So which is better?

[MailSeanBell]

Sofrider or Freerider?

Looking at the steering it would seem that the sofrider would be more responsive... but what is it like to ride them in different situations?

I'm thinking communter bike with the odd 100km bike-a-thon.

I'm also living in Canada where we get some pretty good winter for 4 months of the year.

Which would be better in these conditions?

sean

 

[Kamatu]

While not being able to suggest which one is better, you can get a Sofrider with the Freerider handlebar kit and try it both ways. Then you can tell us which way is better for you.

More focused for you I think would be which has the easier/better way of mounting cargo capacity for your commuting/touring needs, yes?

 

[MailSeanBell]

So how does the handleing feel different? I don't anticipate having much trouble with the learning curve of a recumbent, but the free rider with the stearing point way out front looks like it might torque or feel strange. On the other hand, I think that it looks cooler.

Any thoughts on this?

 

[JonB]

SeanBell wrote: So how does the handleing feel different? I don't anticipate having much trouble with the learning curve of a recumbent, but the free rider with the stearing point way out front looks like it might torque or feel strange. On the other hand, I think that it looks cooler.

Any thoughts on this?

I have a Freerider, because it looks better and i want a different gearing option than what the sofrider gives me. And what the freerider has.

I would expect the sofrider handling to be more precise, especially at high speeds. Not that the freerider is sloppy and imprecise, i would just expect something that twists right at the front tube are more precise than something you turn through long handlebars.

 

[Rick Harker]

Hi Sean,

I have the Sofrider and although I have not ridden the Freerider I believe its easier because of the wider handlebars and the fact your legs go under the bars when peddling so seat positioning could offer wider adjustments.
Speaking of which there is much adjustments with both anyway.
If you live in a hilly environment then you can always add extra gearing with either model very easily.
Riding does require some practice but you need to re-learn to ride and not just think you're going to jump on and ride into the sunset. But, as many will attest here, once you have it...

Regards,

Rick.

 

[pagetuner]

I agree with Sean Bell that the Freerider has the better looks, but note that the "steering point" is about the same either way. My Freerider-inspired conversion ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/farsightful/2485381322/ ) has the physical mounting point of the bars way up and out, but the handgrips and the steering fulcrum are about where they would be on a Sofrider, so there is no tiller effect or other wierdness.

pagetuner

 

[MailSeanBell]

I guess that is the root of the question... stearing wierdness. So it's good to hear that there isn't any with either model.

I have also been reading about pulling on the bars to climb up hills. Can the free rider take this pulling? It seems that the short straight stem might be stronger, but on the other hand, I've pulled the stearing column off my dad's first attempt at a recumbent trike.

When people talk about sitting up and pulling, are they meaning quite hard? Why not lean back and let the legs do the work?

 

[Kamatu]

SeanBell wrote: I guess that is the root of the question... stearing wierdness. So it's good to hear that there isn't any with either model.

I have also been reading about pulling on the bars to climb up hills. Can the free rider take this pulling? It seems that the short straight stem might be stronger, but on the other hand, I've pulled the stearing column off my dad's first attempt at a recumbent trike.

When people talk about sitting up and pulling, are they meaning quite hard? Why not lean back and let the legs do the work?

There should be differences, but it is in the reflexes. Of course, if you did what I did and overcompensate for weight with the shock you can introduce a real high level of twitch to the front end.

I don't know about others, but I pull hard when I'm sitting up. The first time I tried it I found out that I needed to tighten up some of the bolts and screws on the bike.

For me, it is the same as standing up on a regular bike, something you do for sprinting or climbing, you can get more leverage.

 

[MrSteve]

SeanBell wrote:
When people talk about sitting up and pulling, are they meaning quite hard? Why not lean back and let the legs do the work?

I think people, who talk about sitting up forward and off of the back rest, do this to make more power for sprints and uphill work.
I also think that they have many more miles of experience, on conventional diamond frame bicycles, than I do.

I make more power when I lean hard into the back rest and let my legs and back do most of the work...and also pull hard on the bars.
The only time I lean forward off of the back rest is when I need to transfer more weight onto the front wheel
for greater traction.

-Steve

 

[John Tolhurst]

yakmurph wrote:

SeanBell wrote:
When people talk about sitting up and pulling, are they meaning quite hard? Why not lean back and let the legs do the work?

I think people, who talk about sitting up forward and off of the back rest, do this to make more power for sprints and uphill work.
I also think that they have many more miles of experience, on conventional diamond frame bicycles, than I do.

I make more power when I lean hard into the back rest and let my legs and back do most of the work...and also pull hard on the bars.
The only time I lean forward off of the back rest is when I need to transfer more weight onto the front wheel
for greater traction.

-Steve

The cadence, duration of power you want, road slope, seat back angle, model of bike, cranklength, fitness etc all affect which technique you might opt for. We are getting into quite advanced technique here, possibly beyond what many riders would be concerned about. Many riders outside this forum of course.

Sometime I rotate between techniques, to get a full range of muscles into anerobic territory. Then after cresting, or topping out, work the lungs hard to try to recover. All good clean fun.

 

[MontanaSage]

Quote: I guess that is the root of the question... steering weirdness....

I have a FreeRider, and found that those big, heavy bars, hanging way out in front, do make for weird steering. I was having a hard time getting the hang of it. So I took off the ape hangers, moved the stoker stem up to the head of the top tube (made a shim out of a nylon PVC pipe coupler -- fit perfectly) installed aluminum Nitto comfort touring bars and voila! Instant SoftRider steering -- more or less.

http://popvox0.tripod.com/shim.jpg
http://popvox0.tripod.com/mod1CB.jpg

It was not a perfect fit, but I found that the SoftRider style steering was much easier to manage, and I learned to ride my CruzBike pretty quickly after that. Interestingly, several of my buddies had tried it with the FreeRider ape hangers, and they all complained. The verdict was unanimous: the SoftRider steering is better. Just an opinion, of course. Switching back, once I got used to riding a CruzBike, I find that the FreeRider bars are more manageable than before, but I still much prefer the SoftRider style, so I'm sticking with it.

My "shim" solution worked but wasn't ideal. Unfortunately, CruzBike does NOT sell the "Head Stem Extension Tube" separately, so a conversion from FreeRider to SoftRider is a hassle. But I found a very nifty stem from RANS
http://www.shoprans.com/proddetail.asp?prod=BPHB0033-32-31
that will do nicely; I'll post a photo when it's installed.

-r-

 

[baov]

I've put freerider handlebars

I've put freerider handlebars on my conversion and what i loved about it was the clear view of the road (I also routed my cables to the side rather than down the center). The sofrider bars look like it sits quite a bit higher and i'm wondering if that wouldn't limit the possibility blocking the view if i lean the bike seat a bit further back.