Although for most of us Christmas time means we can’t ride our bikes, it is also a calm time when we can learn more about our big hobby. For example, by studying the recumbent cycle catalog with all known, but also many unknown brands. It already contains over 250 models from 56 brands. It is also a great moment in the year when we can please ourselves or someone else with a little recumbent gift.
Therefore, here are five tips to inspire you to where you can look for a beautiful Christmas gift that will delight a recumbent enthusiast.
Recumbent manufacturers and their accessories
Each of the manufacturers offers at least some accessories. The smaller ones may be only carriers, fenders, or headrests, the larger ones also offer, for example, their own bags, drinking bottles, or jerseys. You can find such accessories either directly on the websites of particular manufacturers or at your favorite dealer.
Terra Cycle
There is perhaps no better place to choose a recumbent bike accessory than Terra Cycle from Portland, Oregon. Patrick Franz and his team have an enormous range of all possible holders, brackets, pulleys, flags, windshields, etc. in their portfolio. You can order them from either T-Cycle website, or from one of the recumbent dealers. Terra Cycle distributor in Europe is Icletta.
Mugs, T-shirts and much more
My favorite gifts come from the Red Bubble portal, which offers a variety of mugs, T-shirts, cases for tablets or smartphones, pillows, and many other products with an even more diverse print. Whether it’s recumbent bikes, trikes, or velomobiles on it. Ordering is easy, delivery is quick. You can start browsing here, for example.
Books
There are never enough books and good reading in life. Recently I came across two interesting books. The first is Off the Rails by Tim Cope & Chris Hatherly, who spent 14 months on the way from Moscow to Beijing at the beginning of the millennium, spent the winter in Siberia during it, and covered a distance of 10,000 km / 6,200 miles. I have already had the opportunity to watch a DVD about this journey and the book, I think, will be just as good.
The second book is a biography of the well-known cycling designer Mike Burrows called From Bicycle to Superbike, which you can even have signed by Mike himself. It comes complete with his ‘bikeography’ – a full illustrated listing of the many and varied cycles he has created, complete with his own recollections on each of the 74 machines. You can find it here.
General bike accessories
And of course, we must not forget common bicycle accessories or clothes that will come in handy for every cyclist. And it doesn’t matter if a recumbentist or an upright cyclist. These include lights, bike computers, gloves, or new clipless pedals. Of course, there are many possibilities. You can buy from your favorite retailer or online. As part of the “buy local” approach, I would rather recommend the store near you.
Finally, it is necessary to mention the comprehensive overview of recumbent accessory manufacturers, which can be found on this website.
