Mixing up day rides to include pavement AND dirt is just more fun for me. This means I ride right from my house to access dirt rides, rather that using the car. Riding dirt usually means few or zero cars. I will ride when there’s high traffic volume when I have to, but I always prefer the peace, beauty, solitude and challenge of riding the road less traveled when I have a choice. Going from pavement to dirt roads is like traveling back to a time when all roads were dirt. It’s when cycling began, back to our roots. I always feel more a part of what I’m riding through on those dirty out of the way thoroughfares. Unlike riding singletrack,which focuses all of my attention on the narrow track I’m negotiating lest I punch a rock or tree, on wider less technical roads, I have the space to open my attention to include a wider focus and just be a tourist.
There are many recumbents that will work just fine for this type of cycling. You may already own a recumbent that would work adequately for dirt rambles. Rigid framed bikes can give a good turn of speed if roads don’t get too rough. David Cambon has taken his Tour Easy to Inuvik on the nightmarish Dempster Highway, John Schlitter has raced Gravel Grinders on a Bacchetta Corsa, Metabikes have done numerous randonneuring events that include gravel and dirt. But remember that there’s always a balance between comfort and performance. Generally speaking, when you bias your gear toward comfort there will usually be a cost on the performance side of the scale and visa versa.
The Azub bikes weigh in more toward the comfort side of the scale, so if your goal is comfortable touring with well designed gear carrying capabilities, then a full suspension Azub would be a good choice. Once the road surface gets really rough, the comfort of suspension can begin to add to performance. In deteriorating conditions you can fly over rocks and ruts that would have a rigid bike tiptoeing through. One thing I’ve decided is a necessity is a rear shock that has a lockout feature. Even if a suspension is designed to minimize pogo or squat, there will always be some measure of energy loss when pedaling hard on smooth roads, especially when climbing steep grades.
I’m posting this in the hope that more recumbent riders here on this side of the pond gain a tad more insight into a brand that, in my opinion, deserves to be better known and recognized. Azub is definitely the equal to any of the more familiar recumbent manufacturers and, in many regards, superior.
Also underrated are the many thousands of miles of dirt forest roads just waiting out there to be explored.”

>>>>>More Azub Bikes 

>>>>>More Azub Trikes

By Steve Green, Trike Asylum

Okay, now here’s a little story to show how much out of the loop I can sometimes be: At the 2013 Recumbent Cycle Convention at the Los Angeles Country Fairplex in California, I was a presenter at the Trike Asylum booth, showcasing how recumbent tadpole trikes can be used for overland journeys. Sharing the area with me was Janet Buckwalter, who rode her trike more than 4,000 miles across the United States during 3 consecutive summers. David Massey, who accompanied me on the 2013 Pacific Coast Tricycle Adventure…>>>Read More

Having read several journals from around-the-world recumbent cycle tourists, I was curious to see for myself how these cycles rode. This November, we headed down to Pomona and the Recumbent Cycle Con–our quest was to ride the elusive Azub. And ride we did. Azub brought over all the models produced in their factory in the Czech Republic; long story short, we were so impressed, we left with 5 of their show bikes and trikes to take home for shop demos. I spent a good part of my time at Recumbent Con parked at the Azub booth, talking to many of the dealers and consumers. I asked what their impressions were after their Azub test rides and the response was the same from every person I queried, ” Solid” and “Excellent handling.”
If you are looking for a rugged, comfortable, well-made bike or trike for long distance loaded touring, commuting, or just recreational day riding, the Azub line should be one of the first to check out. At Azub, they listen to expedition tourists who are using their recumbents on some of the most punishing roads in the world and take those recommendations into account for possible improvements. Consequently, they are leaders in design, handling and innovative, unique accessories and rack options.
Give us a call, or stop in for a test ride–you’ll see for yourself what all the hoopla is about!”

>>>>>More Azub Bikes

>>>>>More Azub Trikes

Max

Six

T-Tris

TriCON

Catrike:

700

Pocket

Road

Greenspeed:

Magnum

HP Velotechnik:

Gekko FX 20″ + 26″

Scorpion FS 26 Pedelec

ICE:

Adventure FS

Sprint RSX

Full Fat

KMX:

Kids trike

Lightning:

P-38

Performer:

JC70 trike

Family recumbent tandem bike, Pino-style

Tandem bike

RANS: 

Fusion

Rifle

in BUSINESS OF BIKES,ROAD RIDING

A new bike shop has come to town, though it’s owner has been here before. Inspired by Bend Velo’s appeal to the niche market of commuters, Mark Waters decided to open a shop to target what he hopes is a growing population of cyclists who want to ride comfortably and in the reclined position.

