Are recumbents really faster?
A. The answer to that is a definite ‘maybe.’ Some recumbents are designed for speed and are blazingly fast. Others are not. Generally, speed is achieved by either adding aerodynamic panels called ‘fairings’ or by severely reclining the rider in order to decrease the frontal area of the bike/rider combination. And, don’t forget, aerodynamics don’t mean anything unless the rider is strong enough to propel the bike to speeds where aerodynamics are a significant factor. The bottom line is recumbents don’t automatically make everyone faster.
