Should You Get A Bike Without A Seat?

I laughed when I first saw this contraption at the bike shop on the trail in Winter Garden, but after taking up the manager's offer to go for a test spin, I was shaking my head in wonder. It was nothing like biking, more like exercising. Basically, you were working hard almost all the time. As I walked away from the shop, shaking my head, it began to occur to me that it could be something awesome for that morning workout, where an hour is all you had, and that wasn't near enough time to even get warmed up on my bicycle. I wondered if an hour every day could make the difference that running used to do for me before I messed up my knees. Walking was not cutting it, I wasn't close enough to anywhere I could ride my bike hard without getting whacked by the rush hour traffic, and I can't stand the idea of going to a gym or treadmill when it is possible to be outdoors. It's bad enough that I have to sit in front of a computer and look at the day passing by...but what if this machine could do the job of running without the knee issues?

I got in touch with EliptiGo and they kindly offered to loan me a couple of their bikes to try out for a week. I was excited, but found the 8c bike a little bit strange for me. The SUB felt good, like an old shoe, and I found myself looking forward to my morning ride. I'd come home each day to tell my wife what new goal I had beaten. 

One thing I remember was that I kept thinking, "could you do the same thing with a BMX bike?" I'm not sure that would work. I used the gears quite a bit, especially doing the hills. The SUB felt like quality through and through, and I did get a lot of looks and questions. Everyone seemed a bit put off at the $800 price tag, but it seemed not so bad to me after spending a lot of time shopping for recumbent bikes. If you want something that is not currently selling in large volumes, the price is going to be a bit higher. What I was thinking about, was the possibility of becoming much fitter without hurting my knees.

 Another interesting thing I found was of the colors the bike came in, the neutral gray was perfect for this thing that made me think more of skateboarding than biking. 

I started missing the SUB the day Jordan picked it up to go on to another show. I was back to walking and trying to run..

I was left wondering....just how far could I go with that thing?

Trying to figure out my limits... that was a good feeling to have back...