New Cruzbike Rider Q45

[Velocivixen]

Hi all. I’ve been an on & off reader of this site and have toyed with this idea of getting a Cruzbike for the last 5 yrs. My hesitation has been whether or not I will be able to learn to ride it. So today I took the plunge & bought a lightly used Q45. It must be about 4 yrs. old because it looks like the one Robert Holler assembles in the video from 4 yrs. ago. I’ve dusted it off & checked it over thoroughly and appears to be pristine.

Some things I noticed, which should help with determining the year: it has 26” wheels (great for me as there is more tire selection vs 650b), the front derailleur “stalk” is welded in place. It has the rear bracket for attaching a rear fender, and it does not have thru axles.

Now I’ve got to adjust it to me, per Robert’s excellent setup video, then find a place to practice. I have borrowed a Cruzbike to learn on but it was custom, very “race” geometry- a Silvio I think, a few yrs ago and I never quite got it.

As an aside, I’m not new to recumbents. I have a Bacchetta Giro, a Vision R44, 2 Vision R40’s, a Longbikes Slipstream and a Rans Rocket!

 

[Velocivixen]

I have never worked with a rear suspension bike. Do I have to do anything to adjust the suspension? It appears to be a heavy coil inside a black rubber “boot”. Thanks.

 

[cpml123]

I have never worked with a rear suspension bike. Do I have to do anything to adjust the suspension? It appears to be a heavy coil inside a black rubber “boot”. Thanks.

Not that I know of. It's really heavy though. Some of us replaced it with Kind A5RR1 air shock. I used 165mm version for my 2021 Q45.

 

[Velocivixen]

Why did some people change it? Is the one mentioned a better quality?
I ordered the newer redesigned handlebar so the cockpit won’t feel so “congested”. Now off to practice.
How are you all locking your bike? I have several U-Locks & a cable. I typically park where I can keep an eye on my ride. Thanks.

 

[bret]

Locks are for slowing thieves down - any lock can be opened.

So, for how long, and where? When stopping at the grocery store, I put my u-lock through the wheel I cared about the most. See if you can pass your cable end through the swingarm to the other wheel. Consider wheel locks so your wheels can be easily stolen - but the pros will have the keys for some wheel lock.

There aren't many joy-riders that can ride a Cruzbike, although they can damage it trying.

Overnight, think about the people with trucks who steal for parts.

 

[Velocivixen]

I went into the park behind my house and flintstoned on a flat basketball court. It’s definitely easier to Flinstone down an incline. Unfortunately the grassy hill had 7”-8” grass so going down the hill spread eagle was slow & bumpy. My goal was to look/go straight ahead, and put slight forward pressure (open palmed) to the handlebars. I found that the asphalt path into the park was a better practice area for me, and I can coast down the hill, spread eagle, and balance for quite a ways. So far, so good.

Back down the grassy incline to a basketball court, I gently placed both feet onto the pedals and did about 4-6 pedal strokes before I ran out of runway! Haha - well that was awesome.

Lots of little kids wanted to tell me about their bikes, which lead to fun conversions with the parents about learning bicycle skills. All in all, a good first “session”. I will do this twice a day and slowly build. I’m not in a hurry, so I’m taking it slowly.

Anyone run Schwalbe “Big Apples” on their Cruzbike?

 

[Velocivixen]

This morning is day 2 of learning to ride my Q45 and…..I did it! Riding on the grass, even in the lowest gear didn’t work well for me, so I took a 1% downhill on a multiuser path, coasted then gently placed my feet on the pedals. I keep my palms generally open & slightly pushing forward so as to resist wanting to death grip the handlebars with my index finger at the ready near the brake lever. BONUS EXTRA - I managed to take my eyes off the path long enough to glance in my helmet mounted mirror (didn’t crash) and I shifted gears without affecting my steering.

My plan is to go out a couple times per day and continuing the skills Robert talks about in his learning videos. My biggest focus will be to keep neck/shoulders/arms/hands relaxed and remember to breathe…..

 

[bret]

(Not a comment on anyone, just conversation.)

People in general are sloppy with their language. In fact, no one "knows how to ride a bike" - and that is true for both conventional uprights and Cruzbikes and anything else.

What happens is we expose ourselves to the situation, and our body and brain develop the accommodations needed. The Cruzbike recommendations are a list of situations to expose ourselves to, which lead to those accommodations with the least trauma and wasted time (for the most people closest to the middle of the bell curve).

And, yes, we can pick out a few points that we can mention about "how to ride a bike" - like counter-steer - but mostly it's happening at a level well below what we are conscious of and we can't articulate the bulk of what we do to ride. We are not aware of it ourselves.

We can ride. But we can't transmit what we do to someone else so that with just that, they too can suddenly "ride a bike". They must develop their own set of responses, and it won't be ours.

 

[billyk]

Why did some people change it? Is the one mentioned a better quality?

This is about the Kind A5-RR1 air shock, right? We've had a bunch of discussions here about this over the years, with the strong consensus that the shock gives a better ride (less bouncy), stiffened the bike frame (less energy loss due to flex), and is a helluva lot lighter. Also more adjustable.

Other air shocks may be equally good (but usually not as light) but cost a lot more. The Kind shock is less than $100, or has been.

