650B thoughts?

[hardtdavid]

I have a Sofrider V1, which I am enjoying very much. On rougher roads, though, I seem to lose the "confident feel" of the bike, even more so when descending 25-35 mph. I feel no confidence in taking much of a curve at those speeds. I already have 500 miles experience on the bike, so I am not sure how much more mileage will change those sensations.

In an effort to change the confident feel of the bike, I plan to replace the original single wall wheels with new, lighter, stronger wheels soon, and will probably get a "stickier" slick tire than the Kwests, to see if that changes my perceptions.

But, what about this idea:

Though I will not go back to DF biking, I've been reading about the rise of the 650B tire size as a comfortable and confident-handling tire that doesn't compromise on speed. With the rising popularity of that size, and with lots of Europeans having used them for decades, there are several brands that offer even 30mm+ widths with excellent handling, traction, and low-rolling-resistance speed.

Would a change to 650B make any difference on a recumbent like the Sofrider? What would those differences (benefits & drawbacks) be? Any thoughts or experiences?

 

[Atul]

I clock less mile than you in a month.
What I noticed is that learning curve on all situation but speed was fast.
I am not confident at speed downhill as you and use brakes frequently.
The bike is a Softrider
The overall impression I got it is that I am not familiar jet with the positioning of the centre of gravity
and considered that while we practice for hours pedalling the amount of experience made at speed downhill is relatively little ... so the why the learning curve is so different I told myself.

Down hill at speed I have practised sitting frozen on the bike or pedalling the longest rapport
Staying "frozen" delivers straight trajectories but makes difficult to handle sudden bumps ( to me )
Keep pedalling helps to dump reaction of the steer but requires fine co ordination to assure impeccable trajectories ( to me )
I have also tried more active upright position but abandoned this approach soon after I got a bit more.

As tyres I can not contribute much
I am just using standard 100psi 559 x 1.5 Kenda Kwest tires, are satisfied with it until now
I have used it on paved roads and on white roads with minor imperfection here but not come across jet with any serious pot hole.

If any experience rider has any riding suggestion or advices on how to ride down hill its welcome

Atul
( 1st Softrider in Italy ?? )

 

[Mark B]

No comment on 650b tires, but I will at that after thousands of miles, I find I am still fine-tuning my ride. Downhills at speed have taken the most dialing, getting comfortable and confident being the key issues. I'm kind of nxious for the windy season to come to test my skills with crosswinds and big downhills. That's what has been my biggest nemisis.

Mark

 

[hardtdavid]

Atul,

good comment about how we spend very little time practicing going downhill, and therefore have less experience, despite having many miles on the bike. Perhaps, as Mark points out, it will take thousands of miles and a year or two to fully come to familiarity with the bike.

On the other hand, it would seem that some bikes have a more natural feel, or can be fine tuned to have a more natural feel, and that is what I am wondering about and experimenting with. What modification in (wheels, tires, suspension balance, seat position, etc.) will help this bike feel more naturally responsive to the rider in most riding situations.

Thanks for your comments so far. Anyone else?

 

[John Tolhurst]

When you are coasting downhill, don't. Don't coast. Stick it in the biggest gear and gently turn the pedals. That will keep your body in control of the bike.