Recumbent eBikes: A niche too far?

Sanny takes a journey over to the Dark Side and attempts to leave his preconceptions at the door as he dives headfirst into the world of recumbent eBikes. Was it a match made in Heaven or a descent into niche Hell?

“What in the name of Grabthar’s hammer is that?” I opined to myself as I tried to work out how exactly the twisted unwieldy mass of metal, cabling and electrics that stood before me, akin to some Geiger-esque nightmare, would transform from ugly duckling into graceful swan. I could definitely see a pivot, what looked like handlebars and there was the requisite number of wheels (three) but I was buggered if I could work out how this was going transmogrify into something that could carry me offroad in teutonic comfort. What I was looking at in growing befuddlement was HP Velotechnik’s three wheeled electric recumbent, the Scorpion, configured into what one might call “transport” mode. Ignoring my gut instinct to run away screaming, a bit of careful maneuvering and adjustment soon had me flying along my street at what felt like an indecently fast and gloriously effortless pace.

This, dear reader, was my first experience of the ultra niche-beyond-niche that is the world of off road recumbent e bikes. Despite a fairly inauspicious start, I quickly found myself being drawn into this world of the unusual with the unbridled enthusiasm of a true convert. My mind was racing with the possibilities unfolding before me. Recumbents are, rightly or wrongly, widely regarded as the preserve of the beardy weirdy but with my eyes and mind opened, I was alive to the fun that could be had taking this weird contraption on familiar off road trails. Everything about it should have said “Stay on the road, lads! Don’t go on the moor!” but when was mountain biking ever about being sensible and staid? Sod that, I had a new toy to play on and a plan was hatching.

A taste of the unusual, sir?

If a problem shared is a problem halved, is a pleasure shared one doubled, I wonder? I would need a willing victim / ride companion to join me for my first foray off road and turned to my erstwhile Passepartout, Dave the Bastard aka Dave the very nice man as I have to call him in more genteel company. With the distinct possibility of two wheel drifts at the forefront of both our minds, we opted to take the Scorpion onto the off road trails of the John Muir Way just north of the city. Wide enough and smooth enough with plenty of flow so that the enlarged track of the three wheel design could make easy (and hopefully rapid!) progress, we must have looked like a couple of buffoons as we whizzed, slid and giggled our way around the ice covered car park.

“This is brilliant!” shouted Dave, an enormous grin on his face, as he managed to make the rear wheel drift out. The combination of electrical assistance and a low centre of gravity meant that we felt like we were drifting legends as every corner was taken with relish. Of course, pushing the envelope in the way that only two middle aged men who should know better manner led to the inevitable tipping incident. As it transpires, it is a lot easier to flip a recumbent over than you might expect, especially when you are going full bore into an icy corner of off camber tarmac and turn hard on the bars. Who knew eh? Apparently everyone! Undaunted, we pressed on. The trail was calling. 

E for Easy!

Much like a regular eBike, an e recumbent is a darn sight easier to propel than its analogue  equivalent. The laid back seating position takes a little getting used to, muscles complaining initially as they are forced into an unfamiliar pattern of movement, but it is definitely still biking as we know it. Familiar trails take on an entirely new hue though. Years of experience and honed skill count for nought. Where you would normally weight the front wheel in corners, there is an element of literally sitting back and letting the recumbent do most of the work. Setting up the Go Pro for some fast ride by / drive by action quickly followed by some power induced fishtailing, it was all going swimmingly – right until the power cut off.

“I.T. Helpdesk. How may I be of assistance?”

“Have you tried switching it off and back on again?”, Dave asked with the assured authority of someone who has never worked in I.T. when it comes to technical problems. “Of course I have” I lied, as I promptly turned to page 1 of “E bikes for Dummies”. “No joy!” I shouted back. Our combined technical knowledge exhausted, we disconsolately made our way back to the car, pushing our awkwardly shaped and now broken machine in a hunched over manner that made us look like a couple of Quasimodo cosplayers! It was looking like it was early bath time but as is sometimes the way with technology, with not so much as a sorry, it started working again. Huzzah! Like an Alexander-Arnold corner, we were back in the game. Cue more messing about as we bounced, slid and drifted our way back down the trails. Perhaps it was the sheer ridiculousness of the concept but we were having an absolute riot. It had proven to be an unexpected joy but not wanting to push our luck too much, we headed back to the car lest the motor cut out again.

