How to Ride a Recumbent Bicycle
Find a clear, level space, free of obstacles and traffic., Put the bike in a low or medium gear., Mount the bike and sit with both feet in the ground and your hands on the handlebars., Adjust the seat to your height., Make sure the kickstand is up...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Find a clear
Choose a surface that is paved, rather than loose material such as dirt or gravel, which can slip.
Try an empty parking lot or wide, quiet side street.
Beginners will probably find it difficult to start on an uphill slope.
Get comfortable riding before starting uphill. -
Step 2: level space
If you have hub gears, you can change the gear while coasting or standing still (just release pressure from the pedals before moving the shifter).
With derailleur gears, you may have to dismount and change gears while turning the pedals.
It will help to have an assistant for this process, since you will either need to wheel the bike along or lift the drive wheel up. , On under-seat-steering recumbents, place your legs to the front of the seat and to the left and right respectively of the main boom. , Designs vary, but some recumbent seats slide forward and back along a bar (while others need boom length adjustment).
As with regular bicycles, at the farthest point of the pedal's travel, your knee should still have a slight 15 degree bend in it.
Do NOT lock your knee.
You may also wish to adjust the tilt of the seat and the location of the handlebars at this stage, but those adjustments may have more to do with your long-term comfort than just getting started.
Your feet should be able to reach the ground and the pedals comfortably. , It's usually behind you on a recumbent, so it's easy to forget. , Pull the pedal backwards with your toe until it is approximately straight up.
When riding a recumbent, you will push back against the seat, rather than using your weight to push the pedals. , Many recumbent beginners will look at the bike instead of the road, making them involuntarily lose their sense of orientation. , What you used to achieve by displacing your center of gravity by moving around on the saddle is no longer possible.
You will still steer partly by leaning, but you may need to compensate by moving the steering with your hands. ,, Make a few laps up and down the street and get the feel for the balance.
Like other bikes, going very slowly is a good way to wobble more and have a harder time balancing, so try to get up to at least a good medium pace.
The balance will be a little different from the bikes you have ridden, but the fundamentals are the same.
Change into a higher gear if you'd like.
Again, change hub gears while coasting, but change derailleur gears while pedaling.
Your recumbent may have both. , Apply both brakes at once and get your feet ready to touch the ground and come to a stop.
Get ready to start up again.
Remember that you will need to unclip if you are using toe clips or clipless pedals.
Allow plenty of time if you need to unclip, or get a feel for the bike without clipping in.
Gear down as you slow down, so that you will be ready for your next start.
Keep the brakes applied the entire time if you're not moving.
Advanced braking techniques:
With front suspension, best control results from braking with the front brake first, then the rear.
This permits front suspension to be compressed and prevents the rear wheel from locking-up, fish-tailing and losing control.
Low racers may be so low that it may be possible to stop while keeping one's feet clipped into the pedals, by putting one hand on the ground and resting upon it.
Wear gloves and make sure you stop fully before putting your hand down, if you choose to try this.
Use your momentum to help yourself sit up if you have a fairly upright seat.
Moments before coming to a halt, remove your feet from the pedals keeping your knees bent and raised (shoes unclipped if you use clips).
As you stop, your momentum automatically lifts you upright in the seat and you can place your feet on the ground as you stop. , As on an upright bike, lean into the turn, keeping pressure on the outside pedal to heel the bike into as vertical an angle as possible.
Feather your brakes going into the turn, stop pedaling, and have the outside pedal down.
As you become more proficient on your new bike, you'll be able to turn at fairly high speed.
Brake before a turn, not after you begin, so that you are traveling the right speed before you change direction.
If you brake during a turn, you are likely to skid and lose control, resulting in a fall.
Be very careful turning on loose gravel, oil, mud, ice, snow, black ice (looks like a wet road but the tires make no spray), debris, trash, wet leaves, and wet or dusty ironwork.
A recumbent will slip just like a regular bicycle and grab lips and edges that are close to parallel with the wheels, but it's harder to put a foot down in a hurry.
With some recumbents, the rider's feet can interfere with the front fork-crown or under-seat steering mechanism (if present).
If this is possible, it is essential to stop pedaling around corners.
With other types, such as long-wheel-base bikes, this typically cannot happen, so it is safe to pedal around corners. , Recumbent wheels, especially small ones, will tend to grab lips and edges if you approach them close to parallel.
Walk or lift the bike over tall curbs or steps, or if you're not sure.
Don't try to hop up a curb on a recumbent. , As recumbents become lower and faster, the ability to see the ground in front of the front wheel is substantially reduced.
It becomes harder to spot debris and adverse surface conditions like pot-holes.
Hitting such a depression or performing evasive maneuvers could unseat you. , Don't expect to go faster than an ordinary bike immediately.
Recumbents use different muscle groups and it takes time to develop 'recumbent legs'.
Once strengthened, your stamina and speeds will improve.
Initially, it is likely that a novice rider will be slower on a recumbent than on an upright bike.
As a very rough guide, assume that this will take a minimum of several hundred to a thousand miles. -
Step 3: free of obstacles and traffic.
-
Step 4: Put the bike in a low or medium gear.
-
Step 5: Mount the bike and sit with both feet in the ground and your hands on the handlebars.
-
Step 6: Adjust the seat to your height.
-
Step 7: Make sure the kickstand is up
-
Step 8: if there is one.
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Step 9: Apply both brakes and put one foot (your leading foot) on the pedal.
