depends on whether your body is ready for it or not, and whether it takes too many hours out of your day.

After a test run, get up the next morning and see if 66 miles round-trip is within your reach, yet. You'll know by how your body feels.

Good luck!

Taking it easy on your way in to work is sage advice. I have toasted my legs on the ride in a couple times and paid for it on the way home. Fighting a headwind for 33 miles on a fixed gear at the end of the day when your legs are shakey is not fun.

If I read it right, and you typically only do 5 mile round trips right now, 33 miles one-way would be pretty harsh. I'd recommend picking a weekend and trying it without the chance of being late. I did my commute to work on the weekends for fun a couple times before actually doing it for real. Some hills you just don't notice in a car.