You might need a pump, but my experience (2 versions for my different CBs over 8 years) is that they hold air amazingly well, so pumping it up is a spring and fall tune up thing. Riding over to borrow one from my LBS is good enough.

Search Google
Site:cruzbike.com air shock
to see these discussions

 

[Velocivixen]

I reminded myself that today is a different day from yesterday so don’t expect it to go as well as yesterday. It was different for sure, however I made a 45 degree turn on the path out of the park where I practice. I reminded myself to keep pedaling through the turn (awesome by the way) and to relax and let my body learn what’s happening as I’m moving. I definitely don’t like riding in an easier gear because my cadence increases which had my arms getting more of a workout. I spent about 40 minutes actually riding.

As an aside, I hopped on my Bacchetta Giro 5 minutes after hopping off the Cruzbike- uh….my arms were moving my handlebars back & forth slightly for about 3 blocks before I sorted it out.

 

[CruzRider]

Recently bought a S40 frame that I am using on a trainer while I complete the build. I love these posts. #vicarious

 

[Velocivixen]

@Indy - do you have your components sorted out? How will you build it?

I also love building up bikes - First thing I did for my new Q45 was to order the new (as of 2021) handlebar & it’s due to arrive Monday! Ordered a set of RED VP Comp pedals with little spikes on them (my favorite pedals) as well as a Crane E’ne bell (sounds lovely when it dings). I have a Mirricycle rear view mirror that I’ll use on the new h’ bars.
The bike is the matte pale grey, so the red pedals & the golden brass bell will add a little sparkle. I may swap out cable housings to red also.

 

[CruzRider]

@Velocivixen I agree. The build is half the fun.

I am coming from a DF background and have quite a big stable. A key reason I went with the Cruzbike is for the parts compatibility. I reluctantly tore down one of my nicer DF bikes for the parts. So will have some bling.

Your build sounds so cool! Look forward to a pic. I have a Red s40 frame with touches of brass and gold (from my DF kit). So we may have similar themes. I will post a pic shortly.

I am not sure whether the spiked mountain pedals are going to work for me. I may go back to clipless. I am trying to get all that sorted out on the trainer before I take it out on the road.

I did invest in a Ventisit seat. Other than that, all stock bars and headrest for now.

This is so much fun!! Also, very excited about riding painless. I have been struggling with nerve pain in my hands for about two years.

Happy riding!

 

[Velocivixen]

I took a day off from practice and went for a massage instead. It will be interesting to see how having a day off will affect things. I visualize in my mind a lot and see things in my minds eye, and through dreaming it all gets integrated & sorted out. So whatever the outcome of having a day to “process” what I’ve experienced over these past few days on the Q45, I’m certain it’s all just part of the process.

 

[Velocivixen]

So I took 2 days off from Cruzbike training regime. Today I practiced steering while pedaling different cadences and turning the corner while I rode around the block a few times. I had almost completed a right hand turn when I realized, “oh! I better drop my outside shoulder”, which I did after the turn was complete. Oops. No problems, but I’ll want to remember before next time.

I tried gent pointing my feet in the direction I wanted to go. So if I needed to straighten out by going to the left, for example, I gently aimed my left foot and looked in that direction. Seemed to work out. The largest parking lot that won’t be busy on a weekend is some blocks away, so I will try again later & see about doing figure 8’s.

 

[cpml123]

So I took 2 days off from Cruzbike training regime. Today I practiced steering while pedaling different cadences and turning the corner while I rode around the block a few times. I had almost completed a right hand turn when I realized, “oh! I better drop my outside shoulder”, which I did after the turn was complete. Oops. No problems, but I’ll want to remember before next time.

I tried gent pointing my feet in the direction I wanted to go. So if I needed to straighten out by going to the left, for example, I gently aimed my left foot and looked in that direction. Seemed to work out. The largest parking lot that won’t be busy on a weekend is some blocks away, so I will try again later & see about doing figure 8’s.

Clipping in helps, if you use those pedals eventually.

 

[Velocivixen]

I like VP Comp VP-001 pedals. Nice big square pedals w/pins & I wear bike specific shoes w/a rigid sole. I like the option of being able to move my feet around on the pedals. I just installed some RED pedals to jazz up the muted grey frame.

As an aside I got passed by a man with a full facial motorcycle helmet riding an electric unicycle!

Question: what exactly does moving the seat pan forward/rearward accomplish? I installed the seat pan as instructed in the assembly video. My X-seam is 41” (I’m 5’5”) and the boom is inside the slider almost all the way. I can’t imagine anyone with a shorter C-seam than me could ride the bike. So wondering if I should try moving the brackets on the seat back a hole. Thoughts?

 

[2whluge]

Write to Robert Holler about the seat pan adjustment he’s the setup expert.

I’ll add that concentrating on very smooth pedal circles with very even push/pull force will help keeping you stable.

 

[Velocivixen]

Write to Robert Holler about the seat pan adjustment he’s the setup expert.

I’ll add that concentrating on very smooth pedal circles with very even push/pull force will help keeping you stable.

I don’t have Robert’s email address. Would it be through Cruzbike?

 

[2whluge]

I don’t have Robert’s email address. Would it be through Cruzbike?

Search for him through the members list and then message him. He’s always on the forums. Unless he’s out riding somewhere