Take 2 – The same but more so!

Well and truly bitten by the bug, before I had even finished the ride, I was already planning my next little adventure. A proper ride was called for and I had the perfect route in mind. Dumgoyne Loop isn’t the most technical of trails north of Glasgow but it offers easy to follow trails, a long fast descent and a couple of steep climbs to keep the legs and lungs on their toes (if you will pardon the mixing of metaphors!).

Joining me for part deux were my good friend Gary and purveyor of all things curious, Ben Cooper of Kinetics.  To add a bit of spice to the mix, Ben brought along his Hase Kettwiesel eTrike. Just as regular bike designs vary greatly, so do recumbents. The Kettwiesel (or Catweazle as we ended up calling it, being fans of ropey seventies kids tv) features two wheels at the back and a single wheel waaaaaaaay out front. More upright than the Scorpion, it affects a more relaxed look than the latter. Think of them as tourer versus racer.

Dropping in!

Heading out past the site of a World War 2 gun battery, we spied a steep embankment to ride down. Forget body english and leaning back off a dropped saddle, it was more a case of hang on and hope for the best as the front end suddenly dropped out of view. Despite the long wheelbases, both eBikes coped with the steep drops with ease and made for some properly big grins as we all took turns messing about. We could have easily spent much longer there than we did but the ride was calling and messing about on slopes doesn’t exactly constitute a proper test!

Whizzing down open trails, we encountered our first real life challenge – a narrow gap in a stone wall that forms the entrance to a beautiful section of mature native woodland. On a normal bike, you just pop it into the back wheel and roll it through but of course, we weren’t on normal bikes. I watched on impressed as Ben and Gary skilfully manhandled both machines through the gap. For two of them, it looked easy although for a solo rider, it would be a tough workout. 

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Back on our machines, we dropped through the narrow rock strewn and rooty trails with surprising ease. Despite their looks, both machines displayed surprising amounts of agility that simply required a different mindset. Instead of aiming for gaps between rocks, we found ourselves steering up onto high bankings and going over obstacles instead of round them. Unable to bunny hop or manual, we were having to deploy off road driving skills.

Trails I have ridden hundreds of times were taking on a fresh (and dare I say hugely enjoyable) new perspective. Rounding a corner, we came across what could have been the stairs to our Dalek – upright wooden granny stopper boards on the trail. Ostensibly designed to impede the progress of anyone on wheels, prams and pushchairs included, I watched with no small amount of being impressed as both Ben and Gary made short work of them. Slow down, control the power, up and bump down, repeat. Call it Recumbents one, Path Builders nil!

Biking but not quite as we know it.

With wider, open trails ahead, we were able to quite literally sit back and simply enjoy the experience. The addition of eBike technology to recumbents is to my mind a logical progression. It takes an interesting concept and opens it up to a much wider audience. When we flirted with switching off the power, it quickly became apparent how much of a difference having the motor made. Sprinting on the machines in analogue mode is really rather unpleasant but throw in a bit of assistance and you find yourself cruising along the trail with ease.

Adding to the sense of difference is the ride position – being seated as opposed to hunched over bars, it is much easier to simply relax and take in the passing scene. One could almost think of it as the biking equivalent of mindfulness. Indeed, so wrapped up in our surroundings did we become that we all failed to pay attention to the large puddles looming into view. Suffice to say that as we steamrollered our way through the standing water, we all received a reminder of just how close we were to the ground. Ben “enjoyed” a face full while Gary was treated to the joys of freezing water running down the back of his neck. It was definitely a case of your classic newbie schoolboy error and we were all just that little bit wiser after the event.

Reaching the top of what had been a very gradual but enjoyable climb, we were amply rewarded with a classic view of the Southern Highlands, Standing as sentinel gatekeeper, Ben Lomond is the most southerly of the Munros and marks the start of the big Scottish Mountains. The Arrochar Alps and the distant peaks north of Stirling all compete for your attention but Lomond always draws the eye. The crisp winter light threw the scene into sharp relief, encouraging us all to take a moment and to simply enjoy the panorama that unfolded in front of us. Right place, right time, I thought as I smiled to myself.