Backcountry Recumbent Cycles – Quick Facts

Website: www.backcountryrecumbentcycles.com

Backcountry Recumbent Cycles carries recumbent bikes (two wheels), trikes (three wheels) and velomobiles for touring and commuting. Mark Waters, store owner, has lived in Bend for just about two years now; it’s a home-coming of sorts from the time he worked as a ski lift operator for Mt. Bachelor in 1978. It was the back country snow and mountains as well as family ties which brought him back after living in Colorado, Vermont, and Florida among other places.

Part of what he loves about Bend is its cycling culture. Motorists will often defer to cyclists on the roadways, which he feels makes Bend unlike most other places he’s lived.

Mark Waters | Photo © Lucas Freeman

Given the chance, Waters will regale a visitor with the pleasures of long bicycle tours. But there was one thing he discovered the hard way; upright riding was becoming impossible for him. He has a genetic hand disorder, which was exacerbated by pressure exuded during tours on upright bikes, and required surgery to repair. His doctor recommending he either give up cycling or go fully recumbent. He’s done a tour from St. Augustine, FL to Pittsburgh, PA on a recumbent bike, and plans one from Bend to eastern Montana and back this summer.

Waters shrugs off the most common objections people have about recumbent bikes and trikes, that they’re too slow. Most trikes and recumbent bikes have a lower profile, thereby cutting down on wind resistence. As proof of their speed, he cites the fact that recumbents have been banned from UCI (International Cycling Union – the world cycling governing body) sanctioned events because they were labeled as cheating; they were too fast.

“They’re a blast downhill.”

He’s clocked over sixty miles per hour on his return trip to town from from Mt. Bachelor.

While Waters admits they’re slower on climbs, they’re superior to most upright bikes on flats and descents especially when you add a fairing to further reduce air drag.

He sees growth potential in this segment of the cycling world because recumbents, with their reclined sitting position, take pressure off a rider’s neck, shoulders, hands, and pelvic bones which seem a growing point of concern among riders of the Baby Boom generation.

Not a Batmobile

“Velomobiles are like bobsleds with wheels,” according to Waters. When seen in person, you understand why. They’re so sleek and streamlined they bring to mind experimental cars you might see on a test track in the salt flats of Utah. In reality, a velomobile is a trike with a specially outfitted fiberglass hull.

The market for more conventional recumbents is in the neighborhood of $2,600, and right now Waters says it’s being dominated by trikes. Testing riding one, the feeling of being low to the ground can take some getting used to, but their handling and quickness can reshape preconceptions about their on and off-road capabilities.

[Backcountry Recumbent Cycles is located at 550 SW Industrial Way, Suite 104,] in Bend. They bring a welcome bit of diversity to the local cycling marketplace especially given that they are one of only a small hand-full of Quest velomobile dealers in the country. Their grand opening  [was] March 31st, [2012.]

From left, Renge’ Lee Grace, with her dog Wiley, on a Greenspeed Magnum recumbent trike; her husband, Mark Waters, on a BlueVelo Quest recumbent; and James Cagney on a Lightfoot Ranger two-wheeled recumbent at Backcountry Recumbent Cycles in Bend last week.
Andy Tullis / The Bulletin

Recumbent cycling in Bend – Cyclists enjoy the ride, and the view, from recumbent bikes

By Lydia Hoffman / The Bulletin

Some resources on recumbent cycling in Central Oregon:

• Bent Heads of Bend: www.facebook.com/BHsoB

• James Cagney’s recumbent cycling group: Email jecagney@hotmail.come_SClB

•Backcountry Recumbent Cycles (in the Bend Electric Bikes building):

550 SW Industrial Way, Suite 104, Bend, OR 541-323-3460
http://backcountryrecumbentcycles.com

There is another breed of cyclist in Central Oregon — one that emphasizes enjoying the view and rejects the traditional spandex, the “wedgy” seats, and the old adage “no pain, no gain.” In fact, the recumbent cycling crew extols the virtues of the comfort they enjoy while riding.

On a recumbent bicycle, a wider seat also supports the rider’s back and shoulders, and the pedals are in front of the seat, rather than below it. The handlebars are mounted within easy reach of the seat for comfortable steering.

