From: "gary walsh" <gary.walsh@canrem.com>
Subject: recumbent bike info #1
Reply-To: "gary walsh" <gary.walsh@canrem.com>
Organization: Canada Remote Systems
Distribution: aus
Date: 14 Sep 92 21:04:26 EST

                      Have You Ever Considered a
                          RECUMBENT BICYCLE?

WHY RECUMBENT BICYCLES?
     There are many reasons to consider a recumbent.  First and foremost
is comfort.  When you ride a recumbent bicycle you will no longer have
an aching back, stiff neck, numb wrists or a sore a sore bottom.  You
will sit in a relaxed easy-chair position.  You will be able to ride
longer with less fatigue and arrive at your destination feeling 
refreshed.  The recumbent position offerd you a great view of the
countryside. While seated you will look straight ahead. This allows your
lungs and chest more open and free breathing.  Recumbents are very 
versatile machines.  They can be used for a wide range of applications:
recreational/sport riding, for the daily commute, a fast double century
and they are great for long distance touring.

RECUMBENT PERFORMANCE
     Recumbents hold all of the human-powered speed records.  This is 
because they are aerodynamically superior to conventional bicycles; 
less frontal area means less wind resistance.  The Lightning F-40 
currently holds the Race Across America speed record of five days and
one hour.  Gardner Martin's Easy Racer Gold Rush, ridden by Fast Freddie
Markham, was the winner of the Dupont Prize for breaking 65mph.  You
can currently buy production versions of these bicycles.  Fairings for
street use are common and optional equipment on most commercially built
models.  They protect you from rain, cold and wind, with up to a 30%
reduction in drag.  Commercially available recumbents are not always
faster than conventional bicycles.  It depends mainly on the individual
rider.  Your best bet is to do you homework and if your goal is
performance and speed, be sure that you look for a recumbent designed 
for this purpose.

COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT RECUMBENT BICYCLES
1) Do recumbents climb hills well?  Yes they do, although climbing on a
recumbent requires a different technique, you must gear down and spin.
Maintaining an efficient spin takes some practice & conditioning, once
mastered, it takes less physical effort to climb hills.  Depending on
your riding style, your speeds can range from slowwer to even faster
than on a conventional bicycle.
2) Can recumbents be seen in traffic?  Recumbents with a higher seating
position may be better suited for riding in traffic than some of the
low-slung designs.  The use of use of proper safety devices such as
safety flags and reflective devices is recommended.  Recumbent bicycles 
are different, futuristic and they get noticed.  Many riders feel they 
get more respect from motorists while on their recumbents.
3) Are they safe?  Recumbent's are safer than a conventional bicycle.
Due to the low centre of gravity, they stop faster.  Brakes can be 
evenly applied to both wheels simultaneously providing more traction 
without throwing the rider over the handlebars.  In crash situations, 
the rider goes down to the side absorbing the impact with the hip and 
leg rather than flying over the handlebars and absorbing the impact on 
your head and shoulder.  Straight ahead vision is also better on a 
recumbent, however, rear view mirrors are necessary for proper 
rearward 
vision.

RECUMBENT PAST HISTORY
     Why are recumbents such a rare sight?  Space age technology?  New
type of bicycle?  Not really, recumbent bicycles actually go back as 
far as the mid to late 1800's with the Macmillan Velocopede and the 
Challand Recumbent.  In the 1930's, a series of events took place that
changed bicycling history.  A French second category professional 
track cyclist named Francois Faure rode the Velocar, a two wheeled 
recumbent bicycle designed and built by Charles Mochet, to 
record-shattering speeds, breaking both the mile and kilometre records 
of the day.  This created a storm of controversy within the U.C.I. 
(United Cycliste International), bicycle rating's governing body.  The 
debate centred on whether the Velocar was a bicycle and were these 
records legal?  In 1934 they ruled against the Mochet-Faure record, 
banning recumbent bicycles and aerodynamic devices from racing.  Were 
U.C.I. members worried that the recumbent bicycle would displace the 
conventional design?  Did they realize this would freeze bicycle and 
human-powered vehicle development for the next forty years?  This is 
why bicycles of taday look very similar to the Starkey and Sutton 
Safety (upright/conventional) of 1885.  Just think where bicycle 
technology would be today if the U.C.I. decision had gone the opposite 
way.

MODERN RECUMBENT HISTORY
     Recumbent development was fairly quiet until the late 1960's.  Dan 
Henry received some media attention for his long wheelbase design in
1968.  In the early 1970's, the human-powered revolution was starting up
on both the U.S. east coast by David Gordon, designer of the Avatar, and
on the west coast by Chester Kyle.  These pioneers recognized the need
for further development of human-powered vehicles. In the late 1970's
and early 1980's, this lead to the first commercial recumbent bicycle
designs such as the Avatar, Easy Racer and Hypercycle.  In 1990, the
Recumbent Bicycle Club of America was founded by Dick Ryan who currently
manufactures the Ryan Vanguard and was also involved with the Avatar
project in the early 1980's.  In 1988 recumbent promoter Robert Bryant
got his start writing "Recumbent Ramblings," a column for "HPV News." 
In the summer of 1990, Robert founded the "Recumbent Cyclist Magazine,"
and in a short two years, RCM has become the source for recumbent bicyle
information in the world today.

 * DeLuxe2/386 1.25 #5606 + My bike's not broken.  Its just a little 'bent.
--
Canada Remote Systems  - Toronto, Ontario, Canadas
World's Largest PCBOARD System - 416-629-7000/629-7044
Newsgroups: aus.bicycle