A Recumbent Cyclist
"My first year"
By Ashby W. Spratley III
The Haro I bought is an excelent bicycle. I still ride it from time to
time off road. However as I learned more about bicycles and bicycling I
found out that the componets on bicycles came in different flavors. I heard
that if I changed to this derailer, or that shifter, this chain that I
could save a gram here or a half a gram there. Why a 400 plus rider would
be interested in saving grams is hard to understand but I did upgrade most
of the componets on the Haro. I did not notice any difference in the weight
of the bike or how it climbed. I did notice that that new derailer shifted
much smoother and easier than the original equipment. The same was true
of the other upgrades I performed and if for that reason alone if you ride
a lot and like your bicycle to ride and operate smoothly I would recomend
that you upgrade the componets of your bicycle.
Well by the time I decided to buy a recumbent I had a box full of used
but completly functional mountain bike componets. I decided to purchase
a recumbent that I could uses the used componets on. Of the recumbents
that would use mountain bike componets and would sell frame set I like Rayn's
Vangard the best. It would fit a rider from five foot to six foot four
inches. The Vangard frame set comes with the seat and seat cover, seat
mounting hardware, handle bar and handle bar mounting hardware, fork with
head set installed, stearer rod and hardware, a 20" rim and the frame.
You must supply all other componets and assmeble the bicycle. I recieved
the frame on thursday and it took me about five days to get it together
(I was still missing a bottom bracket and I built the front wheel myself).
So the big day arrived. I had worked for five days on this bicycle and
had a lot of money tied up in it even through I had recycled some parts.
The fact of the matter was that this was the third recumbent I had seen,
the second I had touched, and I had never riden one. What does one do if
after all this time I can't ride the thing. It felt very strange setting
on it in the house the night before. What to do? I try it on the side
walk to the front door to my house. Its twenty feet long and only four
feet wide so if I fall there is grass on both side. This was not a good
idea. Twenty feet is not very much with a seven foot bicycle. After about
five starts I was riding. Then no more side walk. What to do now? Can
I stop this thing? Well I did not stop I learned that I could ride on grass.
Then of course I was in the street now and could almost steer the thing.
It took me about twenty minutes to learn to ride the recumbent the first
time (but I'm a little slow I seen people get on my bent and ride it with
ease the first time) and about fifty miles I had mastered the balance and
could hop on and ride like most people can a diamond frame bicycle.
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