Goodbye to my folding recumbent
 

:(

I said goodbye to my Downtube/Cruzbike folding recumbent yesterday. It's the one many of you have seen before:

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1...dnicholas2.jpg

I built it up a over a year ago, thinking that I was going to use that to ride a double century. But I never fully committed to recumbent riding. It would have taken 6 months to get my 'bent legs, and I have too much fun on my uprights to make that commitment. So, this folding 'bent was relegated to limited duties as a child carrier. Now, even that chore is done, as my son is now riding on his own.

I have many fond memories of this bike. It created quite a stir in the Cruzbike, Downtube communities when it first came out, and it has since spawned many other similar builds. The Youtube video of me and my son on this bike has over 5,500 hits from curious viewers! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Kt_d3fy_pU

This was a bike great for attracting attention, that's for sure. Whenever my son and I were out in it, we'd get lots of people to talk to. When I picked him up from school, there'd be a line of envious kids at the classroom window, watching us ride away. We were in a couple of our hometown Fourth of July parades with it. Always fun.

So, I put up an ad on Craigslist. After some time, it's finally found a new home. It has gone to a very knowledgeable cyclist, who actually used to build recumbents, and is now building high end electric bikes. I must admit I was very flattered that a professional bike builder liked this thing well enough to want it. I know that it's in a good home and will no doubt be improved upon.

We actually traded bikes. He took my Downtube/Cruzbike folding recumbent, and I got his 2007 Dahon Smooth Hound.

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1...moothhound.jpg

I'm thrilled with the Smooth Hound, although it does seem to functionally overlap with the Moulton TSR that will soon be joining the fold. Still, it'll be fun to explore this new bike.

Pardon my sentimentalism over a silly bike, but I figured this would be the only forum where I'd find some folks who'd understand....:o

I always thought your folding recumbent was great and I have high hopes that some day someone will figure out how to make a similar bike that one can actually sit on as a chair after folding it.

Mad mad mad lol Better build a room after all for your growing collection Sesame! :lol:

Great swap you both got good bikes. Jack

That would be the holy grail of folding recumbents (at least in my book).

SC... nice bike you gave up... and nice bike you got back in return. Enjoy.

--sam

Tell us what you think of the Smooth Hound. That is one of my favorite Dahons. I would be sentimental too especially all that riding with your child.

I've never ridden a front wheel drive bike. Until now, I don't think I've ever seen one either.

The CruzBike/Downtube folding combination is probably the least expensive and only way to get a 20' inch wheel recumbent that folds. I like that system better than the overpriced BikeFriday bent that was discontinued.

What a nice recumbent! Sort of reminds me of the Hase Pino tandem.

http://www.kinetics.org.uk/assets/images/Pino_24.jpg

If only the top tube of of the folder was a foot longer, you'd have a two-wheel drive version of it.

Congrats S.C. Did you trade with the recumbent builder in Palo Alto? Just curious, as I bought a fork from him for my R20.

No, this was a guy based in SF. Real nice guy.

You'll meet him at the next FolderFest....

You mean like this? :)

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1.../tandem1-1.jpg

This is our family transport at a recent July 4th Parade.

Absolutely agree with you! My setup cost me less than a thousand Dollars. Rode nicely, I almost got to the point where I could ride hands free. The front wheel drive system takes a while to learn to ride, though, and I'd guess some never adjust to it.

You have precisely the bike I want Sesamecrunch! My wife only really enjoys tandemming, but she can't see much from behind me, (I'm twice her size!) and she doesn't find it too comfortable, and has always wanted a recumbent. A Viewpoint would be perfect, but they seem so expensive!

That Hase Pino is HAWT! Nice bike, SC. My wife would love that.

--sam

Hey SC ... how big is your garage? :eek:

EDIT: That is a great bike. The boss and I have looked at one too. Although she still says that she wants to ride fast. And that the easiest way for her to do that is to get a "fast" tandem.

EDIT_2: What rear hub do you have? Rohloff? Or is that a drum brake?

:o Yeah, I have a thing about bikes.... :o

This particular bike I have is from a small custom maker in Oregon who is no longer in business. It's called a CounterPoint. It's a predecessor to the Hase Pino.

This bike is built for touring, not racing, so it's not fast by any stretch of the imagination. However, it's very comfy, particularly for the person in front, who can ride hands free to look at maps, eat cheese or drink wine :). It's also very handy for conversation, as our heads are pretty close together and we can hear each other talk without having to scream.

The rear hub has a drum brake, not a Rohloff (I wish!). The drum brake is handy for downhills and such.

I'm actually getting ready to take it for a ride today! :thumb:

I think a very similar tandem is now made by Bilenky under the name Viewpoint.

I've been wanting one too. Funny how so many of us seem to gravitate toward the same bikes! There seems to be a Taiwanese version of the Hase Pino, which is much more affordable; check out this post:

I'm going to ask a daft question to you experienced riders here but what I want to know is why recumbants are so expensive?

Also, while I'm asking questions, does anybody know the cheapest recumbant I can buy from the UK? (No importing or making one as I only deal with very simple things lol)

I had the privilege to ride this bike with SesameCrunch, it indeed was quite nice to be in front and would be great touring.

It's not such a good idea to put the short person in back, we discovered. :lol:

I know, I posted a photo of a recumbent in the folding bikes forum, so I'm to blame here, but... this is the folding bikes forum. Your question might be better asked in the recumbents forum.

Still, I wonder if someone could follow Yan's example (rather than, for example, Jim Weaver's example) and have a solid cheap recumbent made in China.

Probably because they are not a mass produced item. Mine is a "BikeE" & is perhaps the closest there ever was to a mass produced recumbent, but they were still expensive (for me) & sadly they disappeared long ago.

You could try UK forums (eg. CTC's) for second hand recumbents, as they would be a lot cheaper than new & you could see if you liked them!

Thanks for the advice cyclistjohn :)

There is Actionbent Recumbents.

-G