must

not

admit

to

agreeing

with

hammock

jockey

Fixed that for ya. Although I like recumbents better than uprights, that does not mean they are cooler than uprights. And it doesn't mean that I necessarily want anybody to switch. Bents have many advantages; but while they're better at some things, they're worse at others. Your priorities should determine what kind of bike you ride.

agreed, thanks for the fix

Riding my Worksman industrial cruiser, I've gotten quite a few "cool bike" comments, quite often from kids. I think it's the same as if you see a Model A coming down the street, you might say "Cool car" but that doesn't mean you're going to buy one, either. Nor does it imply you hate them if you don't. It's cool to see because it's different, not because it's better. I always like to see tandems for the same reason.

Have to admit to being one who got uptight to the gentle ribbing by some in the DF crowd. It really is about what you like to ride and have fun with. A little humor makes some of these discussions a little more interesting.

However their are no doubt some in the Boy racer crowd (not all), who go a little to the extreme in their dishing feet first brethren(we are all cyclists) . I don't like the fact little opportunity to compete directly in a TT with a DF rider in most events. Definitely don't belong in Road race or criterium with DF riders. I ride with DF's all the time in a paceline and I and they know the only acceptable way is for me to either be in the front or in the back. Recumbents can mess up a smooth paceline if DF riders not accustomed to riding with them.

I have expererienced the "cool" comments quite a few times from observers as I pedal by. I have also heard people say you have a funny looking bike. All I have to do is look at my shadow and would agree with the latter. I do think recumbents offer less wear and tear on the body per mile and offer a better view of the scenery around. Don't disagree that some like to ride in a more agressive stance and a recumbent does have drawbacks in different types of riding.

So here we have it. All bike have shortcommings as well as strong points. No one bike fits all needs. For every need there is a bike that excels at that particular task. Road, sprint, track, MTN, touring, commuting, cargo and the list goes on. What most people fail to realize is that recumbents do excel at certain things as well they have their shortfalls. It will take open minds and a lot of time for this to happen. If you asked the average person they would not know what a recumbent was.
Every spring our local newspaper would run an article about bicycling and would describe all the new classes of bikes including touring, cross, Mtn and so forth. They described how "comfortable the new "cross bikes were. I wrote a letter and challenged the author of the article to contest. Pick your most comfortable cross Df and I will use my Tour Easy. The challenge is to see who can sit on their bike seat for the longest time. The only request I have is to use a seatbelt incase I fall asleep. I did not get anyone to accept the challenge. I guess the bike model name (Tour Easy by Easy Racer) scared them off. As usual they failed to inform the public with a follow up article and so the ignorance continues.

Having just completed BRAT with my lowracer, I can say it was as if I were piloting an alien space ship. Locals would stare slack-jawed as I went by, people in cars would stop and wait for me to go past them before continuing... once someone even came in off the street to ask me questions while I ate in a restaurant.

Not one derogatory remark all week. There were some very nice, even very expensive bikes on the tour, but to the uninitiated they all looked like regular bikes. The lowracer stood out. The only jealousy I saw all week was me. I sort of wished I'd taken my highracer instead. :lol:

I'll bet a lot of people ascribe a fair amout of "coolness" to your Surly. That even you don't know it's cool says loads about your hipness factor, and IMO, lack thereof. That's not to say that being cool is forever. For example, the Hummer. Stylish, no. But originally, very cool. Now, not so much. OTOH, the entire 23 years I've had a recumbent, I've always had comments from people about its coolness. So until complete strangers with no apparent connection to cycling stop yelling "cool bike!" at me, then it's cool.

If the Surly isn't cool enough, you might get an even bigger reaction if you took your carbon aero road bike, painted it over in sunset orange, added mustache handlebars and a fixed gear hub. After that, I'd wager some of the urban riders might call your machine cool. Until then, you have my permission to be jealous.

:)ensen.

You are assuming that we give them much thought at all.

Unlikely.

Like I used to tell my kids...only wussies worry about what others think is cool...cool people don't worry about it...and indeed define it. So you just keep on worrying about what others think and let them define it for you. I grew out of worrying about it decades ago. :lol:

Always went my own way... still do. If I didn't, I'd have a fixie for everyday and a road bike for Sundays. Oh wait.... you have one don't you? Not exactly a good example for teaching the kiddies how to be cool and resist peer pressure. How does that age old mistake go now? "Do as I say, not as I do."

But I really shouldn't be beating on a dead horse. After all, you did begrudgingly agree with me already. No need to rub sodium chloride into it. It's bad enough for most people to have to admit to their themselves they didn't turn out as tolerant/wise/patient/independent as they had hoped to become. Myself included.

So I hereby agree that you disagree. That you find it impossible to understand that recumbents are also cool. That, as the planet heats up, all human powered vehicles are indeed, cool.

