[OHPV-list] wedgie vs. bent...

[Chris Leck]

Dang, get rid of that slow, overweight comfort cycle! (Not.) Anyhow, 
there are a number of possible contributors to your situation.

My perception is that, in general, bodies work better on 'bents with 
shorter cranks than DFs. This is far from a universal truth, and some 
bent pilots like longer cranks for hill climbing. Anyhow, the shorter 
cranks might explain "consistently spinning faster with less effort" to 
some degree. What I don't understand is why so many 'bents come with 
175s. Do they buy them on close-out? I asked a related question about 
this on the OHPV list a few months ago.

It could be the bike. If I understand correctly, life got better for 
former P-38 evangelists Jeff and Diane Wills when they converted to Tour 
Easys.

If you're pushing a 40-lb. bent (and are not Joe Kochanowski who might 
prefer to kick butt with a 90-lb. bent), you are dragging a lot of 
weight around. I have a 40+ lb. BikeE FX with a very plush ride -- very 
comfy. So far it has not made me a better person, just very slow. I saw 
a guy on heavy 'bent last year on the MS 150 bike tour. He was hurting. 
This year he was riding a DF and much happier.

--Chris


> I loaned out my panniers to a friend for a tour and subsequently have been 
> riding my old road wedgie to work lately (as I can't seem to sling the 
> messenger bag on my recumbent).
>
> The scary thing - I have determined that me on my wedgie get to/from work 
> FASTER than me on my recumbent (even after having not ridden the road bike 
> for years).  I find that I'm consistently pushing taller gears on the wedgie 
> (old Peugot road bike) than what I can use on my 'bent (home-built SWB with 
> near-P38 geometry) with similar effort.  I also feel like I'm consistently 
> spinning faster with less effort.
>
> The differences, wedgie vs. recumbent:
>
> Shorter cranks (170 vs 175)
> Skinnier tires
> Less weight (~15lbs less than the bent)
> Less aerodynamic (~40% more frontal area)
> A lot less comfortable
>
> Can all this possibly add up to the ~5 minute difference I'm seeing on a 
> lousy 5 mile ride?