HP Velotechnik Scorpion FS Information now in English!

We love the new Scorpion FS trike from HP Velotechnik. Unfortunately, it was hard to share information with anyone who didn't read German. Well, HP Velotechnik has finally updated their site. Check it out:

HP Velotechnik Scorpion FS

The Aero Bag is here!

I see a lot of recumbent seat bags...Fastback, RANS, Bacchetta, Radical Designs, Interia, Arkel...there are many choices out there! Over the years, though, I realized that none really catered to the performance-oriented crowd. What do I mean by this?

In my experience, when racing and doing ultra distance events, hydration bladders are only so effective. You need to use bottles to easily know how much water and/or calories you are consuming. The problem is...there are no bags out there that hold water bottles in a place that is easily accessible and aerodynamic.

When you are racing, you don't need a huge amount of space...just enough room to carry the essentials like tools, personal items, food and some clothing. With other bags on the market, your small keys and tools fall to the bottom of the bag and you need to pull everything out to get at them.

Our new bag addresses all of these issues, and more! You are out riding hard...don't need the shoulder strap. Your jacket will fit in the bag...don't even think about tucking it into some shock cord on the top - it's not very aerodynamic and could fly off if the wind picks up! The velcroed pouches are not too big, not too small. I put my wallet, keys and cell phone in one, and toolkit in the other. Perfect.

We went through several prototypes of the bottle holders to get them just stiff enough so that you can easily put the bottle back in without crumpling the holder on the first try! Once you know where the holders are (you can't see them), it's easy in, easy out.

For safety, we have a wrap around reflective strip and a tab for holding a tail light.

The bag is built with ABS stiffeners so that it won't sag. The top has one also, but personally, I take it out so I can fit a little more in the bag, if needed. It will fit all narrow hard shell seats and the Bacchetta Euromesh. It WILL NOT fit on the RANS Hoagie, HP Velotechnik BodyLink, and Optima seats.

It is available in four colors - black, yellow, red and Team Carbent Pink (limited edition)! Check it out at the Bent Up Cycles website.

Within The Cycling World, a Perfectly (bent) Marriage; Bent Up Cycles Purchases Barcroft

Van Nuys, CA – Within the world of bicycle manufacturing and bicycle retail, there are plain old everyday bicycles and then there are…recumbents.

Southern California-based Bent Up Cycles, one of the country’s largest retailers of recumbent bicycles, is pleased to announce the purchase of Barcroft Cycles, the Falls Church, VA-based manufacturer of such state-of-the-art recumbent bicycles as the Barcroft Dakota, the Barcroft Virginia, the Barcroft Oregon and the Barcroft Columbia, a tandem recumbent.

According to Dana Lieberman, founder and president of Bent Up Cycles, the purchase of Barcroft Cycles is not only a sound business decision that will fulfill the needs of his clients all over the country but, in some respects, fulfills a dream he had almost a decade ago. "One of my first recumbents was a Barcroft Dakota...I loved that bike! Sleek lines and perfect geometry made for one of the best rides available.”

Recumbent bicycles, touted for their low, sleek styling and a rider-friendly, ergonomic design that allows any rider – including those with lower back and knee pain aggravated by traditional “vertical” riding positions – have become increasingly popular over the last few years and the privately owned Bent Up Cycles has, since 2003, been servicing a rapidly growing niche market.

Lieberman, who had been buying and selling recumbents privately for years, opened his first storefront in 2003. Within two years, customer response from all over the world prompted not only the establishment of a web-based retail operation but called for a tripling in size of the retail location. In 2006, and in response to customer demand for even more specialized frames and components, Lieberman established Carbent, a manufacturer of custom carbon bikes and frames.

The purchase of Barcroft Cycles, says Lieberman, is the perfect addition to the family of high-end, high-performance recumbents, tandem recumbents and three-wheeled trikes that Bent Up Cycles offers.

