Sore back V20

[olde]

I'm a future V20 owner with a bad back; multiple slipped disks and short spasms of limb-paralysis if my spine gets overly compressed. On a mountain bike, this has led me to fall off and break my arm and face on the handlebar.

I have not yet ridden a V20, so please forgive the following assumption: I hope that having one's palms either side of one's butt will allow one's arms and spine to act like three legs of a stool -- reducing load and shock on the back. To this end, one might even use a long drop-handlebar to bring the palms even closer to the butt. Is this a reasonable assumption....?

I imagine a lot of aging, busted-up codgers like myself are starting to buy recumbents, we likely even outnumber you healthy younguns. So, what parts or accessories would you purchase for a V20 frameset, if you were making the ultimate codgerdetta.

 

[RAR]

I'm a future V20 owner with a bad back; multiple slipped disks and short spasms of limb-paralysis if my spine gets overly compressed. On a mountain bike, this has led me to fall off and break my arm and face on the handlebar.

I have not yet ridden a V20, so please forgive the following assumption: I hope that having one's palms either side of one's butt will allow one's arms and spine to act like three legs of a stool -- reducing load and shock on the back. To this end, one might even use a long drop-handlebar to bring the palms even closer to the butt. Is this a reasonable assumption....?

I imagine a lot of aging, busted-up codgers like myself are starting to buy recumbents, we likely even outnumber you healthy younguns. So, what parts or accessories would you purchase for a V20 frameset, if you were making the ultimate codgerdetta.

Be a codger myself, I suggest a test ride before you purchase.

 

[LarryOz]

Be a codger myself, I suggest a test ride before you purchase.

Best idea if you can do it. Where do you live? If you are lucky enough to live within reasonable driving distance of Lumberton, NC - you can ask for a personal meeting with the owners (yes - believe it), and they have every version of Cruzbike available to try.
..
or Portland where Robert is: who builds most of all the ones that ship out. He probably has demo's also.

Most people will hop on a Quest first to just acclimate their brain to the MBB format, then once they master that, have much more success when the sit on a Silvio - or lay on a Vendetta.
...
Cruzbike also has a list of owners all over the country who are willing to meet perspective riders and can demo their bike to them as well. You just never know what you'll get though, depending on where you are at.
Good Luck.

 

[Rick Youngblood]

I'm a future V20 owner with a bad back; multiple slipped disks and short spasms of limb-paralysis if my spine gets overly compressed. On a mountain bike, this has led me to fall off and break my arm and face on the handlebar.

I have not yet ridden a V20, so please forgive the following assumption: I hope that having one's palms either side of one's butt will allow one's arms and spine to act like three legs of a stool -- reducing load and shock on the back. To this end, one might even use a long drop-handlebar to bring the palms even closer to the butt. Is this a reasonable assumption....?

I imagine a lot of aging, busted-up codgers like myself are starting to buy recumbents, we likely even outnumber you healthy younguns. So, what parts or accessories would you purchase for a V20 frameset, if you were making the ultimate codgerdetta.

I say, try it stock first, then if adjustments, add ons, mods, etc are necessary in certain areas, we can help. I have a bad back and neck myself, I feel riding in this position has helped my muscles and joints. I'm not big on test rides because it's takes some riding, adjustments, tuning, fine tuning, and time to really know about a recumbent, and in particular a FWD MBB. Good luck.

 

[JOSEPHWEISSERT]

I'm a future V20 owner with a bad back; multiple slipped disks and short spasms of limb-paralysis if my spine gets overly compressed. On a mountain bike, this has led me to fall off and break my arm and face on the handlebar.

I have not yet ridden a V20, so please forgive the following assumption: I hope that having one's palms either side of one's butt will allow one's arms and spine to act like three legs of a stool -- reducing load and shock on the back. To this end, one might even use a long drop-handlebar to bring the palms even closer to the butt. Is this a reasonable assumption....?

I imagine a lot of aging, busted-up codgers like myself are starting to buy recumbents, we likely even outnumber you healthy younguns. So, what parts or accessories would you purchase for a V20 frameset, if you were making the ultimate codgerdetta.

I replaced the stock seat with a Volae seat and I love it. Surprisingly, I have no back pain on the Vendetta, ever. You don't have to worry about spinal compression on a Vendetta. The force of hitting a hole will be perpendicular to the surface of your back at the shoulder blade level. Kind of like getting lightly punched in the back. At most, it can be annoying on a road with lots of holes or cracks. The only thing I would warn you about is that you might be in trouble if you become temporarily paralyzed at 35 mph on the flats in a sprint. You'll be run over by all the DFs you passed. That would be embarrassing, if not painful. Don't assume they'll try to avoid you either once they get to know you.

 

[ratz]

Cruzbike also has a list of owners all over the country who are willing to meet perspective riders and can demo their bike to them as well. You just never know what you'll get though, depending on where you are at.

@JOSEPHWEISSERT and @Eric Winn are the closet people on the map. Don't ask me how I know; it's a super power...... or maybe Olde told me in an email his general area of roaming.

 

[LMT]

It is about my only criticism of the V20 and that it could have a better seat, if only the V20 had the same seat as the Metaphysic...