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Step 10: Fix your target
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Step 11: in other words: look in the direction that you wish to go.
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Step 12: Steer partly with your hands.
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Step 13: Push the pedal
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Step 14: release the brakes
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Step 15: lift your other foot off the ground
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Step 16: and you're off.
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Step 17: Practice riding without wobbling.
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Step 18: Practice slowing and stopping.
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Step 19: Practice turning.
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Step 20: Approach train tracks
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Step 21: gratings
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Step 22: and the raised edges of driveways and gutters as close as you can to perpendicular.
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Step 23: Be very aware of road conditions.
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Step 24: Be patient.
Detailed Guide
Choose a surface that is paved, rather than loose material such as dirt or gravel, which can slip.
Try an empty parking lot or wide, quiet side street.
Beginners will probably find it difficult to start on an uphill slope.
Get comfortable riding before starting uphill.
If you have hub gears, you can change the gear while coasting or standing still (just release pressure from the pedals before moving the shifter).
With derailleur gears, you may have to dismount and change gears while turning the pedals.
It will help to have an assistant for this process, since you will either need to wheel the bike along or lift the drive wheel up. , On under-seat-steering recumbents, place your legs to the front of the seat and to the left and right respectively of the main boom. , Designs vary, but some recumbent seats slide forward and back along a bar (while others need boom length adjustment).
As with regular bicycles, at the farthest point of the pedal's travel, your knee should still have a slight 15 degree bend in it.
Do NOT lock your knee.
You may also wish to adjust the tilt of the seat and the location of the handlebars at this stage, but those adjustments may have more to do with your long-term comfort than just getting started.
Your feet should be able to reach the ground and the pedals comfortably. , It's usually behind you on a recumbent, so it's easy to forget. , Pull the pedal backwards with your toe until it is approximately straight up.
When riding a recumbent, you will push back against the seat, rather than using your weight to push the pedals. , Many recumbent beginners will look at the bike instead of the road, making them involuntarily lose their sense of orientation. , What you used to achieve by displacing your center of gravity by moving around on the saddle is no longer possible.
You will still steer partly by leaning, but you may need to compensate by moving the steering with your hands. ,, Make a few laps up and down the street and get the feel for the balance.
Like other bikes, going very slowly is a good way to wobble more and have a harder time balancing, so try to get up to at least a good medium pace.
The balance will be a little different from the bikes you have ridden, but the fundamentals are the same.
Change into a higher gear if you'd like.
Again, change hub gears while coasting, but change derailleur gears while pedaling.
Your recumbent may have both. , Apply both brakes at once and get your feet ready to touch the ground and come to a stop.
Get ready to start up again.
Remember that you will need to unclip if you are using toe clips or clipless pedals.
Allow plenty of time if you need to unclip, or get a feel for the bike without clipping in.
Gear down as you slow down, so that you will be ready for your next start.
Keep the brakes applied the entire time if you're not moving.
Advanced braking techniques:
With front suspension, best control results from braking with the front brake first, then the rear.
This permits front suspension to be compressed and prevents the rear wheel from locking-up, fish-tailing and losing control.
Low racers may be so low that it may be possible to stop while keeping one's feet clipped into the pedals, by putting one hand on the ground and resting upon it.
Wear gloves and make sure you stop fully before putting your hand down, if you choose to try this.
Use your momentum to help yourself sit up if you have a fairly upright seat.
Moments before coming to a halt, remove your feet from the pedals keeping your knees bent and raised (shoes unclipped if you use clips).
As you stop, your momentum automatically lifts you upright in the seat and you can place your feet on the ground as you stop. , As on an upright bike, lean into the turn, keeping pressure on the outside pedal to heel the bike into as vertical an angle as possible.
Feather your brakes going into the turn, stop pedaling, and have the outside pedal down.
As you become more proficient on your new bike, you'll be able to turn at fairly high speed.
Brake before a turn, not after you begin, so that you are traveling the right speed before you change direction.
If you brake during a turn, you are likely to skid and lose control, resulting in a fall.
Be very careful turning on loose gravel, oil, mud, ice, snow, black ice (looks like a wet road but the tires make no spray), debris, trash, wet leaves, and wet or dusty ironwork.
A recumbent will slip just like a regular bicycle and grab lips and edges that are close to parallel with the wheels, but it's harder to put a foot down in a hurry.
With some recumbents, the rider's feet can interfere with the front fork-crown or under-seat steering mechanism (if present).
If this is possible, it is essential to stop pedaling around corners.
With other types, such as long-wheel-base bikes, this typically cannot happen, so it is safe to pedal around corners. , Recumbent wheels, especially small ones, will tend to grab lips and edges if you approach them close to parallel.
Walk or lift the bike over tall curbs or steps, or if you're not sure.
Don't try to hop up a curb on a recumbent. , As recumbents become lower and faster, the ability to see the ground in front of the front wheel is substantially reduced.
It becomes harder to spot debris and adverse surface conditions like pot-holes.
Hitting such a depression or performing evasive maneuvers could unseat you. , Don't expect to go faster than an ordinary bike immediately.
Recumbents use different muscle groups and it takes time to develop 'recumbent legs'.
Once strengthened, your stamina and speeds will improve.
Initially, it is likely that a novice rider will be slower on a recumbent than on an upright bike.
As a very rough guide, assume that this will take a minimum of several hundred to a thousand miles.
About the Author
Douglas Roberts
Enthusiastic about teaching organization techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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