Taking the plunge...
- Thread starter Kamatu
- Start date
Rick Harker
Well-Known Member
Onya! Hotdog,
I'm awaiting delivery of mine down here in Melb.
It should be here in the next week, hopefully, so I'll get some experience during the Easter break.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Rick.
I'm awaiting delivery of mine down here in Melb.
It should be here in the next week, hopefully, so I'll get some experience during the Easter break.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Rick.
Doug Burton
Zen MBB Master
It's a wonderful bike; super versatile and quite fast.
You'll be pleased with it!
Let us know how you get along!
You'll be pleased with it!
Let us know how you get along!
Rick Harker
Well-Known Member
Hi hotdog,
I've taken the plunge and had my first ride yesterday. bad luck to the letterbox and a couple of shrubs. It caused some fright and frustration. On the second day I relaxed a little and tried not to think too much and before too long I was comfortably riding around the block.
The bike itself is mostly assembled. My seat support bracket was backwards and cables needed some fine tuning. Set the brakes and the bike was ready to ride within an hour. Easy.
Just a bit more practice, some fine tuning with the seat, boom and bars and away I go...
Regards,
Rick.
I've taken the plunge and had my first ride yesterday. bad luck to the letterbox and a couple of shrubs. It caused some fright and frustration. On the second day I relaxed a little and tried not to think too much and before too long I was comfortably riding around the block.
The bike itself is mostly assembled. My seat support bracket was backwards and cables needed some fine tuning. Set the brakes and the bike was ready to ride within an hour. Easy.
Just a bit more practice, some fine tuning with the seat, boom and bars and away I go...
Regards,
Rick.
Looks like I won't be riding my new Cruzbike for a little while :cry:
The bike itself is on the way and should arrive any day now (probably within the next week, at least) but I've gone and put myself out of action
On Saturday morning I was taking part in a group ride on my Bacchetta, and in a left hand turn during a big descent I slid and went down on my left hand side while in the low 60's km/h (38-40mph for those who prefer funny old units ). The results were about as benign as a crash at that speed could be, the bike is still rideable (the damage is largely cosmetic) and I've ended up with no broken bones, joint damage or concussion, not even any bruises to speak of. I did leave an awful lot of my skin on the road though, I've got severe road rash right down my left arm and on my lower right arm, deeper abrasions on my elbows (down to the bone on the right) and a nasty big patch of road rash on my left buttock/thigh So, no riding for me for several weeks :x
I think this incident does illustrate an advantage of recumbents in general that isn't discussed as much as the comfort and aerodynamic ones. Head on collisions aside, when recumbents go down they generally go down on their side with the rider still seated. Provided you sit tight and ride it out rather than sticking out an arm or leg in an attempt to hold yourself up you're less likely to end up with broken bones. You'll probably end up with a lot of road rash, but that's better than the broken collar bones or head injuries that can result from going over the bars or falling sideways from an upright bike. If I'm going to crash, I'd prefer to crash a recumbent :?
The bike itself is on the way and should arrive any day now (probably within the next week, at least) but I've gone and put myself out of action
On Saturday morning I was taking part in a group ride on my Bacchetta, and in a left hand turn during a big descent I slid and went down on my left hand side while in the low 60's km/h (38-40mph for those who prefer funny old units ). The results were about as benign as a crash at that speed could be, the bike is still rideable (the damage is largely cosmetic) and I've ended up with no broken bones, joint damage or concussion, not even any bruises to speak of. I did leave an awful lot of my skin on the road though, I've got severe road rash right down my left arm and on my lower right arm, deeper abrasions on my elbows (down to the bone on the right) and a nasty big patch of road rash on my left buttock/thigh So, no riding for me for several weeks :x I think this incident does illustrate an advantage of recumbents in general that isn't discussed as much as the comfort and aerodynamic ones. Head on collisions aside, when recumbents go down they generally go down on their side with the rider still seated. Provided you sit tight and ride it out rather than sticking out an arm or leg in an attempt to hold yourself up you're less likely to end up with broken bones. You'll probably end up with a lot of road rash, but that's better than the broken collar bones or head injuries that can result from going over the bars or falling sideways from an upright bike. If I'm going to crash, I'd prefer to crash a recumbent :?
JonB
Zen MBB Master
Skateboard elbow protection?
Sorry to hear about you crash. I think you are right about upright bikes.
Last october a friend of mine fell on his upright and broke his collar bone and hit his head. He's still not okay. He can move his arm now, but he still gets tired. He's beginning to come back to work. He fell in the morning rush when another bicyclist suddenly changed lanes. My friend fell outward onto the car lane. Luckly for him a small truck was parsing by that very moment so he could push onto the side of that and fell the opposite way into the bicycle lane.
About your elbow, i was thinking about getting elbow protection, but now my Freerider is here and i'd rather assemble that than run out and buy protection.
JonB
Sorry to hear about you crash. I think you are right about upright bikes.
Last october a friend of mine fell on his upright and broke his collar bone and hit his head. He's still not okay. He can move his arm now, but he still gets tired. He's beginning to come back to work. He fell in the morning rush when another bicyclist suddenly changed lanes. My friend fell outward onto the car lane. Luckly for him a small truck was parsing by that very moment so he could push onto the side of that and fell the opposite way into the bicycle lane.
About your elbow, i was thinking about getting elbow protection, but now my Freerider is here and i'd rather assemble that than run out and buy protection.
