Audax article in Cycle.

[RichForrest]

There's not a lot of difference,
Storage and carriage - takes up same space and goes on a train/car the same as an upright bike.
Expense - Mine was £1200, not too bad for a bike.
High vis' - Yes I do stand out more, but comments are mostly of the good variety, no different than being a cyclist of any kind. I got past a group of teenagers with a bit of a laugh on a 600 last year. One of the other riders got thumped.
Parts - Mine are the same as on a mountain bike, only a couple of bits are different.

[Charlotte]

Power to weight ratio:  generally, onna 'bent, there's more weight for any given power.  Seeing as audaxes usually involve plenty of SCENERY, this usually results in a disadvantage for those of a 'bent persuasion.  Also, whilst more comfortable, 'bents are less practical, being lower to the ground, more likely to get you filthy dirty and soaking wet, whilst often not allowing the usual complement of water bottles, etc.

I've only ever successfully ridden my Streetmachine on one 200k audax and it damn near killed me.  But I'd love to take a little carbon confection out to play on the right summer event.

[Von Broad]

PBP 2007 was very unusual for the amount of rain and wind, it was bad enough in waterproofs designed for uprights, but recumbents seemed to suffer because water was driven up under jackets and up sleeves.

OTOH, our feet are nicely out of the firing line, so no cases of trench foot anong the Dark Side brigade.

And also, all this constant flow of water up sleeves and jackets meant we were always super clean when arriving at controls, and so avoiding the need for showers and unnecessary fragrant pampering, and thus able to spend more time sitting in corners, wondering why on earth we were here in the first place and where life had gone wrong....and just generally feeling utterly shite about ones lot 

[damerell]

Recumbents are like tandems; yes, they generally climb a bit more slowly, but what they lose going up they get back downhill or into a headwind, so it all works out about the same.

That's not really like tandems; an experienced tandem team should not climb more slowly. It's all power to weight ratio, and a tandem weighs (to a first approximation) twice what a normal bike does. Of course, the climbing seems more slow to the stronger rider on the tandem because it is slower than they would climb themselves, and it seems slow to both riders because of the contrast with the superior speed on the flat.

I think a recumbent's always going to suffer on a lumpy route with little wind in a way that a tandem should not.

[simonp]

I've had a go on a recumbent trike in recent memory and I found it pretty woeful for going up even fairly gentle slopes.  As someone who likes to attack hills, this is seriously frustrating.

[damerell]

I've had a go on a recumbent trike in recent memory and I found it pretty woeful for going up even fairly gentle slopes.

That's not entirely fair, though, because if you're just having a quick go you don't have the relevant muscles developed in the way that you do for riding uprights.

[simonp]

I've had a go on a recumbent trike in recent memory and I found it pretty woeful for going up even fairly gentle slopes.

That's not entirely fair, though, because if you're just having a quick go you don't have the relevant muscles developed in the way that you do for riding uprights.

Indeed, though for going a few miles it wouldn't have caused much muscle fatigue.  However I have done up to 80 miles in a day on a recumbent in the past, and had those muscles, and I say they climb like a brick.  Once you run out of gears you resort to grinding at a very low cadence without the ability to stand on the pedals.  I think this is very bad for your knees.

[citoyen]

What I don't understand is why so few Audaxers have even tried a recumbent, when it is so obvious a solution to some of the things which (if that article in Cycle is anything to go by) plague them.

Cyclist goes into bike shop.

Cyclist: "I'm looking for something to ride Audax on."

Shop owner: "OK, your choices are this upright, that upright or the other upright..."

d.

[Panoramix]

I have never ridden one mainly because I've never had the opportunity to.

But they've been banned in the 30s because they were faster, so why is the PBP best time on an upright?

• Lack of good audax bents
• Uprights have improved more than bents
• Fit riders don't ride them

Dunno, just asking.

[Tiger]

This thread has turned into a recumbents good/recumbents bad thing. Nothing wrong with that!

If I was young and fit I think would audax faster than pretty much anyone anyone else on my current recumbent - it is simply the fastest bike of any kind on a level, good surface I have  ridden in 30 years. (Yes it is slow uphill). But if I was young and fit I would ride my Condor carbon leggero road bling, and look like a cool roadie not an old eccentric on a wacky racer.  

Not all recumbents are the same and lots are certainly heavy and slow. Trikes are definitely harder work and very dependent on road surface etc.  The speed dynamic is quite different to an upright for sure - and very terrain dependant. A series of hills will slow most recumbents so much and debilitate the rider so much he is unlikely to catch the bunch.  A level with gentle rollers can be very flattering on the other hand.  And - there are no sore, inflamed baboon bums.

What we need is a race to resolve this. You recumbent disrespecters must put noney behind your words.

So if any mid 50's, overweight, arthritic-spined, drink-raddled, high blood pressured  regular bikers fancy a match I am your man!  A challenge at the HoE? Who gets back first gets as much beer and ecurry as they want in Cirencesters premier restaurant - the loser foots the bill.  That must be a good way to guage how comfortable one is after the ride? A saddlebag weighting handicap system might be appropriate for younger, fitter challengers...
 

[Really Ancien]

I disagree with Dan about underpants, I've always worn them under my shorts with no ill effects.

Damon.

[Tiger]

Going commando is a statemnet of serious comittment.  Also there is the matter of VPL which is most unsightly in a tight bunch.

[Really Ancien]

I find that Y-fronts help keep my bunch tight.

Damon.

[Greenbank]

I opt for the loose bunch (and lack of VPL) afforded by boxer shorts under cycling shorts.

[Von Broad]

I have never ridden one mainly because I've never had the opportunity to.

But they've been banned in the 30s because they were faster, so why is the PBP best time on an upright?

