I am re-posting this spot for new readers to see. The question keeps coming up, "Can you bee seen on the road while riding a recumbent?"
The responses to the article were the best, so if you can, please comment with your opinions to help share the experience of what it is like on the road riding a recumbent.
Here is what I wrote:
The worry for new shoppers of recumbent bicycles is if while riding on roads, "Can you be seen?"
The question with today's drivers is , Are they watching the road?
Cell phones and now texting has drivers looking less at the roads for anything else then a car. The chance of getting hit and hurt while driving your car by another car has divers more aware of automobiles then pedestrians and cyclists alike.
Bicycles for the most part slow traffic down. Cars when aware take their time passing and in most cases pass at a safe distance. Once in a while I have been passed too close for comfort. I'm never sure if the driver ever saw me or they were passing at a distance that they felt safe at.
Oddity's on the road have drivers watching. Not sure of what there looking at, has drivers at times not wanting to pas. You see them in your rear view mirror causing other drivers to stack up in back of them. Somewhat awkward, I wave them on letting them know that I can see them fine and it is safe to pass. Always afterwards, I see their eyes in their rear view mirror. I love to wave and then have them wave back.
Its hard to notice how much you are acutely seen and if drivers are letting you pass by being polite. Its not until I find myself back on an upright style bike that I get cut off, sometimes as much as 3 times a ride, and realize that while on a recumbent, drivers not sure of what their seeing, will wait and not come out in front of you.
With a rear view mirror and the "Heads Up" style of riding, on a recumbent, you see everything!
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I ride a Tour Easy and it get noticed. My eye level is the same as in a most cars so the drivers and I see eye to eye. Since it is so different from the diamond frames drivers slow down just so they see what that weird looking thing is that I am riding. Also having a mirror on the handle bars and on the helmet makes watching behind you easy. I feel safer and more visible on my recumbent.
ReplyDeleteI feel highly visible on my SWB, and even more so with my extremely bright (clearly visible in daylight) lights front and back. Much more so than on my old hybrid. Most drivers pass at a safe distance, with the occasional close brush, but it's not uncommon to get a thumbs up or a "cool bike" from the passenger side!
ReplyDeleteRecumbent Bikes are really good for health. If you want to exercise properly then you should have a recumbent bikes. You can read more in about best recumbent bikes here. Cheers..
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