Louisville's Relaxed Recumbent Riders' Group
Dedicated to the idea that cycling can be comfortable!
|
Dedicated to the idea that cycling can be comfortable! |
          |
Tom's Page
I am Tom, and I edit this site. I've been on recumbents for almost ten years now, and I see no reason to go back to any bike that requires me to wear padded shorts!
This is the bike that started it all for me, my Linear. It was a demo bike from Rockfish Gap Outfitters, in Waynesboro Virginia. It was the first recumbent I ever saw and rode. In August of 2000, I sold it to John Robinson, a photographer whose work is found in many places on this site.
Two months after I bought the bike, I took it on a tour in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I was poorly prepared for that trip, and it was a learning experience for me. Nonetheless, I have some fond memories from that ride. The weather as I took this shot, for example.
Here's my favorite toy of all time, my Ryan
Vanguard. I've never been on a more stable bicycle. It goes where I
point it, every time. Even at speeds exceeding 40 miles an hour. In
the background are Tim's bentmobile and
Harry and I went to Virginia for the Fall Foliage Festival, put on by the good folks at Bike Virginia on Halloween weekend of 1999. We took Harry and Sherry's Duplex tandem, using their trailer for transporting. After the ride, we went to visit my grandparents for a night. My grandmother took this picture the next day, as we were getting ready to leave.
At one time, I had pictures of my BikeE AT here. I was initially thinking of replacing that bike with a BikeE RX, but after selling it, decided instead to buy a RANS V-Rex, which I put on the road May first of 2001. I sold the V-Rex in October of 2002, to make room and provide funds for the Strada I now ride. Here is what wound up being one of the last pictures taken of this bike while I owned it...
along with some shots of the wheels I built about a year before I sold it. I still have these wheels, as the buyer didn't want to spend the money for them. They won't fit the Strada, sad to say.
As
noted, I've
sold the RANS to finance the purchase of what has been called a "V-Rex
on steroids," also known as the Bacchetta
Strada. Since I'm a bike guy, I chose to have a custom bike this
time. I purchased a bare-metal frame set, and
had it custom painted. I built the bike with Campagnolo parts, instead of
the mix of Shimano, SRAM, Avid, and DT parts found on my V-Rex, in part
to be different, but also as a nod to the Italian-sounding "Bacchetta"
and "Strada" names. And, most importantly, because I could.
Here
are some pictures for your enjoyment.
And I look like I'm really "cooking" in this shot:
The bike is everything I expected it to be. Of course, I knew what to expect, having ridden what is now Mike's Strada in the spring. The thing really moves--even more so than did the 'Rex.
|