:)ensen.

Huh. Yeah, I don't ride a bent because of peer pressure...and every night bats fly out of my ass and capture virgins for me too. I've had a bent...I didn't like it. Wanna put your other foot in your mouth, or are you coordinated enough to just switch feet? :lol:

As far as cool, you keep right on chasing those fantasies...every dog has his day, dreams can come true, even for you! :thumb:

Enjoy reading your replies. Was suprised to see that you at one time owned a bent. Curious to know what prompted you to get one? Also wondered what type/make you had and what you least liked about it? I doubt DF riders in general are jealous but in a lot of group rides someone will shout out "cool bike!" as me on a bent and fellow DF riders pass by (assume it was me). Usually young kids on Huffy's are the one's making these comments.

It was given to me...after I won it in a poker game. :D

I didn't like it for much the same reason why I prefer a higher profile vehicle...I can see better being higher off the ground. That was the biggest reason...and the fact that at the time I was in the Marine Corps and wasn't allowed to grow a beard or an aero belly. ;)

After a few weeks of punishing the owner by riding his former bent to work every day, I purposely bluffed on a King-high nothing so he could win it back. The dummy folded and another guy won it. If I remember right, just about everyone in the unit ended up owning that bike for a spell until it finally found it's way home.

Most folks in BF know that I (and a lot of other wedgie riders) are just yanking their chains when it comes to hammocks...but apparently some don't. :o

I too enjoy a good flame, but my wit just hasn't been as refined these days. As you can see at the end there, had a lot of trouble paying out the right length of noose and then reining it back in again. Your snipes were shorter and sweeter. Better to fold than to go all in without enough marbles.

See you at the next bent vs df thread.

:)ensen.

meh, I don't get into the bent forums much...I'm kinda like the crazy uncle nobody likes, but his zany antics make him kinda lovable, as long as he don't stay for too long. I just pop into the good wedgie vs bent threads now and then to make everyone regret that they didn't put me on ignore...or put a frame pump through my spokes the last time we rode together. ;)

Wow! there are/were 3 bent/upright threads going on. This one, one in the General Discussion and another in the Long Distance. All appear about dead or maybe should be. I kind of think the jealousy factor may be more about some bent riders jealous of DF riders.

I ride a recumbent but do also miss the agressive riding position on an upright. Even if someone calls my bike "cool", when I see my shadow on the road it looks weird to me. Might be some of us bent riders have an ugly duck syndrome and wish we looked like the beautiful swans (DF's).

Age and past back surgery have made riding a DF for a long length of time not real comfortable. I think it might be for some that bents offer an opportunity to ride a lot more comfortable and therefore we get a lot of miles and become pretty fit. I can keep up with riders 30 years younger but not many cat 3's I'm sure. My best TT on HiRacer for a 20k averaged at 24 mpg. My strong suit with a recumbent is long distance as I did my first Ultra on LowRacer at age 62 this summer of 830 miles. http://www.gutcheck212.com/records/

The thing is to keep riding as long as you are breathing. Whatever gives you that thrill or enjoyment. It is fun to ride with DF riders I know on my HiRacer as we all get along. They can get a partial draft off of me when I ride in front of the paceline. It is either upfront on in the back for safety. Tried my LowRacer on a group ride once and one guy said it was like trying to draft off of someone on a BigWheels. Bents don't belong in the world of Road races(where drafting allowed) or Criteriums but shouldn't be excluded from Time Trial events in my opinion. There is jealousy on my part that I don't have a lot of opportunity to competively race.

It would be interesting to see recumbents gain more popularity and see what some of the more athletic riders could do on some of the Performance bents.

When stem cell research has developed a way for people to regrow lost brain tissue and I get my chunk of cerebellum back, I'll have the balance for two wheels again. By that time, I will likely be old enough that the posture of a DF will be uncomfortable. Yes, I'd love to be on only two wheels, but I'm pretty sure I'll stay bent.

Apparently the one in the Long Distance forum is locked. It's never a good sign when the thread starts as a testimonial that the OP's bike is superior and everyone else is ignorant. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did. Think of how a few denizens of this forum would react if someone posted notice of a thread in the roadie forum entitled, "bents are for losers."

my experience is that if recumbent riders get any antagonism over their choice of ride, it's because they just got done telling a DF rider that they are doing it wrong. And then there are people like this, who just got done riding his recumbent 750 miles in 88 hours. It was a pleasure to meet him, he was smiling both times I saw him, even though the conditions were rainy and cold and the route was pretty brutal with over 60000 feet of climbing. Second time I saw him he had a DF rider drafting him up a mountain. He was one of 22 finishers out of 48 starters.

hater :p

I wish you people would shut up. I do not want DF riders learning about the advantages of bents. By creating more competition, I win less events. I'd hate to see all my records get broken.