C y c l i s t Recumbent - Steve Briggs

2005 Season Preview: Cover story continued . . .
County Choppers, Biker Buildups, Monster Garage and others. The
wild popularity of the Schwinn Stingray line of bikes (including a few
more models for 2005) has also contributed to this movement. The one
thing these choppers have in common — and that separates them from
the recumbent world — is that they ARE NOT comfortable. The bottom
line is that choppers are for posers. The recumbent folks I know
react to choppers with big yawns. We’ve been riding chopper-style
LWB recumbents for more than two decades. The difference is that
ours are fast, comfortable and easy to ride. Perhaps these posers object
to the recumbent “lawn chair” look. I know only one point at which the
chopper thing crosses paths with an actual comfortable bicycle: the
Electra Townie, which is a wonderful riding, smooth and stylish bike.
Bacchetta’s 2005 Giro26 © John Riley
The Bacchetta Strada highracer © John Riley
Bacchetta’s prototype tandem © John Riley
A RANS Fusion commuter/tourer
6 Recumbent Cyclist News
Recumbents 2005
For a recumbent manufacturer, bringing your staff and products to
Interbike is a huge and expensive deal. The ones who come are the
leaders in our industry.
The theme for 2005 for most of the recumbent builders at the show
was product refinement and carefully segmenting product lines into
one of several use and design-style categories: recreational, commuting,
touring, off-road, performance and racing. This will definitely make
it easier for customers (and media) to figure out which bike is best for
them, for their riding style and for their home terrain. There are still a
few confusing lines, but for the most part recumbents are getting easier
for customers to buy and for dealers to sell.
Bacchetta
There is no doubt that the most two-wheel recumbent action at the
show was at the Bacchetta booth. Besides an opportunity to hang out
with recumbent gurus and industry celebrities John Schlitter, Mark
Colliton and Rich Pinto, there was much new at the booth of the Killer
Bee team.
To start with, Bacchetta has segmented the line by riding style to
make it easier for customers to choose a bike. The Giro and the Giro 26
are commuter/tourers; the Strada and Corsa are sport/road models; and
the Aero and Basso are the racing models.
Giro ($1,550): This is the mainstay of the Bacchetta line — a next
generation SWB OSS recumbent. The Giro is the understated bike of
the line while most of the buzz goes to its highracer relatives. The fact
of the matter is that most regular cyclists will find what they need in
the Giro. For 2005 the Giro has a 26/20 wheel combination, black stem,
riser, bars and seat stays, a new black aluminum fork (with disc tabs
front and rear). There is also a second Giro model that has dual big 26”
wheels. This is the highracer for the rest of us. I’m riding one right
now and love it!
Strada ($1,850/$1,900): This popular model has received many refinements
for 2005. First of all, it is now available with the ReCurve
mesh seat or the optional Euro shell (+$50). A Truvativ Rouleur crank
and Giga pipe X bottom bracket are also new. Wide range 11-32 gearing
is now standard (YES!). The bike comes with an X.9 drivetrain and
Formula Xero Lite 650c wheels. The frame has aero-style chainstays,
a carbon fiber fork (aluminum steerer), black riser, stem, seat stays and
bars and a new Bacchetta stem. Starting this spring we’ll also see an
updated seat clamp (2 quick releases) and tape-wrapped handlebars.
“This is the bike in our line that we’re most excited about,” says
Bacchetta’s Mike Wilkerson. The updates were made to more directly
compete with highracer competition from Volae and RANS in this
price range.
Corsa ($N.A.): The Corsa as we know it is gone. A new aluminum
version made for Bacchetta by Kinesis is being tested and is expected
to come to market. The new aluminum frame will cut the weight of the
old steel Corsa (26 pounds) by 2.4-2.6 pounds.
Aero/Basso ($3,900/$3,850): The flagship of the Bacchetta line gets