Key facts
- Classification
- Vehicle
- Application
- Transportation
- Fuel source
- Human-power , Motor-power
- Wheels
- 2-4
- Tracks
- 1-3
- Aerofoils
- NACA
- Components
- Frame , Wheels , Tires , Saddle , Handlebar , Pedals , Drivetrain
- Invented
- 19th century
- Variations
- Mountain bike, Lowracer, Highracer, Semi-recumbent, Folding, Tandem, Recumbent tricycle, Handcycle, Hand-and-foot recumbent tricycle, Recumbent quadracycle, Stationary
- Wheelbase
- Long, Short, Compact long wheelbase, Convertible
- Steering
- Under-seat, Over-seat, Center steering
- Drive
- Rear wheel drive, Front wheel drive
- Suspension
- Coil, Elastomer, Air-sprung
- Seat
- Mesh, Foam
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
Show 6 more facts
- Commons category
- Recumbent bicycles
- Commons gallery
- Recumbent bicycles
- inception
- 1893-00-00
- has characteristic
- aerodynamics
- different from
- safety bicycle
- described by source
- Fliegende Blätter
via Wikidata · CC0
~27 min read
Encyclopedic overview
A RANS V2 Formula long-wheelbase recumbent bike fitted with a front fairing Shop for recumbents in Nijmegen, Netherlands A recumbent bicycle is a bicycle that places the rider in a laid-back reclining position, and often called a human-powered vehicle or HPV, especially if it has an aerodynamic fairing. Recumbents are available in a wide range of configurations, including: long to short wheelbase; large, small, or a mix of wheel sizes; overseat, underseat, or no-hands steering; and rear wheel or front wheel drive. A variant with three wheels is a recumbent tricycle, with four wheels a quadracycle.
Speed recumbents are generally faster than upright bicycles, but they were banned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 1934. Recumbent races and records are now overseen by the World Human Powered Vehicle Association (WHPVA), International Human Powered Vehicle Association (IHPVA) and World Recumbent Racing Association (WRRA).
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “recumbent bicycle” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.