Retirement should be a time for new adventures and new challenges—especially here in Ibis where we love living life out loud. Neighborhood residents Norm and Beth Bennett have joined the increasingly popular world of recumbent biking as a way of staying active in what Norm calls “semi-retirement”, and they were kind enough to share their adventures with us.

“I’ve been casually cycling my entire life,” Norm tells us, but in recumbent biking he’s found a new passion for both recreation and community activity. “I kicked it up many notches in 2006 when I joined The Team In Training to improve my cycling abilities and at the same time raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.   I then rode to raise money for the Multiple Sclerosis Society.  I've continued riding since then, though there was a lull in activity for many years which is now being ratcheted back up as I'm semi-retired.”

 

Via our conversation with Norm, we learned some of the advantages that recumbent biking can offer folks new to the hobby: “One of the benefits of recumbent bicycles is that you sit lower to the ground than a standard diamond frame bicycle, which allows you to put both feet on the ground while still sitting on the seat.  This basically forms a ‘tripod’, your two feet and the bicycle.” This can make for a much safer and more stable riding experience, as Norm himself discovered the almost-hard way: “I once was coming around a corner quickly when the front tire blew-out.  I was able to quickly pop-out of the clips on the pedals and put both feet on the ground while bringing the bike to a controlled stop without wiping out.  This would not likely have been the case with your standard road bike.”

 

Safety advantages aside, what else sets recumbent biking apart? Per Norm and Beth, recumbent bikes offer “great low-impact cardiovascular exercise! Recumbent bicycles are much easier on your neck and butt since you are laying-back on a wide seat while peddling.  At the same time it improves your core strength due to the position on the reclined seat.”

Norm only noted one disadvantage to recumbent biking—but we don’t think it will discourage Ibis residents from taking up the hobby: “Going uphill on a recumbent can be a challenge since you can't put your body weight into the compression of the pedals, you have to "spin" up the hills.  However, you can overcome this disadvantage by training, and anyway Florida is not known for its hills!”