A (re)introduction to Cruzbike and the forum

[Greg S]

It's been pretty quiet around these parts lately so I thought I'd make some noise ;-)

I've been on this forum for a while (almost 6 years!). I joined when I bought an S40 in 2019. I was having some serious back trouble at that time and bought the S40 in the hope it would be easier on my back. It turned out I had back surgery (a microdiscectomy) in 2020. My recovery from the surgery was agonizingly slow and I sold the S40 during that time having ridden about 3500 miles on it.

Fast forward a few years. The surgery was "mostly" successful. I could make my back hurt with a hard effort on a DF bike or by lifting something heavy but it was tolerable. But in February 2024 I was hit by a car while cycling in Thailand which resulted in 2 days in an ICU and 10 days recovering before I was able to fly home. As a result of that, my back was once again screwed up. I could ride a DF bike for about 3-4 miles regardless of terrain then my back hurt so bad I could hardly stand it. Standing and stretching helped and got me through rides of 200k or less but I was uncertain about whether or not it'd provide relief for longer rides.

I tested that with a 240 mile ride then what was supposed to be a 180 mile ride a week later. I quit the 180 miler at about 150 and my back was really bad for the next few weeks so I had my answer.

Skipping forward again, I finally (I admit, I'm a bit stubborn) realized that my back just wouldn't tolerate longer rides on a DF bike. On reflection, I pushed my back harder than it would take on 4 rides, the last of which resulted in the 2020 surgery. This realization was difficult to face because I have a room full of DF bikes that I love and the thought of not being able to ride them again is painful. But reality bites...

I therefore bought a V20c. I've attached a picture of it at the end of this post. I've ridden just under 150 miles on it thus far and am still very much in the "getting reacquainted" phase where "risky" maneuvers like starting clipped in, taking a drink, etc., require focus but it's coming along.

At this point, my plan is to go "all in" on the V20 for the next several months. Whether or not I'll keep or sell my DF bikes at the end of that time remains to be seen. I'm being evaluated for another back surgery early next month and have been thinking hard about whether or not to proceed. We'll see...

And a bit about me: I'm 71, have ridden Paris-Brest-Paris and London-Edinburgh-London among others. I've been an athlete all my life (track in college, long time runner, cyclist for more than 30 years). Can't imagine my life without a bike of some sort.

 

[Jeffers]

Love the black and orange.
Let us know how it compares to your diamond frames.
I'm also 71 years old.

 

[Frito Bandito]

Glad to see that you are still keeping at it Greg. As an athlete my whole life, at 57, but only cycling for the past 8 or so, I can say that the guys who seem to keep moving are the ones who get the most out of life. Of all the bikes you seem to own, my money is on the V20c for being the one on that will be your goto bike to keep you active. I bought a Litespeed T1 because I thought it would be the bike to see me out, but after only 2 short years of riding it I was starting to dread taking it out because of all of the neck and back pain. A cycling friend who I went to Mt Fuji with several times came back to Japan for vacation and we went on a planned 50km ride, but 15km into it we both decided to turn around because of hand pain and my neck pain starting to creep up. That ride solidified my decision to bite the bullet and sell it or turn it into a flat bar commuter when my current one finally gives up the ghost. I don't even want to use it in a road bike form as a parts runner or keep it as a loaner for my friends when they come to Japan. It sucks, I know. But let them go. Maybe keep the best one, but no need to be taking up space with 'em.

 

[Greg S]

Thanks for the comments! A few additional thoughts.

I realized I left out the most important thing: I'm able to ride pain free on the V20c! Since I started riding it my longest ride has been 36 miles and I've done a few "hard" efforts - all with no pain in my low back. I put hard in quotes because at this point I barely generate enough power to light a small appliance bulb. One of the side effects of the low back pain on the DF was that I was in a downward spiral: couldn't do hard efforts so therefore less able to do them. It'll be nice to be able to "rebuild" a bit although I've come to terms with the fact that it takes much longer at my age and my best days are in the rear view.

As to my other bikes, I've already made the decision to sell the ones that weren't custom made for me and have sold one of them so far (since Frito is in Japan he'll likely have heard of the frame builder - Nagasawa). It's long been the case that I enjoy finely made bikes simply as craft and I'm fortunate enough to have several that were custom made by relatively small shops (in some cases 1 man) that I admire as machines. I'm under no pressure to sell, they only take up space which I have in ample supply so I may keep them to see if I can do short/easy rides without reinjuring my back.

But in the end, continuing riding and being able to do so without pain is the most important thing.