Barcroft Cycles was founded in 1999 by Bill Cook, a retired journalist who turned his passion for cycling into a business that creates masterfully built recumbent bicycles. “I can’t imagine anyone better than Dana to take over Barcroft. He is a superb recumbent retailer and an innovative, experienced manufacturer of world-class bikes.”

In addition to the Barcroft brand, Bent Up Cycles also carries such fine brands as Bacchetta, Velokraft and its own Carbent HPV brand.

More information about Bent Up Cycles and Barcroft Cycles can be found online at www.bentupcycles.com and www.barcroftcycles.com, respectively.

New Catrike dash

This just in from Catrike:

Big Cat is unleashing another beautiful trike; Catrike dash. We finally have a high quality lightweight trike for little Cats. We have had a ton of request for this Catrike and finally the project is complete. The first 50 trikes will ship with the Fluorescent Red-Orange color. This is one of the most visible powder-coat colors we have ever seen. Shipping early September, and custom colors are available. You can place your pre-orders now.

Specs:

27.5” track, 33.5” wheel base, 28 lbs, 12” wide seat, Seat angle 43 degrees

Sram X-4 rear derailleur, 39t chain ring w/bash guard, 152mm crank, 11-32, 8 speed rear cassette

Fits 30-42” x-seam for riders 4’2” to 5’6” (roughly)

$1250 MSRP plus shipping

Oh Baby...can you say Carbon?

The new Bacchetta Carbon Aero 2.0 is here! Our first one sold so quickly, we didn't have time to get any pictures. But now we have one in stock and I took it for a short spin. Very nice...here are some initial thoughts:

I have never been a huge fan of the Bacchetta seat plate mounting system. I always felt like the seat was moving under me. But with the Velogenesis seat clamps and tight seat bolts, I didn't notice much movement.

This happens to be one of those times when the manufacturer's listed weight is MORE than the actual weight of the bike. Our medium frame without seat pad and pedals came in at 20 pounds on the nose - 1.5 pounds less than the manufacturer's specs. This could be due to the newer Bacchetta all-carbon fork and the new light weight brakes.

Speaking of brakes - it's pretty much a consensus that the Alhonga brakes work adequately in dry conditions only. Add water or grit, and you lose much of your stopping power. The new X-eyed brake is much lighter and much more powerful! They are designed as a long-reach brake and will work on all Bacchetta models that take caliper brakes. Note, however, that the new CA2.0 can use a standard reach brake.

The first one we built up a week ago was built with the same components as the Carbent HPV pro bikes. It weighed in at 18 pounds 14 ounces - not bad!

I am delighted to have the Carbon Aero 2.0 on the floor as I think that anyone who is going to spend $4500-$6000 on a performance recumbent should have as many choices as possible. Come on in and check it out!

New Offerings from Bacchetta!

We've just received the newest offerings from Bacchetta. I will take the next few posts to highlight these beautiful bikes!

The Giro 26 ATT is an aluminum-framed version of their classic Giro 26. Featuring higher end components including a SRAM X-9 drivetrain and Avid BB7 disk brakes, this bike has a smooth, comfortable ride and weighs two pounds less than it's steel predecessor.

Bacchetta has really discovered a good formula for their bike lines. Most models are now available in two specs - a steel frame with basic components and an aluminum frame with higher end components. This system makes it very easy for the customer to differentiate between the various models and levels.

So, how does it ride? Like a Bacchetta, of course! It is stable with predictable low speed handling. The disk brakes will take some time to fully seat, so I couldn't test the braking capabilities, but I have always been impressed with the BB7, and expect it will work well on this bike.

Three years ago, I touted that the best thing I saw at Interbike was the Euromesh seat. I still feel the same way - it is comfortable and breaths well, without being too heavy. Our medium-framed bike, sans pedals and seat pad, weighed in at 28 pounds, 14 ounces. Definitely not the 26.5 pounds claimed on the Bacchetta website, but definitely lighter than the steel bike.

For a complete list of specs and pricing, give us a call or check out our website