Recumbents suited for commuting

If you are going to commute to your work the first question is how far do you have to ride. Most people don't want to ride more than 45 minutes. So the further you have to go the faster your recumbent has to be.

Speed

A low seating angle and high bracket height make a recumbent faster. This has al to do with air resistance. The smaller your front profile is the less wind you catch. this makes for a faster recumbent. Especially outside the town you benefit from this. In busy city traffic you have less of an advantage, there the view of traffic is more important.

Maintenance

Especially if you ride all year long, maintenance is a big part. Particularly if you have an open chain salt and brine can can destroy a chain and derailleur within weeks. Our experience is that even the most fanatic cleaner, after a bad winter, has maybe 5 or 6 gears that are still working.

The miles add up fast without noticing. If ride your recumben tdaily for 15 miles one way your will have 6000 miles a year. (15 miles 2 times a day 5 day a week and 40 working weeks) That is why annual milages of 8000 miles is not strange on a recumbent. On a two wheel recumbent this means minimal 1 set of chains and cassette and 1 set of tires.