It's here!

[Hotdog]

My Sofrider V2 has just been delivered

Unfortunately I'm not going to be able to ride it much for a while I'm still badly scraped up from my crash on the weekend, and on Sunday morning I'm going away for a week for a conference. Then I'm only going to be back 3 days before going away for work again for another week and a bit. So I still need to be patient... :?

 

[Hotdog]

And yes, I do know that my bike isn't real until I post photos I'll see what I can do tomorrow.

 

[Mark B]

Hotdog wrote: And yes, I do know that my bike isn't real until I post photos I'll see what I can do tomorrow.

Yes... Bike porn, please! :lol:

Mark

 

[Hotdog]

After lengthy delays caused by bicycle accident injuries (not pleasant) and work travel (slightly more pleasant, a conference on Dunk Island and a trip to Siding Spring Observatory) I've finally been able to find the time to put my Sofrider V2 together Still need to tweak the derailleur adjustments slightly, and as yet I really don't have much idea how best to adjust the seat, but I think that'll be best done in the morning when I take it for my first ride

And yes, I will finally take some photos...

 

[Hotdog]

OK, here are the long promised photos

Click on the photo for a link to a few more.

So, I took my first ride this morning. First question is, how do I get more knee clearance? Recumbent handlebars normally run in front of the knees ("open cockpit" or "tweener" bars) or behind the knees ("praying mantis"/"begging hamster" bars), but at least the way I've got it set up at the moment the bars are almost directly over my knees and not high enough to give enough clearance. I tried moving the seat backwards and that seemed to help a little bit, but I still need to be really careful to avoid hitting my knees.

Anyway, first impressions are overall pretty good. I got to a point where I was comfortably pedaling along in straight lines with only a little bit of wobble, and managing moderate radius bends without problems. For tighter bends I still want to drop at least the inside foot and sometimes both for a bit of reassurance and simplified steering, and I'm still a bit awkward starting off at times but that's pretty much what I'd expect with a new type of bike and it'll doubtless sort itself out pretty quickly. Straight off I'm able to ride up some steep climbs, I've already found myself limited by front wheel slip (I can't see any way I'll be able to ride the Cruzbike up the driveway, which might develop into a bit of an annoyance). I can see myself having a lot of fun with this bike.

I'm afraid I must admit to being a little disappointed in the level attention to detail in the assembly/packaging. The bike arrived without any Cruzbike documentation, not even basic assembly instructions (just a very old generic booklet on how to set up a rigid frame steel mountain bike with thumb shifters...). It had been part assembled at the factory with the seat mounting bracket bolted on the bike backwards and with the brakes set up on the wrong levers (i.e. front brake attached to left hand lever). It had also been damaged in transit (better packaging is clearly needed), the shifter housing and left side of the frame are scratched and the stick-on rear brake cable clamp torn off. All purely cosmetic or easily dealt with issues, but still, I expected slightly better.

 

[Mark B]

Mmmm, bike porn.

I don't own a Sofrider, but I would suggest moving your seat forward and extending your TFT. Moving your seat forward will redistribute your weight over the front wheel more and alleviate some of the wheel slip issues. So basically, but doing these two things, you're keeping your body positioning, except possibly lowering your bottom bracket ever so slightly.

Mark

 

[Doug Burton]

Mark B wrote: Mmmm, bike porn.

I don't own a Sofrider, but I would suggest moving your seat forward and extending your TFT. Moving your seat forward will redistribute your weight over the front wheel more and alleviate some of the wheel slip issues. So basically, but doing these two things, you're keeping your body positioning, except possibly lowering your bottom bracket ever so slightly.

Mark

Mark is correct about the seat position. This bike works best for several reasons when the seat is as close to the steerer as comfortable, which lowers the bottom bracket and brings your knees ahead of the steering axis. Several things come together in this position to shorten the practice time. This will also allow you to recline the seat a scosch more and unload your tailbone on long rides.

Very nice looking bike - Let us know if you have any more questions...