Some cyclists choose recumbents because of health problems or other physical limitations that keep them from cycling on a conventional bicycle; others just plain like recumbents better.

Mark Waters, 59, who plans to open Backcountry Recumbent Cycles in Bend this Saturday, turned to recumbent cycling to be able to keep riding despite a medical condition.

“On a regular bike all of the pressure is on two points: your butt and your hands,” says Waters, who has Dupuytren’s contracture, a condition that causes two of his fingers to stay bent. In the late 1990s, his doctor told him to give up cycling or lose the use of his left hand.

Waters says that, because of their versatility, recumbents work well for riders with health problems.

Recumbents come in a variety of styles, wheelbase lengths and wheel sizes, and they even offer a choice of two or three wheels, each style focusing on a particular aspect of cycling (speed, hills, balance, etc).

They can be outfitted with studded tires for winter riding or with knobby tires for mountain biking. Electric assistance is also available. And some recumbents, called velomobiles, even come with a special hard outer shell to reduce wind resistance.

Waters suggests recumbents as an alternative to regular transportation. The bicycles may cost as much as a used car — easily $2,000 to $4,500 — but they do not come with the same high insurance, gasoline and maintenance costs.

A key feature that attracted Culver’s Laura Altig to recumbent cycling was the way that the tricycles have built-in balance. Altig was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease six years ago and says her recumbent trike is a way to maintain independence.

“It makes it so I can go to the store whenever I want and don’t have to worry about somebody going with me,” she says. “I can go camping out in the boondocks.”

The cost was a factor, Altig says, but she saved for a year to buy her American Cruiser TriCruiser and hasn’t looked back since.

“It was easy to learn and easy to ride,” she claims. “It doesn’t go real fast, but it goes real steady.”

Hills do provide some challenge, says Altig. Her trike did not come with disc brakes and, at 50 pounds, it can be difficult to slow down on a descent. Recumbents have a reputation for being slow going uphill and fast going downhill.

The trike style represents about 80 percent of recumbent sales, according to Waters. They are not built for speed, but they have some advantages for cyclists who are not racers. And trikes are fun, says Waters, like a “human-powered go-cart.”

Visibility is a concern to some, he notes, because trikes sit low to the ground. “But … I feel safer on a trike than any other bike,” he insists. “Drivers tend to slow down and pass wide. I think it’s the ‘What the heck?’ factor.”

It is still smart to be on the defensive, Waters advises. “Use a flag,” he says, “and a bright flashing light.”

Johnny Gillen, 55, and his wife, Audrey, 51, made the switch to recumbent cycling in 2005. Audrey’s hand was going to sleep when she rode a standard bicycle, and it bothered her neck to be leaning forward for long rides. The Bend couple rides on a Bike Friday DoubleDay tandem recumbent; the Gillens also own a Burley Canto single recumbent.

Johnny says learning to balance on a two-wheeled recumbent was an adjustment that took a few months. The upside? “It’s extremely comfortable,” he says. “It’s like sitting in your recliner — except your legs burn going up the hill. But it’s a good burn.”

The husband and wife typically ride in and around Bend, including “some 50-milers out to Mount Bachelor and back,” and would like to ride their tandem across the country, Johnny says.

Last fall, Troy Frymier started a local recumbent cycling group called “Bent Heads of Bend.” The 46-year-old says the group may soon start meeting up once a month in different parts of Bend for group rides.

The atmosphere of a recumbent group ride is more social than on standard bicycles, Frymier says. Sitting comfortably and being able to see in all directions “fosters a greater communication with the people who are riding around you.”

Next month, James Cagney, 60 and of Bend, is also starting a local recumbent group. He and his wife, Patty, 55, got involved in recumbent cycling when looking for a tandem bicycle for touring in Europe. Patty was sold on the style when she realized she would be seeing the scenery and not just her husband’s backside, says James Cagney.

“All of a sudden she was sitting upright,” he recalls, “and the view was all around her.”

Cagney envisions his group as a means for recumbent cyclists to meet up and plan rides together.

Recumbent cyclists are already a kind of club, Cagney observes.

“You recognize each other — you’re willing to do something different,” he says. “There’s a real camaraderie when you see someone like that.”