JonB
BRONCO B0B
New Member
Well, I took my first big plunge on Saturday on my Softrider v2. I had about 30 miles riding it around the neighborhood, but figured it was time to get away from the confines and comfort of home and cut the umbilical cord. I had a friend for physical and mental support, and found myself leaning on him heavily for both. I had put clipless pedals on earlier in the week and felt confident but wary heading out. After a 20 mile ride, I think the best that could be said was that I got home safely, didn't draw any blood, and to my knowledge no other bike riders were injured. I would find myself doing fine for a few hundred yards or so and then it was like I turned the switch to "inebriate" and I'd be all over the path. I found myself in extremely dire straits when a cyclist would be coming the other way and I felt like we were magnets, that bike would be south pole and I would be north, and I just knew I was going to veer over toward it. Especially not fun when the closing speed is about 50mph. I found myself slamming on the rear brake and setting the bike down a lot to avoid collisions. I attribute this mostly to nerves and the fact that I couldn't relax, which on this bike is terribly counterproductive. I really have no other explanation as to why it was such a bad ride, but I'm wondering if it's more than that. When we got home we moved the seat all the way back, moved the scope in an inch, and lowered the rear suspension and will see if that will help some. I'm just hoping now that my body is processing all the information and the next time I take the bike out I'm further down the learning curve. Anybody else have a first major ride experience like this and did it get better the next time out?
Especially not fun when the closing speed is about 50mph. I found myself slamming on the rear brake and setting the bike down a lot to avoid collisions. I attribute this mostly to nerves and the fact that I couldn't relax, which on this bike is terribly counterproductive. I really have no other explanation as to why it was such a bad ride, but I'm wondering if it's more than that. When we got home we moved the seat all the way back, moved the scope in an inch, and lowered the rear suspension and will see if that will help some. I'm just hoping now that my body is processing all the information and the next time I take the bike out I'm further down the learning curve. Anybody else have a first major ride experience like this and did it get better the next time out?
MrSteve
Zen MBB Master
Hi, Hotdog-
I hope you're feeling better, by now.
Of all the two-wheeled contraptions I've crashed on, the recumbent was the least worst.
Like you, the bike was a bit scratched; the most damage was a bent front chain ring,
which was easily un-bent.
Unlike you, my recumbent crash was caused by colliding with a loose neighbour's Weimeraner.
Like you, my injuries were confined to road-rash.
(If roads were sold as sandpaper, what grit would macadam be?)
My sister, who rode a very nice diamond-frame road bike, collided with
a loose dog last Spring.
She was thrown over the drops...colliding with the road face-first.
Her face was reconstructed;
Her eye was saved;
She's having more surgery done tomorrow, to repair torn ligaments in her hand.
If only she were riding a recumbent/ if only the dog were leashed.
Ride safe,
-Steve
I hope you're feeling better, by now.
Of all the two-wheeled contraptions I've crashed on, the recumbent was the least worst.
Like you, the bike was a bit scratched; the most damage was a bent front chain ring,
which was easily un-bent.
Unlike you, my recumbent crash was caused by colliding with a loose neighbour's Weimeraner.
Like you, my injuries were confined to road-rash.
(If roads were sold as sandpaper, what grit would macadam be?)
My sister, who rode a very nice diamond-frame road bike, collided with
a loose dog last Spring.
She was thrown over the drops...colliding with the road face-first.
Her face was reconstructed;
Her eye was saved;
She's having more surgery done tomorrow, to repair torn ligaments in her hand.
If only she were riding a recumbent/ if only the dog were leashed.
Ride safe,
-Steve
Mark B
Zen MBB Master
BRONCO B0B wrote: I would find myself doing fine for a few hundred yards or so and then it was like I turned the switch to "inebriate" and I'd be all over the path. I found myself in extremely dire straits when a cyclist would be coming the other way and I felt like we were magnets, that bike would be south pole and I would be north, and I just knew I was going to veer over toward it.
I had similar experiences on my conversion, especially on downhills in traffic. I would start to get panicky and then wobble. I believe it's perfectly natural and something you will work through with more time in the saddle. Just be careful out there and relax, you'll be fine.
Mark
Mark B wrote:BRONCO B0B wrote: I would find myself doing fine for a few hundred yards or so and then it was like I turned the switch to "inebriate" and I'd be all over the path. I found myself in extremely dire straits when a cyclist would be coming the other way and I felt like we were magnets, that bike would be south pole and I would be north, and I just knew I was going to veer over toward it.
I had similar experiences on my conversion, especially on downhills in traffic. I would start to get panicky and then wobble. I believe it's perfectly natural and something you will work through with more time in the saddle. Just be careful out there and relax, you'll be fine.
Mark
The mind isn't trusting the body. You think, you worry, you tense up, <poof>, there went all your body balance. Just get the body more time in the saddle and your mind will start trusting the body. Think about the number of silly things you can do (and maybe did when you were younger) on an upright bike without really thinking about it.
Ouch!…..I was eating my breakfast yesterday when I read that…suddenly I didn’t want it any longer....
Get well soon Hotdog.
Bronco Bob, Keep pedalling!
I think we all experienced something like you have as a beginner.
As you start to feel things getting out of shape, your immediate reaction is to stop pedalling, which removes one of the forces from the steering and causes the bike to do exactly what you didn’t want it to, so the answer is, don’t stop pedalling and relax.
Keep up the practice and you will get there, in a while, you will actually be able to sit back, relax and look at the view instead of just the road 20 feet in front of you.
All the best.
Stuart.