By way of a Brucey Bonus, the viewpoint marks the start of a fast descent down the West Highland Way that ultimately leads to Dumgoyne Distillery, arguably one of the prettiest in the land. Dropping in, we whooped, hollered and giggled as we made our way down the trail. It was fun with a capital F, the only downside being that we wished it lasted just that little bit longer. No matter though, we were having a ridiculous amount of fun on what to most eyes would be considered ridiculous looking bikes. To them, I blow an enormous raspberry!

“Bollox!” he said pithily

Passing the distillery, we faced a steep brute of a climb up onto a trail that follows the line of the aqueduct that feeds the water supply into Glasgow. A feat of Victorian engineering, it affords views along the length of the Blane Valley and is a bit of a favourite among the locals. Knowing we had the power of the motors at our disposal, the only thing on our minds was to see how fast we could get up the climb. As Ben raced ahead, Gary came to an unedifying and sudden stop. “I’ve lost all power!” he exclaimed. Quickly becoming apparent that an e recumbent without power and steep hills make for a “challenging” proposition, all three of us hummed and hawed over how to try and fix it. Switch off, switch on and repeat. Nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada. Things weren’t looking particularly promising as we set about removing the battery and checking all the cable connections. “It could be an early bath for you, Gary!” I thought out loud, rather unhelpfully.

Of course, following Sod’s First Law of Disappointment, we were at pretty much the furthest point from home and it would be (as Matt Damon so eloquently and succinctly put it in “The Martian”) a real dick punch to push a recumbent all the way back to where we started the ride. And then as suddenly as it stopped, it started working again. Hurrah! We were back in business.

Cresting along the old Victorian Pipe Track that traces the route of the water supply from Loch Katrine into Glasgow, it felt good to be able to just enjoy the experience and take in the passing scene. As if by magic, some traffic cones appeared in the middle of the trail which allowed us to enjoy some slalom fun.

This was quickly followed by a steep and muddy embankment that was just begging to be climbed. Gary gave a darn good account of himself with his single powered wheel finally losing traction just before the top while Ben enjoyed the advantages of two wheel drive managing just that little bit further.

However, more fun was to come in the form of a mini pump track in the village of Strathblane. It took us no more than a millisecond to look at each other and nodded silent agreement that we would have to give it a go.

Any notion of three wheels conferring any kind of stability were quickly dispelled. Elegance and Grace? Not a bloody chance. There is a very fine line that separates mastered control and comical ineptitude. While in our heads we may all have thought of ourselves as three wheeled drift wizards, we were more like pinballs as we slipped and slid our way round the track before inevitably finding ourselves in an undignified heap with the facial expression of the utterly befuddled. “What the hell just happened there?” laughed Gary as he extricated himself from the clutches of his Scorpion.

Not one to let common sense and experience get in the way of bad judgement, he soon moved on to stair climbing (a success!) and rail riding (less of a success!) before finishing with some tail drifts on an icy downslope.

Thankfully, the rest of the ride passed entirely incident free after that as we made our way back to base, a mid ride stop for hot chocolate being the icing on the cake of what had proven to be a grand day out.

E Recumbents. Are they the future?

Reflecting on the experience of riding recumbent eBikes, it is fair to say that any initial scepticism was quickly kicked into touch. They are, truth be told, an absolute riot to ride. The riding position and skills required are light years away from a regular bike but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. On road, they positively fly along, the aerodynamic advantage of the low slung design apparent for all to see while off road, they proved considerably more capable than you would have any right to expect.

Sure, they aren’t going to feature in any hike a bike missions nor are they at their best in narrow single track but for the majority of trails, they offer a unique and enjoyable new take on the familiar. The issues we had with the Scorpion were ultimately traced back to water getting into one of the cable connectors and were easily cured with some self amalgamating tape. As anyone who rides e bikes knows, they aren’t without their issues and in this instance, it was an easy fix. 

But now the million dollar question – would I buy one?

Well that would require a long conversation / negotiation with the long haired finance director that would make Brexit talks look like a piece of piss. They are most assuredly not for everyone and they are, without doubt, of a level of niche that some folk will find just a little bit too challenging. If you ride one, people will point and stare and will definitely want to talk to you. The Sinclair C5 looks may be a step too far too. But for all the negatives, if you can look beyond your notion of what a bike is, you will find something that is fun with a capital F and at the end of the day, isn’t that what mountain biking is really all about? You could do an awful lot worse than to give one a go. Who knows, you might just love it!