Is a bent good for this?

Bob Newman said:

I know recumbents are good if you have a bad back. My wife recently
"shattered" her kneecap and it will be a long recuperation. Would a
recumbent be any easier on the knee than a traditional road bike?

In my opinion, no.

I don't think recumbents are inherently better or worse for knees, but
they are more sensitive to getting the leg length adjustment spot on.
Consequently, a recumbent is more likely to cause knee troubles than
an upright (more tolerance on an upright).

I have problems with knees (twisted leg bones). Cycling is OK, if I
get the leg length adjustment (saddle height on an upright, boom
length on a recumbent) right. My recumbent took quite a bit of fine
tweaking to get the adjustment right, and I only succeeded with
slightly shorter cranks (less knee articulation). Uprights, I can
generally get right (ie, so they don't cause pain if I ride for 4 or 5
hours) more or less immediately, just by feel and a short ride to
fine-tune. I don't think the upright is easier to adjust, I think I
don't need to get the adjustment quite so precise.

Clearly, my knee problems are of a different sort, but I wouldn't
expect a recumbent to be better for a smashed up knee.

regards, Ian SMith
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Bob Newman said:

I know recumbents are good if you have a bad back. My wife recently
"shattered" her kneecap and it will be a long recuperation. Would a
recumbent be any easier on the knee than a traditional road bike?

I strongly suspect that recumbent bicycles may be harder on the knees,
UNLESS they are equipped with low enough gearing that the rider can
maintain a decent cadence while climbing. Quite a few recumbents come
with stock gearing that does not meet this criterion for a normal
strength rider.

--
Tom Sherman - Here, not there.

In alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent on Sat, 23 Sep 2006 16:01:42 -0400

Bob Newman said:

I know recumbents are good if you have a bad back. My wife recently
"shattered" her kneecap and it will be a long recuperation. Would a
recumbent be any easier on the knee than a traditional road bike?

I don't think it will be any worse if properly fitted and geared.

The big point is... which bike will she ride?

If she's happy to ride an upright, they are cheaper and easier to get.

If she isn't a rider already and isn't all that sure about bicycles
then I suspect a good comfortable bent might be a bike she'd ride more
often.

Zebee

Ian Smith said:

I don't think recumbents are inherently better or worse for knees, but
they are more sensitive to getting the leg length adjustment spot on.
Consequently, a recumbent is more likely to cause knee troubles than
an upright (more tolerance on an upright).

Oh... I find I'm far more sensitive to the seat height on my
various uprights than I've ever been to boom length on a 'bent, so
mileage appears to vary. 'bents I can generally get on and get
going and unless it's dramatically out that's fine, where a saddle
at an inch off the usual I usually notice and stop to change it.

Quoted message said:

Clearly, my knee problems are of a different sort, but I wouldn't
expect a recumbent to be better for a smashed up knee.

Similarly, I can't see anything about a 'bent which will make life
actively easier on a knee.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Bob Newman said:

I know recumbents are good if you have a bad back. My wife recently
"shattered" her kneecap and it will be a long recuperation. Would a
recumbent be any easier on the knee than a traditional road bike?

Thanks in advance... Bob

A recumbent handcycle would be very easy on the knee and maybe something to look into. If she can keep in shape while her kneecap heals then what is to lose? I am thinking about getting one for myself just for the upper body workout.
Mark