Our Three T50 Builds, and Maybe a Sofrider Retro-fit

[NeaL]

Might be worth treating yourself to a T50 as well!

That old Sofrider may not be worth the hassle.

I'm holding out for either a Q45 or an S40. First I need to lose a lot of fat. Not only do I exceed the maximum recommended weight capacity of all current Cruzbike models, I also exceed the physical dimensions annotated in these two pictures.

If I'm going to stress a frame's weight limits, I'd rather do that to the Sofrider. I'm riding a Greenspeed Magnum while the Sofrider is in the shop.
The previous owner of the Magnum was also a big guy who needed special backrest extensions for his Andre the Giant like proportions. The frame of the Magnum is holding out fine but the crank pedals are worn & wobbly at the joints from the stress of pedaling such loads around as me and the previous owner.

In the meantime, one of the reasons I stopped riding bikes so much in my teens was because of the pain and numbness from bike saddles and in my wrists from holding my upper body above the handle bars. I want my kids to not lose the joys of cycling which is why I'm starting them on recumbents now, and choosing Cruzbikes because of their ability to climb. Just about the only thing Cruzbikes and all other recumbents can't do well is hop over obstacles, such as curbs.

That's also why I've been correcting my kids when they express some bikism-like attitudes about our Cruzbikes. It's great that they are liking them, and I'm sharing with them the advantages of the design over regular bikes and all other recumbents, but there are still advantages to the upright configuration. Whether the ride is a unicycle, a trike, a recumbent, a tandem, or anything else, none of them are "wrong." Different spokes for different folks.

 

[NeaL]

Somehow I lost a kickstand for one of the three T50 frame sets, along with one of those mounting stubs for positioning a light on the front.
Replacements are on order, which has delayed my taking pics of the blue one alone and with the other two bikes.

But I thought I'd share this one picture. I've been wanting Cruzbike bumper stickers for my truck but now I've been thinking, wouldn't a Cruzbike on the tail hitch rack be a better alternative?
Well, the two pre-production, Kickstarter era T50s we have do include "CRUZBIKE" on the frame where all can see. But the blue production one does not. That's mildly disappointing but not such a big deal.

What it does have in place of the "Cruzbike" name are these two threaded holes in the frame. They don't quite look like they would be in the right place for one of those under seat racks like they have for the Q45 and S40, so can anyone else offer a guess as to what kind of accessory items would be mounted here? The holes are on both sides. The Kickstarter frames don't have them.

 

[Rampa]

They are small. Definitely for luggage. I was kind of hoping the seat struts might be able to attach there, but they are smaller holes, so no.

 

[NeaL]

My eldest's T50 is completed. Last Friday I added a Brooks of England Isle of Skye handlebar bag. We used it on a trail, Saturday.
She reports that she'd like to have it rotated down, forward, a little more because it was obstructing her view. But as it was, she also wanted it rotated up and back because her knees were brushing against it as she pedaled. It seems I'll need to find a smaller bag.

 

[NeaL]

Finally, hitting the trails. This was our first adventure together with all four Cruzbikes of the family.

Four-bike bike rack, fully loaded.

Arriving at a trail access point.

A mix of Old School and New School brand logos.

First snack break only 4 miles in.

Second snack break upon reaching the High Bridge near Farmville, Virginia.

Crossing through the town of Farmville on our return leg.

 

[cpml123]

Finally, hitting the trails. This was our first adventure together with all four Cruzbikes of the family.

Four-bike bike rack, fully loaded.

Arriving at a trail access point.

A mix of Old School and New School brand logos.

First snack break only 4 miles in.

Second snack break upon reaching the High Bridge near Farmville, Virginia.

Crossing through the town of Farmville on our return leg.

Great pictures!

 

[Rampa]

Fantastic!
So cool to see the whole crew out "cruzin'"!

 

[NeaL]

The bikes are "done" but, you know how it is. There's always something to adjust, replace, upgrade.

I got a pair of pedal extenders. The original idea was to put them on my Greenspeed Magnum trike but now I'm thinking of putting them on my Sofrider, too.

Yesterday I was going up an incline on a trail. The top of the incline was a sharp turn onto a narrow pedestrian bridge. Trying to maintain control of my direction, while pedaling so rapidly, I noticed that the heels of my shoes were hitting the crank arms each time around.

I have a naturally wider stance. The toes of my feet point outward when I stand, instead of pointing straight ahead. Even when pedaling in a straight direction, I feel like I'm exerting extra effort at keeping my legs closer together on the pedals.

