sofrider

[John Tolhurst]

Oh my gosh...just bought a Sofrider V2 (used)...at first attempt I thought I was going to need training wheels! But with the advice picked up from this website and the previous owner, I was riding (of sorts) in the 1st 15 minutes of my first day of practice. After the 2nd evening I made some good rides around the neighborhood and love it. Still not ready for a real road ride, but I can see it happening in the near future.
I have been drooling over the Cruzbike website for some time, but $$ for such a luxury item was very limited. I went on a charity ride on my DF road bike early July and went over the handlebars 1/2 way through the ride. I crippled through the remainder of the ride, but a trip to the ER right after crossing the finish line changed my perspective of luxury and necessity. The cost of a bent was minor compared to the ER cost, and to the lost riding time during this recuperation period.
I test rode some other bents but the light front end and the longgg chains left me hesitant and skeptical. I tried to test my Cruzbike before buying, but my mind was geared for RWD, and pedals underneath me, so the test ride was a bust. Even so, I knew the design made good sense, and sitting on the bike felt right, so I took the gamble and am very glad I did. At 58 I am like a kid with a new bike...wait a minute...it is a new bike (to me), and a ride like this makes me feel like a kid at heart...that's why I love to ride.

 

[Jim Parker]

injuries on DF bikes

Hi DavidPaul,
Welcome to Cruzbike! You bring up a good point that we don't mention very often... Injuries on DF road bikes from going over the handlebars. Just in our small circle of bicycling friends, a significant percentage have taken a forward tumble off their DF bike and broken and/or dislocated their shoulder. It doesn't take much to cause a forward fall when you're perched with your rear high on a saddle and your head low and forward.

Glad you are enjoying the learning prcess. The Sofrider is a great bike. If you need a rack we recommend the Topeak "A" type MTX beam rack.

Happy Cruzing,

Jim

 

[KenM]

Welcome!
While I haven't gone

Welcome!
While I haven't gone over, I've still managed to lift the rear wheel significantly on my Sofrider during an emergency stop, even with about 5Kg in a rack over the back wheel. If I'd been on a DF I'm sure I would have gone over the bars, or collected the pedestirian (in dark clothes at night.) You still need to manage your braking, its just much harder to flip over on a Cruzbike.

At the time I had my old DF bike rack rigidly fixed over the back wheel but I've since swithched to the MTX Beam rack. Interestingly, in addition to the better balance, its much quieter! (The suspension means things don't rattle anywhere near as much.)

Cheers,
-Ken

 

[MrSteve]

Brakin' the Sofrider

Welcome, DavidPaul.


I routinely loft the rear wheel ("stoppie") off of the tarmac, when brake my Sofrider V1 to a stop.

For fun.

It's good practice for me too, but then I'm used to these sort of shenannigans.


The first time I performed a stoppie on this bike was during an emergency-braking episode.
You know, the standard, 'car-with-driver-on-mobile-phone-cuts-in-front-of-"invisible"-cyclist'
type of emergency.

As a testrider (retired professional motorcycle test rider) I automatically feathered/modulated
the front brake, while simultaneously steering away from danger.


A lesson to take from lofting the rear wheel with your front brake:
with the rear wheel off the of the road, you're getting experience riding a unicycle!

Finally, it's more fun -safer,really- to play with stoppies on our short wheel base recumbent bicycles
than it is with most other single-track vehicles I have had the pleasure to ride...
including the diamond-framed safety bike!

Have fun, safely!

-Steve

 

[davidpaul]

thanks!

Thanks for the tips...everything about this bike seems to be more fun. Dont ride as much in this heat as I would like, but I am improving and getting more comfortable with each ride. I wasn't sure if I was going to like the gearing, but that also seems to be well thought out and with the extra power available due to the seating arrangement, I find that I really like it. I am still trying to learn how to start up on an incline...any tricks beyond getting the right gear before I stop?

 

[MrSteve]

Starting on an Incline

DavidPaul, starting on an incline with your Sofrider (any recumbent bicycle)
is different than with a diamond-frame bicycle.

You knew that!

Right-handed people, mounted on their D.F. bikes, start pedaling uphill from a stop
by pushing off the ground with their left foot and immediately putting power into
the crank with their right leg:
their left-foot push-off gets the bike rolling.

It's almost impossible to get the recumbent bicycle rolling, by pushing-off with the
left foot.
So, the new recumbent rider must learn to balance the bicycle at very low speed...
almost zero forward momentum... while putting power into the crank with the right leg.
All without upsetting the balance of the bicycle!

So, practice your starts with that in mind.

It's all about balance.
Balance while making enough power to accellerate uphill from a dead stop!

Practice!


I hope this helps!


Sincerely,
Steve

 

[John Tolhurst]

I often let the front wheel

I often let the front wheel steer left with the first push of the right pedal.