 

[Frito Bandito]

I don't know how much you got for that Nagasawa but I wouldn't be surprised if it was a pretty penny. I actually had 1 for a short while. A client who used to cycle but is much older now had a big scare on his and put it away for many many years in his closet. It had Dura Ace on it and he gave it to me. It was a lovely bike even though it felt a bit dated, but I had another client who fell in love with it. With the 1st client's blessing I gave it to the 2nd client who still talks about it haha.

Glad to hear that you are getting on well with your V20c though. Whatever power you are putting out is gonna be rewarded more on the V20C than any road or TT bike anyway

 

[chicorider]

Welcome back!

At the age of 48, lower back pain made riding a road bike just about impossible. The thought of becoming one those riders sitting bolt-upright, going 11 miles per hour depressed me. The thought of going recumbent depressed me. The thought of not riding at all really depressed me. I took an expensive gamble and built up a V20. The learning curve was pretty tortuous, lasted about 1,000 miles, and nine years ago the forum was much less developed than it is today. Fast forward to today... if, for some horrible reason, I had to narrow my five bike stable down to one, my V20c would be the one to stay. Also, I came to be glad that I had back trouble because without it I might have never discovered Cruzbike. Not to minimize your back pain, or your experience with it, but my back pain led me to the best bike I've ever owned. I've been riding faster, farther, and pain free ever since.

 

[Jeffers]

Sometimes my back actually feels better after my daily ride on my low racer.
Soon as I got the bike. I stopped riding my TT bike all together and soon got rid of it.
I focused all my attention on my low racer and bike fitting it.

 

[Frito Bandito]

Same here guys. Totally happy that I am on my V20, and if something happened to it I would get another. I don't even look at road bikes now with an envious eye. I just look at them with "If you only knew." Jeffers, I am sure that Low Racer is every bit as fun.

 

[Greg S]

Welcome back!

At the age of 48, lower back pain made riding a road bike just about impossible. The thought of becoming one those riders sitting bolt-upright, going 11 miles per hour depressed me. The thought of going recumbent depressed me. The thought of not riding at all really depressed me. I took an expensive gamble and built up a V20. The learning curve was pretty tortuous, lasted about 1,000 miles, and nine years ago the forum was much less developed than it is today. Fast forward to today... if, for some horrible reason, I had to narrow my five bike stable down to one, my V20c would be the one to stay. Also, I came to be glad that I had back trouble because without it I might have never discovered Cruzbike. Not to minimize your back pain, or your experience with it, but my back pain led me to the best bike I've ever owned. I've been riding faster, farther, and pain free ever since.

My situation pretty much parallels yours. I’ve been very encouraged by the fact that I have zero back pain riding the V20 - none, zilch, zip, nada. Buying the V20c was a gamble that has very much paid off. I still do have pain doing day to day activities but it’s a huge positive not inflaming my low back with 2-5 hours of riding a DF 5 days a week.

I think I’ve ridden about 250-300 miles thus far and am still very much in the learning phase. I can get underway (one foot clipped in) on the first try about 75% of the time and am riding on both roads and trails. I’m “gaming” the system a bit though. I live in a rural area and ride entirely on roads with very little traffic. There’s no way I’m ready to mix it up in an urban environment at this point.

But I’ll get there.

I’ve not ridden any of my DF bikes since I got the V20 and have sold 2 of them. My current thinking as I mentioned up thread is that I’ll keep the ones that were custom made for me to use for the occasional leisurely ride but that may change in the future.

The one thing I wish I could do wrt the V20 is drop the weight a bit. I weighed the bike as I ride it and it was 31 lbs. I‘ve got a lot of experience building bikes, own DF bikes that weigh less than 15 lbs as rideable bikes and TBH there aren’t many weight savings opportunities to be had. Having said that, I always say the component with the greatest opportunity for weight savings is the one pushing the pedals ;-)

I live in a very hilly area and as I mentioned elsewhere nearly every route I enjoyed riding has at least one, and usually several, 8%+ hill on it. I’m hoping with time and effort that I can tackle those and ride the roads and routes that I love.

 

[GuytonMike]

Since back issues are the topic, in September of 2010 I fell from a ladder (my fault) and suffered a compression fracture of my L1 vertebrae. Surgery to repair that injury resulted in titanium in my back from T11 to L3. Healing went well and at my 90 day check up I asked the doctor when I could ride a bike again. He responded “one year “. When I showed him a picture of my recumbent bike he told me to enjoy riding it. Not a CB at that time but I have a V20c now and wish I had one way back then.