Recumbent bikes definitely are more efficient due to aerodynamics if nothing else. I suspect being able to push back against the seat helps too, though.
This is true - the ergonomics as well as the aerodynamics are a step up. I would like to note though a disadvantage in ergonomics when it comes to hills, which nicely illustrates another feature - often unacknowledged - of conventional frames.
I live on a hill and commute on a conventional/non-recumbent bike. There used to be a bearded white middle-aged guy living half way up our hill with a recumbent and I noticed the recumbent seemed way /less/ efficient on our hill climb. A secondary design feature for conventional bike geometry is how well it works on a hill when you stand up. There’s something about how you can use your weight, pulling on the handle bars at the same time as rocking the bike frame side to side, to maximise downforce on the pedals, that just works incredibly well for propelling yourself and the bike up a hill. None of that is available on the recumbent designs I’ve seen, and because the hill slows everything down, they get less aerodynamic advantage too. So while they’re great on the flat, I think a key limiting factor for recumbents may be that they’re not so good in hilly places.
Ran into a fellow touring once with a recumbent and a trailer for his dog! All told, a 250lbs rig, few would be able to celebrate as much getting to the top of santiam pass in oregon (approx 4000 ft climb)!
I've seen a few of them in the city. The seem great, but I wonder how well they steer. They're low to the ground and seem less visible (I've seen them with flags). On a bike your center of gravity isn't much higher than walking, and you can put your feet out quickly and essentially be in a standing position .
They steer well enough for bike trails. Longer (e.g. tandem) ones may have some challenges with tighter turns (need to do a 90° adjustment at a light).
Flags are common for recumbent for visibility.
The lower center of gravity and the "it's real hard to fall off" can make it useful for people that have difficulty with balance. The back seat of a tandem is suitable for someone with needs for additional assistance ( https://www.terratrike.com/product-category/accessories/assi... ) - my mother would go tandem with one of her friends who was legally blind and needed to use a walker.
I bike A LOT -- >1,000 a month on a 29" full suspension e-bike (Orbea Rise)
But I have been biking daily for morethan a decade, and was a daily bike commuter in the bay area for ~15 years....
I see many recumbent bike a day when on the trail. At least >5 a day.
My house backs up to the American River trail, I literally leave my house and get directly onto the trail in less than 2 mintues.
Recumbents are all over the ART in the Sacramento Area.
One thing I have noticed though, and this is just a statistical observation on my part biking that trail regularly for ~2 years...
The average Recumbentist is a White Male, Typically with a beard >50 years old, 30% are overweigth, 30% are average build, 30% look semi/more-fit, 10% are female.
They look fun though. I'd love a long distance camping -e-bike version of one with a trailer and a detachable, light, curved windscreen that can be put on the top of the trailer when one wants.
> The average Recumbentist is a White Male, Typically with a beard >50 years old, 30% are overweigth, 30% are average build, 30% look semi/more-fit, 10% are female.
Recumbents also used to be far more expensive than standard bicycles (although now there's a lot of expensive standard bicycles) so an older demographic isn't surprising.
Recumbents are also lower in height and a lot easier on people's joints so are particularly good for people who have medical issues or mobility impairments. So, again, your demographics aren't surprising.
> They look fun though. I'd love a long distance camping -e-bike version of one with a trailer and a detachable, light, curved windscreen that can be put on the top of the trailer when one wants.
> The average Recumbentist is a White Male, Typically with a beard >50 years old, 30% are overweigth, 30% are average build, 30% look semi/more-fit, 10% are female.
I'm white, male, beardless, and 40 and am almost always the youngest when showing up at a recumbent meetup.
A lot of the current crop of recumbent riders (in the US at least) got into it in the late 90s and early 2000s. As the boomer cohort aged out of riding two wheeled recumbents there was a significant drop in demand for recumbent bicycles and a corresponding increase in recumbent tricycle demand. The companies making fast/racing recumbents stopped due to lack of demand (basically just Performer and Bacchetta are left) so there aren't a lot of us left in the fast recumbent bicycle crowd and almost everybody is running a 10+ year old bicycle. I have a 2009 Optima Baron, for example. More casual recumbent bicycles like LWBs or crank forwards are still around and seem to be more popular in the midwest than on the coasts. I live in NYC and recumbents are particularly rare here due to the downsides of recumbents in the city, mostly sight lines in traffic. I've seen 6 in the wild in the last 8 years and I usually see 4 or 5 recumbent trikes on mass rides like the 5 Boro but all the trikes have been from out of town.
