Advice requested for touring bike purchase.

"Gene Titus" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

It's hot here in Central Texas 7 months out of the year.
I like the idea of a windshield but I may be to hot to
ride behind it. Any experience from the Southern riders
out there?

I'm only a bit north of you and ride year round with the
front fairing on my Tour Easy. It does seem to keep my lower
body warmer in the colder months, but somehow, I don't
notice it making the hotter days seem worse... Heading into
a hot headwind is better with the fairing than without.

Actually, the time I feel the hottest is when I'm matching
the wind speed running downwind. The apparent wind speed
is then zero and the sun can really bake you! Speed up or
slow down.

Wicking fabrics help. We ride early or late in the day when
the temperature gets past 100F. We seek shaded routes. Drink
lots of water...

Quoted message said:

I plan on getting a different handle bar/ riser set up.
Does that mean I'll have to get my dealer to change out
cables because of length issues?

Cables, perhaps. Also perhaps fairing mounts...

Jon Meinecke

I have a Stratus and felt the need to switch the small
chainring to a 26 for a touring low gear.

This requires no modification other than a new chainring and
has improved things nicely.

The shifting is still smooth and I have had no problems.

Guy College Park MD

Gene Titus <[email hidden]> wrote in
:"]news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Will gearing on the stock Stratus give me a low enough
gear to cruise uphill at 4MPH yet give me peddle room in
the high gears when going 35+? I quickly run out of peddle
on the EZ 1 after 30 MPH. That's spinning 115 RPM in my
highest gear. I want to go faster on the downhill (is this
were a trailer is a bad idea?). If I need to upgrade the
gearing I want

Not to sound glib, but it really depends on how strong you
are and how steep your hills are. You might consider
spending some concentration on spinning until you can cruise
at 95-110 RPM, and don't get spun out until something more
like 150 (WAG). On a tour, the only real reason to pedal on
a downhill is to keep the muscles limber, IMO.

Quoted message said:

I plan on getting a different handle bar/ riser set up.
Does that mean I'll have to get my dealer to change out
cables because of length issues?

The rear derailleur cable will need to be swapped out. The
Stratus XL takes a 3 meter cable (think triplet tandem) and
leaves you about 2 inches left over. The dealer part (for
me) came about because of the difficulty threading the cable
through the grip shifters. I don't feel good about that. I
did this conversion recently and was able to re-use the
brake cables, but I cut my own cable housings. The front
derailleur cable might have been just long enough, I don't
remember. Plan on replacing at least those two.

H

In article <[email hidden]>,=20
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

...ready to purchase bike number 2, a touring bike.=20 Multi-
day tours here I come. My local dealer carries Rans but
not the=

=20

Quoted message said:

tour easy line. I understand they're both fine bikes and
I'm happy with=

=20

Quoted message said:

my dealer so I'll go with a Rans Stratus XL. My
questions are:
=20
What's the difference between storing gear on the bike via
front=20 panniers, a rear rack, underseat panniers, or
some combination of those=

=20

Quoted message said:

and storing gear on and pulling a trailer? Is pulling a
trailer a lot=20 harder on the rider? How does pulling a
trailer effect the handling of=20 the bike?

The differences in storage locations is stability. On a
touring DF with=20 front panniers, you place the heaviest
stuff on the front rack low on=20 the front wheel. Things
are stored on the rear rack because that is the=20 easiest
place to put a rack on a DF but not ideal for stability.=20
Ideally on a recumbent, you want your load as low as
possible without=20 dragging the ground and between the
axles. This is why an underseat=20 rack is so desirable on a
recumbent. It would be desirable on a DF too=20 but as long
as that is where the DF cranks are "it ain't gonna=20
happen." =20 Some like trailers. I don't. With that kind of
load behind the rear=20 axle, you can have stability issues
on high speed descents. They can=20 also wreck a rear wheel
if it is not built well.=20

Your LWB RANS Stratus will drive like an 18 wheeler, IMO
adding a=20 trailer will only make it handle worse. =20

Quoted message said:

Will gearing on the stock Stratus give me a low enough
gear to cruise=20 uphill at 4MPH yet give me peddle room
in the high gears when going 35+?=

=20

Quoted message said:

I quickly run out of peddle on the EZ 1 after 30 MPH.
That's spinning=20 115 RPM in my highest gear. I want to
go faster on the downhill (is this=

=20

Quoted message said:

were a trailer is a bad idea?). If I need to upgrade the
gearing I want=

=20

Quoted message said:

to include that in original (loan) purchase. How all the
gearing stuff=

=20

Quoted message said:

plays out is one of the many topics on my learning curve.