Have fun,

Doug

 

[Hotdog]

Thanks for the pointers guys, I'll try moving the seat forward to see if it helps with the knee clearance issue. As someone who's about 6 foot tall, normally proportioned and accustomed to a high bottom bracket I'd made the (reasonable, I thought) assumption that I'd want the seat somewhere towards the back of its range of positions. That's why I started out with the mounting bracket in the middle position and when that didn't work out I moved it back.

As for riding the Cruzbike up the driveway, well, we'll see. I can't give you a percentage grade but it is insanely steep, it's tricky to walk up it and when I ride up on my Bacchetta I have to be careful to avoid lifting the front wheel into the air. Maybe I'll take a photo or two to illustrate. Put it this way, if I can work out how to cycle up the driveway then I'll have no problem riding up any hill you might find on an actual road. I think it says something for the Sofrider that at the end of only my first ride I felt comfortable enough to even attempt it

 

[John Tolhurst]

Perhaps the model T method and go up backwards? :idea:

 

[Hotdog]

I think what's really required for riding up this driveway is an All-Wheel Drive bicyle (yes, they do exist...). How about a limited edition Sofrider AWD Extreme Hill Climber, John? ;-)

 

[Hotdog]

(click for bigger)

OK, in line with the advice received from the experts here on the forum I tried moving the seat position forwards. I found that with the seat mounting bracking bracket in its forward positions the seat base was obstructed by the frame in all but its most rearward positions on the mounting bracket, so what I did was put the bracket in the middle of its five possible positions and then bolt the seat base down in the furthest forward position I could without the frame getting in the way (if I recall correctly this was the 3rd furthest forward of the 4 seat base positions). This put me noticeably further forward that I had been, I had to extend the TFT considerably to maintain the same leg extension, and thankfully this puts my knees ahead of the handlebars so that I'm no longer acquiring bruises each time I ride. I also swapped the brake cables over so they were on the correct levers, twisted the handlebars so they were more vertical, and twisted the brake levers round so they were in front of the handlebars in a comfortable position. All in all the ergonomics of the bike are now enormously improved.

Having done this I decided to try the short commute to work from my girlfriend's place (a mere 6km or so on mostly low traffic roads, but largely uphill). I was pleased to discover the Radical Designs Solo Aero seat back bag that I use to carry my stuff on my Bacchetta also fits tolerably well on the Cruzbike seat (it's not perfect as the saddle rails/seat post get in the way a bit, but not drastically so, see the photo), so I was able to stuff a change of clothes in there and set off. I'm still a bit wobbly at times, but improving rapidly as I gain experience. I only had one minor wheel slip incident, and I think my traction issues are largely due to having the tyres pumped up way too hard (about 90psi) considering their volume and the sort of riding I'm doing so far. I've been using Shimano PD-M324 dual use pedals (SPD one side, platform the other) from the beginning and I think being clipped in has been a big help in getting the pedaling induced steering inputs under control, I'm certainly not finding the Cruzbike as hard to adapt to as I'd expected given others' experiences.

 

[Peder Torgersen]

I think you have done very well to learn so fast. I have had my Sofrider for a year and have enjoyed riding it on a daily basis. I also clipped in early I hope you have fun riding it.
Well done
Peder

 

[Kamatu]

I think the only issue with "hard to adapt" comes with the mindset of "I know how to ride, I can just jump on and go". I posted about some of my "issues", mainly the heavy front end, since it wasn't something I had gleaned from reading and so was a bit of a surprise for me. I did the "what can I do about it" (a.k.a. adapt, improvise and overcome) process and although I'm still having some trouble (remember I cannot get all the ride time I like or need), I did find a great use for the heavy front end a couple of times yesterday. I can pedal, lean and snap through curves real fast. I can also lose it and end up having to hit the brakes, straighten out and put a foot down, but that is what learning is for.

 

[Mark B]

That's a fine looking machine and congratulations on getting up and running in such short order!

Mark