Backcountry Recumbent Cycles is a sponsor for Cagney’s group, and Waters says he hopes the shop will be a good meeting place for the cyclists he calls “out-of-the-box thinkers.” The shop currently focuses on touring, but Waters says that he may bring in cycles for the “go-fast crowd” at some point.

Bev MacDonald and her husband, Mike Armstrong, of Black Butte Ranch, are looking forward to riding with a recumbent group.

The two are retirees — she is 74, he is 71 — and both ride an Easy Racers Gold Rush, which features a long wheel base and is designed for speed.

But speed is second to comfort for MacDonald.

“When I started riding a recumbent, I found I could … ride for longer time and distances,” she says. “People say, ‘How fast do you go?’ and I say that’s not a good question. (They) should say, ‘How far can you go?’ I have 34,000 miles on that bike.”

Riding as a group of recumbent cyclists has a completely different dynamic from riding with upright cyclists, MacDonald says.

“We’re compatible,” she explains. “We all go slower up the hill and we all go fast down. It’s really fun to ride together.”

—Reporter: 541-383-0358; lhoffman@bendbulletin.com. For other cycling questions, comments or information directed to The Bulletin, email sports@bendbulletin.com.

BRC: “With the advent of the new Adventure ICE has made some improvements with a bombproof rear rack, improved componentry, new seat, and most of all front suspension. The Adventure is the updated model of the older Trice “T” that I used on two long distance solo self supported trips. One trip was 800 miles around the state of Florida and the other was from Florida up the east coast to Pittsburg. The last 400 miles were on dirt trails (the C&O canal towpath to the GAP rail trail) and I found the T with rear suspension to be the ideal trike for loaded touring.

From my experience having owned both a Catrike road and the ICE “T”:, the comfort of having suspension makes riding day after day as one does long distance touring a much less fatiguing experience in the long run, as opposed to getting beaten up riding an un-suspended aluminum frame trike.

Riding back roads very often means rough chip and seal surfaces and if you read any tour journals of folks who have ridden coast to coast on an un-suspended trike like the Catrike, they will very often write about the harsh roads they encounter. This can really take the fun out of that day’s tour.

I recommend that you consider going with the Sturmey/Archer drum brakes for an Adventure as the drum brake requires virtually no maintenance and is immune to mud, sand, water, and icing up. All of these attributes are a plus for someone touring and possibly riding dirt roads.

The other attribute that the ICE trikes have which makes them the premier choice for the touring triker is they have the only trikes on which you can mount a handlebar bag next to the seat. I found this feature to be invaluable to me on my trike tours for my wallet, phone, sunscreen camera, and most importantly, my route map.

The folding feature is very important to the convenience of owning a trike, especially when on a long tour. Unless you start and finish your adventure from home, you must consider the logistics of transporting your trike to the beginning and back home at the end of your trip. With a non-folding trike you really limit your transport options to a pretty big vehicle.

The Adventure sits up higher than the Sprint or the Vortex and so is slightly less aerodynamic riding into a headwind, but the higher seat makes it easier to get in and out of and provides a slightly more elevated view over tall grass and guardrails at the roadside that may obstruct  the scenery. We ride trikes mainly because they are so very comfortable and full suspension extends that range of comfort even further.

We have an ICE Adventure FS in stock currently and can order any configuration ICE makes the Adventure in that you may want. I spec-ed this one out for loaded touring and riding off paved surfaces.Come in for a test ride and see what I mean. If you are considering doing loaded touring with your Adventure we can even load it up with 35 lbs in some Ortlieb panniers so you can see how well it carries a full touring load.”

>>>>>More ICE Trikes

Come in for a test ride and see just how comfortable you can be riding for an afternoon or to the other side of the country!

Recumbents offer many advantages over traditional upright bikes. Comfort and, in many cases, speed. The Race Across America (RAAM) coast to coast record is still held by a Lightning recumbent at just over 5 days! Whether you no longer are able to ride a normal upright bike, or you are just tired of finishing a ride feeling like you have been beaten with a ball peen hammer on your hands, neck, back, and nether regions, come check out the alternatives.

We are one of the only recumbent shops in the country that stocks recumbents capable of off-road riding and has staff experienced in long distance touring.

Proudly carrying:

Recumbent Trikes by Azub, Catrike, Greenspeed  ICE, HP Velotechnik.

Recumbent Bikes by Azub, Bacchetta, Easy Racer, Lightning, Metabike and  RANS.

New, used, consignment, and service.