If you are not carrying a load the stock gearing is fine.
I never=20 carried more than about 50 lbs only on the rear
of my Stratus and I=20 managed to get by with the 30T
granny. I eventually abandoned touring=20 on the Stratus
and went to a SWB because all LWBs climb like an 18-
wheeler in the truck lane when loaded. If I had to live in
Austin and=20 could only own a LWB, I would swap out the
30T granny for a 26T. =20

Quoted message said:

=20
It's hot here in Central Texas 7 months out of the year. I
like the idea=

=20

Quoted message said:

of a windshield but I may be to hot to ride behind it. Any
experience=20 from the Southern riders out there? On my
Goldwing I had Wind Wings that=

=20

Quoted message said:

hung outside the faring and were adjustable to allow you
to direct a=20 little bit of air at the rider when it was
hot. Anyone seen a product=20 like that for bicycle
fairings?

I had a fairing on my RANS Stratus. I commuted daily with
it. It is=20 better with the fairing than without. There is
turbulence generated by=20 the cranks inside the fairing and
there is always a nice breeze in your=20 face over the top
of the fairing. The hottest commute I did was in=20
September with the radio announcing 118=B0. The thermometer
on my bike=20 computer was registering close to 130=B0 in
the middle of 6-lanes of=20 traffic in Houston. =20

Quoted message said:

I plan on getting a different handle bar/ riser set up.
Does that mean=20 I'll have to get my dealer to change out
cables because of length issues?

Probably. =20

Quoted message said:

Feel free to throw any other tidbits of touring experience
my way. I'm a=

=20

Quoted message said:

beginner on a mission.

I've toured with my RANS Stratus in the Appalachians in Va
(Think 'Hill=20 Country' on Steroids). Also in Slovakia with
a ride one day into the=20 Carpathians. The LWBs are not
easy to transport. I have flown with=20 mine several times
and this was the main reason I got a SWB. Getting to=20 and
from an airport is a challenge.=20

I would strongly encourage you to look toward a SWB for some
serious=20 touring. They will out climb any LWB loaded.

You might be interested in the Touring mailing list
[email hidden] Browse and search the archives:
search.bikelist.orgsearch.bikelist.orgOpen ↗ subscribe or list settings:
phred.orgtouringOpen ↗

If you have other questions about touring, I'm happy to
answer.=20

Remember the Hotter'n Hell is just a few months away.=20

--=20 Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager
clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

"Gene Titus" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Will gearing on the stock Stratus give me a low enough
gear to cruise uphill at 4MPH yet give me peddle room in
the high gears when going 35+? I quickly run out of peddle
on the EZ 1 after 30 MPH. That's spinning 115 RPM in my
highest gear. I want to go faster on the downhill (is this
were a trailer is a bad idea?). If I need to upgrade the
gearing I want to include that in original (loan)
purchase. How all the gearing stuff plays out is one of
the many topics on my learning curve.

Gene.

On my previous V-Rex I ran a 24-38-52. This can be run but
you must make sure the chain is the correct length. I kept
taking out a link until I got it right. Many people on this
group and BROL find a 38 tooth middle ring ideal for 90% of
the riding. With the 42 middle ring it always seemed I was
shifting into the small ring for rollers whereas with the 38
I can usually make it to the top. The 24 will give you a
nice low gear for loaded touring and the 52 gives you that
"I'm Insane" gear for spinning at 45+mph downhill. Swap the
rings out when buying the bike.

To add to the confusion, many people are running 150-165mm
cranks so they can spin faster. Three of our bikes have
155mm cranks and we would not go back. A week ago I
purchased a used, mint 97 V-Rex with 175mm Campy cranks.
They drive me crazy. I will be switching these out for
shorter cranks.

My wife Terry and I will be biking in Austria and the Czech
Republic for 6 weeks this summer. We will be riding S & S
coupled Tour Easys with 26" rear wheels and carrying our
gear with ERRC Looong Underseat Panniers and Arkel RT-70
panniers on the rear rack. Our bikes will have 20-33-45
chainrings on so we can burro up hills. We're excited!

Too many choices! Too little time!

Perry B

Gene Titus

Quoted message said:

Will gearing on the stock Stratus give me a low enough
gear to cruise uphill at 4MPH ....

Gene,

Welcome! I would advise getting the lowest gear you can --
for me that's a 24 tooth in the front and a 34 in the back.
When pulling a touring load you'll feel like you're blowing
out your knees anyhow, so don't make it worse by not gearing
down to the max.

Ed

ps. You may find that as a tourist the 35+ mph pedalling may
not seem so important; I quickly gave up my higher gears
in favor of bunching my gearing beginning with that low
gear described above. No big gaps between shifts.

Cletus D. Lee <[email hidden]> wrote in
:"]news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Your LWB RANS Stratus will drive like an 18 wheeler, IMO
adding a trailer will only make it handle worse.

OTOH, I've pulled 60-80 lbs of kids + 15 lbs of trailer
behind a Stratus up to about 18-20mph (down a slight grade)
with no ill effects. Suspect the Burley Nomad might be more
stable than Bob, but never pulled a Bob. (although I have
friends named Bob that occasionally do odd things, and
sometimes I do "pull a Bob" but that's not the same ...)