• Lack of good audax bents
• Uprights have improved more than bents
• Fit riders don't ride them

Dunno, just asking.

Dunno either, but all this talk about bents and PBP is really a bit bizzare to me. If you accept the fact that 'recumbents can't climb hills' [and many do], you cannot fail to be impressed by the performance of Tijmen Hoeve in PBP 2007 [his third ride of the event].

M5 Recumbents » News » Events

Hardly a whipper-snapper, either. 57hrs 52mins is a seriously good time - by many peoples standards [by my standards it's bloody super human!]. That's also a very nice bike he's riding. Note. And much more comparable to some of the carbon bikes that you [increasingly] seem to see at audax events. Put a good rider on a decent machine and you'll get results, absolutely no doubt. [And as for Hans Wessels, well...] Put me on that M5 in 'my leisure cyclist' mode and you'll probably get 87hrs!

Personally speaking, I've had a ball building and riding them. Great fun.

[harrumph]

...and the high visibility with kids pointing at you and laughing and perhaps throwing the odd stone...

I find the reaction almost always positive - "Cool bike, mister!" far outweighs any negative response.

In fact, one of the joys of riding a recumbent is the way it allows me to give pleasure to young lads wherever I go.

And sometimes to their sisters, too!

[Julian]

In fact, one of the joys of riding a recumbent is the way it allows me to give pleasure to young lads wherever I go.

And sometimes to their sisters, too!

Where's Hummers when you need a good innuendo? 

[MattH]

Will you lot please stop talking about recumbents? After spending ages lusting after one 18 months ago I thought I'd got it out of my system. Now I'm looking at Long Distance Recumbents and wondering about space in the garage, but I also quite like my marriage...

[Greenbank]

Will you lot please stop talking about recumbents? After spending ages lusting after one 18 months ago I thought I'd got it out of my system. Now I'm looking at Long Distance Recumbents and wondering about space in the garage, but I also quite like my marriage...

I really wish you hadn't posted than and that I didn't read anything about "Hell Week":-

"
Hell Week is an excellent way to test a bike for randonneuring. Hell Week is held very early in the season (before adequate training and butt-hardening) and Hell Week is a whole rando series in one week, so it’s a ride that is likely to produce upright seat recumbent butt if anything is going to produce recumbent butt.

Hell Week consists of a 200 km brevet immediately followed by a 300, a 400 and a 600, one day after the other.
"

Hmm.

[vorsprung]

Will you lot please stop talking about recumbents? After spending ages lusting after one 18 months ago I thought I'd got it out of my system. Now I'm looking at Long Distance Recumbents and wondering about space in the garage, but I also quite like my marriage...

But i thought I was quite clear

If you want to fail PBP then a recumbent is the way to go

Other people (not me 'bent fans) have also stated that in their opinions ( based on experience)

Recumbents are:

• heavy
• difficult to garage
• expensive for what they are
• not good in poor weather
• difficult to ride uphill due to not being able to honk
• more likely to attract youths throwing stones
• difficult to get spare parts for

If you still want a 'bent after reading this thread then I think you should go ahead!  The upsides must be quite strong for you

[Mr Larrington]

This thread has turned into a recumbents good/recumbents bad thing. Nothing wrong with that!

If I was young and fit I think would audax faster than pretty much anyone anyone else on my current recumbent - it is simply the fastest bike of any kind on a level, good surface I have  ridden in 30 years. (Yes it is slow uphill).

(Wonder whether to mention Tiger romping up Hackpen Hill on the 2007 Marlborough Connection at a pace which surprised many)

Other people (not me 'bent fans) have also stated that in their opinions ( based on experience)

Recumbents are:

• heavy

Well, they can be.  I've seen sub-7 kg machines from Peter Groeneveld and the Razz-Fazz lads, though admittedly they're not the sort of machine you'd want to use on a hilly ride.  But 9-10 kg seems doable.

• difficult to garage

No more so than most upright bikes, unless one goes in for one of those old-fashioned LWB things, which are thankfully almost extinct on this side of the Big Ditch

• expensive for what they are

Oh, I dunno, you can easily pay over three grand for a Dura-Ace equipped upright as well

• not good in poor weather

In >twenty-six years of recumbent riding, the only time I've suffered from any problems was riding a trike without a rear mudguard.  Cold water over the top of the seat and straight down the neck

• difficult to ride uphill due to not being able to honk

ITYM "slower uphill due to lardiness".  You won't catch me resorting to undignified behavoiur like that on an upright unless it's absolutely unavoidable

• more likely to attract youths throwing stones

Not in my experience.

• difficult to get spare parts for

Not much more so than, for example, a Moulton or and Airnimal and there are plenty of them doing Audax.

[harrumph]

This Frenchman reckons he has gone as fast as he can on an upright, and needs a recumbent to break his PBP record...

[Charlotte]

url=http://www.zockrabikes.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7&Itemid=15]This Frenchman[/url] reckons he has gone as fast as he can on an upright, and needs a recumbent to break his PBP record...

FTFY  (really - I have )

[Really Ancien]

This Frenchman reckons he has gone as fast as he can on an upright, and needs a recumbent to break his PBP record...

A quick check reveals that Hervé LE DU finished in groups on both the occasions that he claims to have been '1st' and that a lone rider, Michel Mingant, came in 15 minutes before the 8 man group which he claims 'won' in 2007 . I don't see how he could be in a group if he is on a recumbent.
PBP 1995 Time Results
PBP 2007 Time Results

Damon.

[Tiger]

This tends to support the premise that recumbent riders are indeed a bit delusional.  Or possibly that Frenchmen are. Or that Ancien is a true prince of pedantry.  Or all.