Addictive Rides

By Bryan J. Ball
Managing Editor, ’Bentrider Online

Some bikes are just addicting. I’m sure that all of you hardcore ’BentHeads know exactly what I mean. They may not be the fastest, the prettiest, the lightest, the best handling or even the most comfortable but nonetheless they’re the ones that keep you up at night. They’re the bikes that call to you when you walk into the garage. The bikes that you stare at and the ones whose virtues you preach when you talk to your recumbent riding friends. Even though I get to taste every flavor of recumbent drug there is, I admit that I still have my vices.

I urge you to not read TOO much into this short list. These are the bikes that get MY motor going but they may not do anything for you. Don’t read it as an “All Time Best” list or anything like that. Some of them aren’t even really my favorites. Actually a few of them were damn difficult to live with and didn’t stay in my collection for long at all. Nevertheless, they’re bikes that really got to me in one way or another. I’ve included links to reviews but I realize some of them are a bit old. In those cases I went back to our first review of the bike.

The Longbikes Slipstream is the latest iteration of the classic American recumbent. It can trace its lineage back to the Ryan Vanguard and it’s only gotten better with time. It’s extremely well made and becomes more impressive every time you look at it. It also has rock-solid handling and a very comfortable riding position. If I were planning a trip across the USA it would be tough to choose anything else.