Loss of aerodynamics with pedal extenders? Pffft... I'm about as aerodynamic as an 18-wheeler, as it is. I'll worry about that later.

I'm kinda wondering if anyone else has tried pedal extenders on a Cruzbike, yet. I'll pioneer the idea if anyone else is curious. I haven't put them on yet, the package arrived earlier this week. It also has a chain gobbler kit for me to install on the trike. There have been a number of times already when I allowed others to ride it who needed the length of the boom shortened. Shortening the boom makes the chain sag closer to the ground. The gobbler kit allows for quicker, easier boom length adjustments while keeping the chain up and taking up the slack.

 

[cranky cyclist]

Yes I have pedal extenders for the same reason! My right heel was constantly hitting the crank arm. It has worked well for me.

 

[cpml123]

Yes I have pedal extenders for the same reason! My right heel was constantly hitting the crank arm. It has worked well for me.

Same here.

 

[super slim]

The bikes are "done" but, you know how it is. There's always something to adjust, replace, upgrade.

I got a pair of pedal extenders. The original idea was to put them on my Greenspeed Magnum trike but now I'm thinking of putting them on my Sofrider, too.

Yesterday I was going up an incline on a trail. The top of the incline was a sharp turn onto a narrow pedestrian bridge. Trying to maintain control of my direction, while pedaling so rapidly, I noticed that the heels of my shoes were hitting the crank arms each time around.

I have a naturally wider stance. The toes of my feet point outward when I stand, instead of pointing straight ahead. Even when pedaling in a straight direction, I feel like I'm exerting extra effort at keeping my legs closer together on the pedals.

Loss of aerodynamics with pedal extenders? Pffft... I'm about as aerodynamic as an 18-wheeler, as it is. I'll worry about that later.

I'm kinda wondering if anyone else has tried pedal extenders on a Cruzbike, yet. I'll pioneer the idea if anyone else is curious. I haven't put them on yet, the package arrived earlier this week. It also has a chain gobbler kit for me to install on the trike. There have been a number of times already when I allowed others to ride it who needed the length of the boom shortened. Shortening the boom makes the chain sag closer to the ground. The gobbler kit allows for quicker, easier boom length adjustments while keeping the chain up and taking up the slack.

My solution to walking like a duck, was a 100 mm chain stay extension to my Silvio V1.0, and S30, as I had worn a hole in the right heel area of my bike shoes!

 

[NeaL]

I put the extenders on last night and took the Sofrider out for a test ride.
Whoa! HUGE improvement!

Granted, part of my problem is that I keep riding while wearing my regular street shoes. Maybe someday I’ll get special cyclng shoes, clip-in pedals, and some of that other stuff. For now, I’m not racing. I’m commuting and going on hike/bike trips with my kids. So I need to be able to work with what I’ve got and travel light, both on & off the bike.

I also still have moments when I have difficulty on the Cruzbike when starting again from a standstill, so I must’ve been having a lot of heel strikes when starting off, too.
I started on an uphill incline while in too high of a gear, so my test ride was off to a rough start. Once I got underway, with a little uncontrolled, sloppy weaving on the front end, I could tell a difference.
Usually when I have a start like that, my focus is on so many other things. I hadn’t noticed the heel strikes on the crank arms before, until suddenly I wasn’t having them!
I’d compare it to the difference between paddling your feet in the water and kicking them in the air. That resistance to pedaling caused by heel strikes must’ve really been dragging on my riding.
Initially I had the idea for the pedal extenders after our ride on the High Bridge Trail. At the Cruzbike Ride Retreat, I happened to ask Maria Parker about whether she had heard of anyone using them on Cruzbikes. She said yes but I don’t recall the other details.
That ride last night was less than a mile so I’ll have to do more extensive testing. On longer, straighter rides they might be forcing my feet too far apart.
I got the pedal extenders from the Hostel Shoppe website. They were available in 10mm, 20mm, and 30mm sizes. I decided to go big. They’re $50/pair. I’ll be maybe getting a 2nd set now for my trike. Now that I am more aware of the heel strikes, I’ll have to better analyze my trike riding to see if I’ll want a different size.

Refinements and R&D.

 

[cpml123]

I put the extenders on last night and took the Sofrider out for a test ride.
Whoa! HUGE improvement!

Granted, part of my problem is that I keep riding while wearing my regular street shoes. Maybe someday I’ll get special cyclng shoes, clip-in pedals, and some of that other stuff. For now, I’m not racing. I’m commuting and going on hike/bike trips with my kids. So I need to be able to work with what I’ve got and travel light, both on & off the bike.

