Recumbant Riding - Sep 2025

Recumbents and the Lake

We thought we were going to the Grape Festival. Instead, we drove to Alfred.

I had wanted Serge to try a recumbent for a long time. Regular bikes were getting harder for him. He didn’t complain, but I could see it. When he finally had a free Saturday, we loaded the truck and went.

⭐ Day 1 — Test Rides at “Bicycle Man” in Alfred

Bicycle Man sat back from the road. We spent the afternoon riding loops around the property. Different brands. Different setups. I kept circling back to the ICE trikes. Serge rode a CatTrike with electric assist and didn’t want to give it back. Lisa surprised herself by loving an ICE trike so much she bought it on the spot.

At the counter, Serge’s card didn’t go through. It was supposed to have been paid. It hadn’t been. I put his bike on my card instead. We stood there for a minute and then moved on. By the time we loaded the bikes into the truck, everyone was smiling again.

On Sunday we drove to Geneva. Getting all the bikes into the truck took longer than it should have. Nothing broke. We started from the welcome center and rode along the north end of Seneca Lake. The water was bright. Sailboats moved slowly. It was warm enough to ride without thinking about layers.

From there we picked up the Seneca–Cayuga Trail. The path followed the river through woods and open land. Walnuts and acorns were everywhere. The trikes rolled over them without trouble.

We made it as far as Waterloo. Lisa was done by then. We stopped and ate. The food was better than expected. The break helped.

Serge rode steadily the whole way. He looked relaxed. I rode his trike for a few miles while he tried mine. He said he was finished with regular bikes. I didn’t argue.

Near the end, his tire went flat. I pumped it. It went flat again. We were close enough to see the truck.

Lisa rode both bikes back and came around on the path with the truck. I waited with Serge. We laughed more than we needed to. It wasn’t dramatic. It was just how the day ended.

The tires will need to be upgraded. We already know that.

Later, driving home, everyone was quiet in the good way. The lake stayed with me longer than expected.

The bikes weren’t the point.

Finding a way to keep riding together was.