My Experience Learning to Ride

Tim Segard

Tim Segard

New Member
This is an article I wrote for my Shop website about learning to ride a Cruzbike:

The bike refused to go in a straight line no matter how much I wrestled with the handlebars, but I was determined to control it. I have been riding all sorts of bikes for decades and there was no way this one was going to best me.



I was attempting to ride the front-wheel drive Cruzbike Vendetta at the Recumbent Cycle Convention in Philadelphia. Walking up to the booth, I was pretty sure that they would not be able to fit my 6’8” body on their bike, but I was wrong. Not only did they adjust the bike to fit me, they also went with me to the test track to teach me how to ride it. I had never ridden a front-wheel drive bike after some quick instructions on how to balance and turn, I was off.



Riding a Cruzbike is similar to riding a regular two wheel bike, but very different at the same time. With the laid back seating position and the cranks physically connected to the steering, it creates new challenges in controlling the direction of the bike. The hardest part was getting my brain to figure out these new challenges. I have not had to think this much about riding for decades!



The first step was just sitting on the bike and then pushing around Fred Flintstone style. Not super glamorous, but a necessary step to learn how to control the bike. Next, I tried to get my feet on the pedals. After a little coasting, I was ready to pedal. That is where the struggle started. I was gripping the handlebars so tight and was so wobbly with the pedaling that the bike would wander from left to right like it had a mind of its own.



I managed to make it around the test loop a few times and noticed that with every lap I was less concerned about control and more aware of how comfortable I felt. After 20 minutes I felt like this would be a great solution for people that like the road bike experience but want the comfort of a recumbent. I could feel the bike was fast which backs up the Cruzbike claim that the Vendetta is the fastest bike you will own.



When I got back to Tampa I ordered an S40 (slightly less aggressive design) to ride myself. The first few times on the trail it felt a bit twitchy, but after 50 miles or so, I felt comfortable and in control. I have even been using the S40 as my commuter bike to the shop. After a couple hundred miles on the bike it is one of my favorite riding experiences!
 
ak-tux

ak-tux

Zen MBB Master
Tim Segard said:
...

When I got back to Tampa I ordered an S40 (slightly less aggressive design) to ride myself. The first few times on the trail it felt a bit twitchy, but after 50 miles or so, I felt comfortable and in control. I have even been using the S40 as my commuter bike to the shop. After a couple hundred miles on the bike it is one of my favorite riding experiences!
Click to expand...

Congratulations! Please share a photo or two.

P.S.
If the image is too large to upload here link to your photo bucket or other public photos site you may have.
 
Rampa

Rampa

Guru
I would call it a forward-drive unicycle, I think. Although a generally think of a Cruzbike as a modern Penny-Farthing.
 
B

bladderhead

Zen MBB Master
Penny F is direct drive. There is a recumbent in which the cranks are attached to the front wheel via a Pinion gear or something. Cannot remember what it is called, but it is mentioned on this forum somewhere.

Not moving-bottom-bracket. No-bottom-bracket.
 
quickbeam

quickbeam

Well-Known Member
CruzLike said:
That was my exact thoughts after riding for the first time.
Click to expand...
As a unicyclist, I can say that was NOT my first thought when riding a Cruzbike the first time. The Cruzbike is in a class of its own, but more similar to other bikes than a uni. I kind of compare it to switching to a snowboard after years of downhill skiing. You're still trying to do the same basic thing, but the balance control is different.

For one parade I did take the front end off of a kids bike, and push that around while on my unicycle. If I was going in a straight line it probably looked like I was on a bicycle (RWD, to answer your question), but then I'd do some trick like suddenly take a 90' turn to one side or the other. It would probably have been dangerous to use the wheel while learning to ride a unicycle. I've seen some sites recommend using walking sticks while learning to ride the uni, but I think that's a dangerous and bad idea. You want to learn how to step off the unicycle when you lose balance, and sticks would just get in the way. Worst case you impale yourself.
 
NeaL

NeaL

Guru
quickbeam said:
I've seen some sites recommend using walking sticks while learning to ride the uni, but I think that's a dangerous and bad idea. You want to learn how to step off the unicycle when you lose balance, and sticks would just get in the way. Worst case you impale yourself.
Click to expand...

Someone on the staff on unicycle.com recommended the use of something like a shopping cart as a learning tool.
 
E

ElyDave

Guru
Is that a progression?
DF with stabilisers > DF > RWD bent > MBB bent > unicycle

Only one more step to go, do I reach enlightenment?
 
C

cpml123

Zen MBB Master
I have been riding for about an hour a week in the neighborhood for the past few weeks. My biggest aha moment came when I realized that leaning is completely opposite of DF bike or skiing, and it's not just when turning. I know when I make turns, I need to lean away from the turn. However, I just couldn't figure out why when I wobble down the street, sometimes the bike just keep going towards the opposite direction of where I want it to go, i.e. NOT towards the center of the road. I then realized that I kept leaning right (as in skiing or DF biking) and hoping to steer the bike towards right whereas the bike's natural tendency is to go left. I think now I am at the "consciously competent" stage where I knowingly have to force my body to lean towards the opposite direction of where I want to bike to go.
 
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