I don't know the Rans line but why not look at the
Velocity? Seems it's more directly comparable to the Tour
Easy. Setting up a touring recumbent is a matter of taste,
budget, purpose, and endless refinement. Plenty of room for
personal quirks and oddball modifications no one else would
want to run.

I know of no better resource to learn about recumbents
on the long haul than to buy a dozen back issues of
ERRC magazine.

geocities.comindex2.htmlOpen ↗

david boise ID

Gene Titus <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hi Gene, I can help you with my experiences with my
Stratus XL.

Quoted message said:

My questions are:

What's the difference between storing gear on the bike
via front panniers, a rear rack, underseat panniers, or
some combination of those and storing gear on and pulling
a trailer? Is pulling a trailer a lot harder on the
rider? How does pulling a trailer effect the handling of
the bike?

My first year, I stored my gear on a rear rack: 2 paniers
fully loaded, a tent, sleeping bag and autoinflatable
mattress. This combo changed the handling to a condition I'd
compare to a car understeering. It took me 30 minutes in a
parking lot to get used to the change

The next year, I got a Burley Nomad to be able to bring a
few extras with me (I like my creature comforts, the
previous setup was a bit too barebones camping for my
taste). The handling wasn't much different that riding with
the rear fully loaded, the effort in the flats was the same
as last year, but going up big hills was harder. I had
trained hard(30 miles a day at 20 mph with many short
sprints to simulate going up hills) for a month before my 3
week camping trips, and I needed it. Going down hills wasn't
that much of a problem, the aerodynamics of the trailer
would prevent me from going much faster that 35 mph.

My average speed on my trips is 12 mph in the flat areas,
and in hilly areas, I'd drop approx 2 more mph. Last year, I
was able to ride between 60 miles/day in hilly areas to 90
miles/day in flat areas. Last year, I rode 1300 miles in 22
days on my trip.

Another thing that needs to be addressed is the low speed
handling of the Stratus. When I'd be going up a big hill in
1st gear, I'd have to move the steering tiller a lot to
stay straight

Quoted message said:

Will gearing on the stock Stratus give me a low enough
gear to cruise uphill at 4MPH yet give me peddle room in
the high gears when going 35+? I quickly run out of peddle
on the EZ 1 after 30 MPH. That's spinning 115 RPM in my
highest gear. I want to go faster on the downhill (is this
were a trailer is a bad idea?). If I need to upgrade the
gearing I want to include that in original (loan)
purchase. How all the gearing stuff plays out is one of
the many topics on my learning curve.

At 4MPH, you might have problems with keeping it in a
straight line, my slowest speed was 5mph, and it was a
handfull at that speed. Downhill, unloaded, my Stratus is
a pleasure at speeds of up to 50 mph, very steady.
Loaded, either with paniers and tent or with the trailer,
I felt that 35mph was pretty much the max speed I wanted
to ride at, the front end feels a little light at that
speed. At that speed, I still wasn't spun out in top
gear, approx. 100 RPM.

Quoted message said:

It's hot here in Central Texas 7 months out of the year. I
like the idea of a windshield but I may be to hot to ride
behind it. Any experience from the Southern riders out
there? On my Goldwing I had Wind Wings that hung outside
the faring and were adjustable to allow you to direct a
little bit of air at the rider when it was hot. Anyone
seen a product like that for bicycle fairings?

I can't address the heat issue, as in Canada, it rarely gets
above 90F. and with my fairing I don't get overheated.

Quoted message said:

Hope this has helped,

Denis Rivest Stratus rider in Montréal

Cletus D. Lee said:

... I eventually abandoned touring on the Stratus and went
to a SWB because all LWBs climb like an 18-wheeler in the
truck lane when loaded....

The legal weight limit for a single-trailer semi in the US
is 80,000 lbs. With one of the larger engines available, 400
horsepower at the drive wheels is a reasonable value.
Therefore, the weight to power ratio is about 200 lb/hp.

A 160-lb cyclist on a 20-lb bicycle would have to put out
0.9 hp (~670
W) to have an equal weight to power ratio. Any cyclist who
can put out that type of power for 5 to 10 minutes on a
climb would be comparable to the UCI elite.

Therefore, climbing "like an 18-wheeler in the truck lane
when loaded" would be a very impressive feat on any bicycle,
much less one with a touring load.

--
Tom Sherman - Quad Cities

David Bogie said:

I don't know the Rans line but why not look at the
Velocity? Seems it's more directly comparable to the Tour
Easy....

????

The seating/bottom bracket (BB) positions on the RANS
Stratus and Easy Racers Tour Easy are very similar. The BB
on the RANS Velocity Squared is much higher in relation to
the seat, and the seatback is usually more reclined than the
Stratus and Tour Easy.

--
Tom Sherman – Quad Cities