As others have mentioned you can buy an alternative seat from Volae or Thor, there's a few threads on here regarding seat modification. I myself bought some strips of sorbothane and with some duck tape botched a lumbar support. It now works with some initial trail and error and I now have no issues doing long audaxs (400km+).

 

[LarryOz]

@JOSEPHWEISSERT and @Eric Winn are the closet people on the map

Yes, but will they "come out of their closet"? - that is the question??
Any why are they in the closet?
Where they bad?
Did their wife's send them there because they spent too much time and money on their bikes? -
Or - maybe it's a bike shop/workroom type of closet - who knows!

 

[pedlpadl]

use a long drop-handlebar to bring the palms even closer to the butt

I think this would interfere with steering and inhibit or eliminate slow speed, short radius turns. Also, mounting and dismounting would be more difficult.

Because your spine is supported along its entire length by the seat, there should be no compression. Good luck to you!

 

[quickbeam]

I wouldn't count on bracing yourself up over the bumps by using your hands on the seat. With the Cruzbike, you need your hands (at least one hand) on the steering to keep yourself going straight. OTOH, at least on the more upright seats, you can temporarily take the weight off your butt by pressing your back into the seat.

 

[olde]

Thanks guys. Advice much appreciated. To answer a few questions, I'm 2-hours west of Toronto in Canada, far from civilization but surrounded by great MTB trails. I will have to import parts before I can try them out because y'all live down there in civilization it seems, and nobody up here rides a recumbent. The Volae seat looks more comfortable for a weak-spined codger like myself, than the Thor, so I plan to gamble and go with the Volae in preference to the stock seat. Thanks @Joseph for the suggestion. I assume the V20 frameset does not already include an expensive carbon seat pan or some such, and that the Volae will fit without needing dentist tools. Otherwise, I have asked our local bike shop to do a copycat build with kind permission from @ratz, a ratzcodgerdetta.

 

[RAR]

Thanks guys. Advice much appreciated. To answer a few questions, I'm 2-hours west of Toronto in Canada, far from civilization but surrounded by great MTB trails. I will have to import parts before I can try them out because y'all live down there in civilization it seems, and nobody up here rides a recumbent. The Volae seat looks more comfortable for a weak-spined codger like myself, than the Thor, so I plan to gamble and go with the Volae in preference to the stock seat. Thanks @Joseph for the suggestion. I assume the V20 frameset does not already include an expensive carbon seat pan or some such, and that the Volae will fit without needing dentist tools. Otherwise, I have asked our local bike shop to do a copycat build with kind permission from @ratz, a ratzcodgerdetta.

Olde, No gamble on the Volae because Thor is" not building carbon seats for a while " was the answer two of us have gotten lately. I'm in contact with Ocean Cycles in the UK, will report when have more info.

 

[snilard]

I assume the V20 frameset does not already include an expensive carbon seat pan or some such, and that the Volae will fit without needing dentist tools.

Of course that frameset does include carbon seat. How would you ride it without seat?
Frame is designed to be used with original seat. To install seat from other vendor You have to drill frame and shape some hard foam or rubber to make support for seat. This is DIY work. I cannot imagine that any LBS will be willing to this for you.

 

[Mathew Fy]

I had entertained the idea of using one of the alternative seats as described elsewhere on the Cruzebike forums, but I'm very pleased with the stock carbon fiber seat with the optional Ventisit pad.

 

[olde]

Of course that frameset does include carbon seat. How would you ride it without seat?

Thanks for confirming that. I thought the seat would be extra. One advantage to living up here in the Canadian wilderness is that one's LBS does everything, including bike dentistry and beer after a ride

 

[ratz]

Thanks for confirming that. I thought the seat would be extra. One advantage to living up here in the Canadian wilderness is that one's LBS does everything, including bike dentistry and beer after a ride

Have @Rick Youngblood get your shop some detailed photos of the rubber mounting block he Made for the Volae seat. They should be able to copy his work.

 

[olde]

Have @Rick Youngblood get your shop some detailed photos of the rubber mounting block he Made for the Volae seat. They should be able to copy his work.

Thanks, will do. I suspect it is compression in the neck area that causes my blips of paralysis, as all limbs seem to flop out on me. It's just for a fraction of a second, but if your limbs are supporting your weight it can cause an accident. I can thus become a danger to other road-users. If I can't find a way to avoid compressing my neck while riding, I think I'm ethically obliged to stop riding. That would be very sad. <-- Sad face. However, Plan B is to build a bike that suspends me from my ankles.... Hah!

 

[ratz]

Thanks, will do. I suspect it is compression in the neck area that causes my blips of paralysis, as all limbs seem to flop out on me. It's just for a fraction of a second, but if your limbs are supporting your weight it can cause an accident. I can thus become a danger to other road-users. If I can't find a way to avoid compressing my neck while riding, I think I'm ethically obliged to stop riding. That would be very sad. <-- Sad face. However, Plan B is to build a bike that suspends me from my ankles.... Hah!

As the owner of a damaged neck; the v20 is kind to mine; and I can't ride a DF for 2 miles without going numb. But in the end if this does turn out we'll be introductions you to the ICE VTX trike, or a CarbonTrike.

 

[olde]

...ICE VTX trike, or a CarbonTrike.

Thanks. The V20 converts to 3-wheels, that is plan B2.