I also still have moments when I have difficulty on the Cruzbike when starting again from a standstill, so I must’ve been having a lot of heel strikes when starting off, too.
I started on an uphill incline while in too high of a gear, so my test ride was off to a rough start. Once I got underway, with a little uncontrolled, sloppy weaving on the front end, I could tell a difference.
Usually when I have a start like that, my focus is on so many other things. I hadn’t noticed the heel strikes on the crank arms before, until suddenly I wasn’t having them!
I’d compare it to the difference between paddling your feet in the water and kicking them in the air. That resistance to pedaling caused by heel strikes must’ve really been dragging on my riding.
Initially I had the idea for the pedal extenders after our ride on the High Bridge Trail. At the Cruzbike Ride Retreat, I happened to ask Maria Parker about whether she had heard of anyone using them on Cruzbikes. She said yes but I don’t recall the other details.
That ride last night was less than a mile so I’ll have to do more extensive testing. On longer, straighter rides they might be forcing my feet too far apart.
I got the pedal extenders from the Hostel Shoppe website. They were available in 10mm, 20mm, and 30mm sizes. I decided to go big. They’re $50/pair. I’ll be maybe getting a 2nd set now for my trike. Now that I am more aware of the heel strikes, I’ll have to better analyze my trike riding to see if I’ll want a different size.

Refinements and R&D.

I have something similar to these from Amazon. It's way cheaper than $50.
https://www.amazon.com/16-Pedal-Ext...i=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=extender+pedal

 

[NeaL]

What are they made of? Are they heavy? Have they rusted?
The ones from Hostel Shoppe are stainless steel. There are also pairs out there which are lighter, made out of titanium.

These stainless steel ones have a little heft to them but I’m still overweight. Once I get a lot of this fat burned off, maybe then I’ll start focusing on lighter weight of components.

For now, I want rugged, reliable, long-lasting, troublefree components. I don’t mind investing a little more for that.

 

[cpml123]

They are Cr Moly. No rust yet. I don't ride outside if it's raining anyway.

 

[NeaL]

They are Cr Moly. No rust yet. I don't ride outside if it's raining anyway.

That’s something I wish I had asked Robert Holler about while he was discussing bike maintenance at the Ride Retreat; how best to waterproof or weathertight a bike.
When commuting, sometimes rain happens. When the bikes are on the rack on the rear bumper hitch, sometimes driving them in the rain can’t be avoided.
Robert’s in Portland, OR where it rains a lot.

 

[NeaL]

So my S40 is almost done.

I have a bit of a problem with the handle bars, though. Because I'm still so fat, it's like wearing one of those theme park cartoon character costumes with bulges in places getting in the way of everything.

In order to sit up and put my feet down, I need the handlebar part of the slider all the way forward, else my big fat belly gets in the way.

When then laying back, my arms can't reach the handlebars anymore.

The bike shop is looking around for other handlebar options, Basically, I need something which sweeps back from the center instead of the way these handlebars which came with the frame set curve forward. Something like a big, wide U shape. Almost like the handlebars which came on the Freerider.

 

[benphyr]

http://whatbars.com compares shapes of handlebars - not exhaustive but way better than looking at every website separately! Below are some that look like they could be worth a glance:

Sweep shape / with rise:
Rivendell Bosco - sounds closest to what you mentioned above (Albatross or Billie worth a look)
Nitto Dove
Jones Bend
Fairdale Archer v2
Dimension Urban Cruiser
Crust Towel Rack
Bombtrack beyond
Ahearne Map


"Road bar" shapes: -reverse and use bar ends pointing down
What came with the S40 - can it be reversed and bar ends down?
Soma Gator
Salsa Woodchopper - same setup as above
On-One Midge - similar wide at stem
Funn G Wide
Genetic Digest
Dasia Far Bar

Surly Sunrise - because it has a bit of rise might work??

Velo Orange Klunker - lots of rise - better hand position

I have something like the Salsa Woodchopper with the bars so that the curve points up and the bars point down - reverse of road bar setup and then rotate the bar ends towards you 90 degrees until they point down? would that get you the space to sit up as well as to lean back? - the outer bar ends fit mountain bike brake lever and shifters in roughly the ideal shape.

 

[benphyr]

The The Nitto Bosco pictures on the Rivendell site: https://www.rivbike.com/collections/handlebars

 

[McWheels]

Looks like you want a Bachetta style.
https://www.bacchettabikes.com/product/handlebar-bacchetta/