Reconnected with Robert Q. Riley​, the arguable founder of the modern-day recumbent bicycle (HERE is the fun podcast we did together). I had asked him to comment on a thread I had begun in which I had asserted the ground-breaking importance of his work. And understandably there were many who had not heard of him even though he sold many thousands of sets of recumbent plans well before the work of Smitty Smith, Jack Baker, Dick/Richard Walcott Ryan​ and the Avatar project, Gardner Martin, Timothy R. Brummer​, the IHPVA and etc.

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Here is what he said:
The original Ground Hugger was featured in the April 1969 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine (a major, at the time, popular magazine, it planted a seed, ed). Here’s a link to the information page on my site. It was the culmination of work I did throughout much of the sixties, beginning perhaps around 1963 with the first prototypes. Here’s a link to page from “The Recumbent Bike Forums”, which mentions the original Ground Hugger.

Here’s a link to a video of one of the early tests of the original prototype.  It was taken in Griffith Park, around LA, CA. I do not recall the year it was filmed (8mm film). But it was far in advance of the feature in Popular Mechanics – probably around 1964 or 65. That’s me riding it.

If he Googles “1969 Ground Hugger Popular Mechanics” he’ll find info on it. If he Googles just the name, “Ground Hugger”, he’ll find info on both the original Ground Hugger and the Ground Hugger XR2. If he Googles “Robert Q Riley” he’ll find “this guy”. But this guy is not mainly known for the recumbent work I did in the sixties. Here a link to my bio. If he Googles “Robert Q Riley Enterprises” he’ll find links to my site.

Taking from my bio, if he Googles “Numo” or “Lean Machine” he’ll find info on those. If he Googles “Alternative Cars in the 21st Century” he’ll find info on my book, which is mentioned in my bio. If he Googles “California Science Center”, and looks in the aerospace area he’ll find mention of my 1902 Wright glider that’s on permanent display there. Here’s a link to the reconstruction of the original (the one I flew in 1972), which was dropped and damaged around 2001 during remodeling there.  BTW. As near as I can determine, I am the first to fly a 1902 Wright glider since the Wright Brothers. I flew it in November of 1972. However, I will not guarantee that somebody did not do it before me. I found a report of someone having done it in 1973, after my flight.. But being “first” was not an issue for me, and I did not spend lots of time searching for a flight that might have preceded mine.

Afterthoughts:

There were folks that began manufacturing recumbents after my failed attempt to get it off the ground.  About two years prior to the feature in PM, we had a display at a dealer show at West Coast Cycle in LA (West Coast Cycle was bought many years ago and is now under a different name – owners at the time were Leo and Howard Cohen).   We took about 35 orders for the original Ground Hugger, and then could not deliver.  The 1969 PM feature, and the sale of all those plans, probably did a lot to stimulate interest in recumbents.   But the fellow that began manufacturing recumbents after the PM feature was probably more influential than my efforts.  But who knows.

I appreciate your invitation to join the recumbent group. I did not join because I’m absolutely overwhelmed with work and I do not want to be a “no show” who doesn’t participate. Give me a little time to get my head above water.

I noticed there there was a thread going on about who’s the best and the first. I don’t like those kinds of competitions, and I’m okay acknowledging the wonderful work of the others that actually manufactured products and worked years after I was involved in the field. My first prototype was about 1963. I did it for my own pleasure and fulfillment. I did try to begin manufacturing some time around 1965 or so, and was unsuccessful at putting enough dollars behind it. I’m still lousy at that sort of thing.

I am proud to have contributed to the field, but I don’t need to be the first or the best, and don’t want to be in those kinds of conversations. It feels good to be acknowledged as you have done. But I think these other folks that emerged in the field did a hell of a good job of it. I feel pretty good for having created such an elegant design, early on, and done it in a vacuum of prior art (as I understood it at the time). Even though I was in the bicycle business at the time, I did not know about the recumbents from the 1930s. So I was truly operating in a vacuum of knowledge about them, and I think I did a damn good job of it. There’s an elegance in that original Ground Hugger design that still looks good to me today. In fact, that exercise got me started in the product design field.

But I may join the group later on. And thank you for your acknowledgement and support.